Los Angeles has created a new tourism marketing district that will generate funds to more aggressively promote the city. The unanimous vote by the Los Angeles City Council creates a citywide tourism marketing district (TMD), a sustainable new funding stream that is projected to yield an estimated $11 million a year to market Los Angeles to business and leisure travelers. Tourism is the region’s largest industry, employing more than 450,000 people. Business leaders believe that TMD-funded marketing will help draw substantially more visitors to the area. Currently, nearly 26 million people visit the region each year, contributing $12 billion to the local economy and creating $160 million in tax revenue. The TMD will be funded entirely by hotel visitors through a 1.5 percent assessment at mid-sized and large hotels in the city and will be administered by LA INC. The Los Angeles Convention and Visitors Bureau. Its approval by the City Council comes amid strong support from city leaders and LA’s hotel industry. Among hotels with 50 rooms or more, the threshold for inclusion in the TMD, nearly 80 percent voted in favor of the program. Los Angeles spent roughly $11 million on sales and marketing in 2010, less than half the amount spent by other large cities in California and approximately one-eighth of Las Vegas’ marketing budget. New York, Chicago, and Orlando also outspend Los Angeles to draw visitors. TMDs are an increasingly popular method to expand marketing budgets, having been adopted by more than 55 cities in California alone in recent years.  This page is protected by Copyright laws. Do Not Copy