Bill > HB3103

This bill amends the Department of Commerce and Economic Opportunity Law to modify how local tourism and convention bureau grants are administered. Specifically, starting July 1, 2025, a local tourism and convention bureau will be prohibited from receiving state funds if its geographic area is already represented by another certified tourism bureau. The bill maintains existing eligibility requirements for bureaus seeking grants, which include being a unit of local government or a non-profit organization, existing for at least two years, having a full-time paid staff dedicated to tourism promotion, and being affiliated with municipalities or counties that support the bureau through local hotel-motel taxes. The legislation continues to provide a framework for distributing tourism grants, with a complex funding allocation model that determines how funds are distributed across different population centers, and includes provisions for matching fund requirements that gradually increase from 25% to 40% over several fiscal years. The bill aims to prevent redundancy in tourism bureau coverage and ensure efficient use of state tourism promotion funds.

Government Affairs

https://www.ilga.gov/legislation/BillStatus.asp?DocNum=3103&GAID=18&DocTypeID=HB&SessionID=114&GA=104