Highlights from the Remarks by
U.S. Commerce Secretary Don Evans
to the New York University Hospitality Industry Conference
June 3, 2002
New York, NY

· I often talk about the obligations that come with leadership. As leaders, you share America's values. You are stewards of the American dream. You have fundamental and fiduciary commitments: to employees, constituents, shareholders and communities. Whether meeting a payroll or making policy decisions, people count on you every day. Along with those commitments, however, is a higher obligation of stewardship.

· Your industry is uniquely qualified to do this. By building bridges between peoples and cultures, the travel and tourism industry carries the message of the American dream around the world. It also creates the opportunities for the American dream to come true for working men and women.

· The travel and tourism industry is one of our nation's largest employers. It directly supports the jobs of more than seven million working men and women. It contributes enormously to America's economy. According to our Commerce Department estimates, last year, travel and tourism generated more than $90 billion in export revenue – and provided a nearly $8 billion trade surplus. This was the 13th year in a row we had a surplus in travel and tourism. And we thank you for this record. Preliminary numbers show that in 2001, approximately $545 billion was spent on travel here in the United States. That brought $94 billion in tax revenue to local, state and federal governments.

· No question, however, these numbers were affected by the tragedy of 9/11. After the attacks, tourism to the United States dropped dramatically. This contributed to an 11 percent decline in international visitors in 2001, cutting our trade surplus in this sector by nearly half. We appreciate what the industry did to help our nation get through that challenging time. And, as President Bush said in his National Tourism Week proclamation, as we have encouraged people to resume the regular course of their lives, Americans and visitors from around the world are responding.

· Our just-released forecast indicates that international travel to the United States is heading in the right direction. We expect it to increase this year, and to continue to recover, reaching – and exceeding – its 2000 levels within the next two and half years.

· When I was in Japan last month, I signed a Memorandum of Understanding with Japanese Minister Oogi. This supports a Tourism Initiative to increase travel between our nations. Our agreement with Japan is in direct partnership with the American travel and tourism industry. It's one of many steps this Administration is taking to keep the numbers moving in the right direction.

· The President's support for airline stabilization and airline security legislation were key early steps that will pay long-term dividends in this effort. The President, along with many of us in the Administration, has been spreading the message about the safety of travel to, and within, our country to rebuild consumer confidence. This was a recommendation of the travel and tourism industry executives with whom I met two weeks after the terrorist acts.