b'LETTER FROM THE EXECUTIVE DIRECTOROptimism for the Future Orleans, PVA leaders and staff hit the ground running; working on a variety of issues and From all indications, the U.S. economyprograms of importance to PVA members. continues to be strong, driving employ-ment and underpinning a continuing robustA Successful PVA Congressional Fly-Indomestic travel and tourism market. WhileDuring more than 30 pre-scheduled some experts have pointed to a possiblemeetings on Capitol Hill, PVA members slowdown of the U.S. economy due to tradehighlighted legislative wants as well as policy, tariff disputes and other influences,John Groundwater discussed future and emerging issues of im-there appears to be confidence that strong per- portance to the passenger vessel industry. formance in travel and tourism will continue.Armed with talking points and information This should bode well for the passenger vessel industryabout the passenger vessel industry, these individuals, at-large in the coming months. along with PVA staff members, did an excellent job advo-The U.S Department of Commerces National Travelcating for industry issues before Members of Congress and and Tourism Office reports that in 2018 internationalcongressional staff. travelers to the U.S. increased by 3.5%-or 76 million inter- The following are a just few of the issues that PVA has national visitorscompared to a 1.8% decrease in 2016 andbeen working on recently:an increase of only 0.7 percent in 2017.Illegal ChartersFor 2018, the U.S Travel Associations (USTA) inter- PVA has been extremely vocal in focusing attention on national travel estimates generally mirror those of thethe surge of illegal charter operators on our nations Department of Commerce. USTA has also reported that inwaterways. We have been working closely with the Coast 2018 U.S. domestic leisure travel increased by 2.0 percentGuard to encourage broader enforcement and in de-to a total of 1.8 billion person trips, which they indicateveloping tools to allow the public to more easily report accounted for 80 percent of all U.S. domestic travel inillegal charter operators in their areas. The Coast Guard that year. USTA has further reported that combined 2018last month arrested an individual on federal charges for domestic and international travelers spent approximate- allegedly conducting repeated illegal charter boat opera-ly $1.1 trillion in the U.S., which supported 8.9 milliontions in Chicago. We are pleased to see progress being travel-related jobs, with a payroll of $268 billion. Pointingmade, but believe that there more needs to be done to to the economic benefit of travel and tourism on the U.S.combat this growing problem. economy USTA states, Travelers produce multiplierSharing the Waterways impacts on the U.S. economy. In addition to the goodsPVA continues to work with individuals from government and services that are produced directly by travelers, theand the recreational boating industry to explore solutions inputs used to produce these goods and services are alsofor our increasing congested waterways. Our associa-purchased through indirect travel operators. To furthertion is encouraging these groups to bolster training and demonstrate the significant contribution that the travel andeducation of the boating public to ensure safe operations. tourism industry makes to overall U.S. economy, USTAPVA is urging the Congressional passage of H. R. 1669, in-estimates that 1 in 10 non-farm jobsfor a total of 15.7troduced by Congressman Peter King, which would direct million jobs are directly or indirectly impacted by thethe Coast Guard to evaluate and report on existing recre-travel industry. ational boater training programs and recommend training We at PVA are very optimistic about the future of ouroptions.industry and the significant role that it plays in the U.S. travel, tourism and transportation industries. We are op- Radar Refresher Training timistic about prospects for a continuing strong economyIn an effort to help reduce the impact of burdensome regu-and for a concurrent expansion of markets and innova- lation on PVA member companies, PVA advocated for the tions in the passenger vessel industry. Our association iselimination of the requirement for mariners with previous working vigorously to represent PVA members interestsexperience and prior training from attending refresher here in Washington, D.C. and to do everything that we cantraining courses to renew their radar observer endorse-to help promote a healthy business environment for thement on their Merchant Mariner Credential. In June, the passenger vessel industry.Coast Guard published a final rule eliminating this re-quirement. Progress in 2019This year has been a particularly active and busy yearUpdate of PVA Non Tank Vessel Response Plan Templatefor PVA, its leaders and its staff. Following an excellentPVA is updating the template for members to use when PVA Annual Convention at MariTrends 2019 in Newsubmitting their Non-Tank Vessel Response Plans to the EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR, CONTINUED ON PAGE 42AUGUST 2019FOGHORN 5'