New budget rules mean changes.
But list of rules means big changes are in store
TALLAHASSEE — Visit Florida got its funding, but may have lost its swagger.
A drop in international tourists, turnover of its top executives and new rules regarding transparency and howit spends money have board members of the state’s publicprivate tourism promotion group questioning whether they can meet this year’s goal of 120million tourists.
“If we can hit it, it’s spectacular, but I think it’s quite optimistic,” Gene Prescott, Visit Florida board member and treasurer of the Biltmore Hotel in Miami, said during a recent board meeting.
Visit Florida has boasted about five straight years of record tourism numbers, including 112.3 million in 2016. But a brutal legislative battle between House Speaker Richard Corcoran, R-Land O’Lakes, who initially wanted to abolish the agency, and Gov. Rick Scott, led to losing momentum in drawing in tourists, Prescott said.
“The first five or six months of this year in terms of our funding and the uncertainty, it’s meant that we haven’t had the focus,” he said. “Haven’t had the focus in terms of having the sales effort, you’ve had turnover in staff, all of which are understandable.”
Ultimately, Scott and Corcoran reached a deal that gave Visit Florida $76 million but imposed more transparency regulations and tighter rules on howit can spend money. The deal was sealed in June during a special session called by Scott, but the original budget would’ve left Visit Florida with just $25 million.
The new rules, part of a bill signed by Scott, include posting most contracts online, getting legislative approval for contracts over $750,000, and stricter requirements on travel spending by employees. There’s also a requirement that Visit Florida get private funds to match its public funding.
Visit Florida officials say they’re now much more transparent and are focused strictly on marketing campaigns. The group is dropping a $2.9 million sponsorship of a car racing team, and is renegotiating a $1.2 million deal with an English second-division soccer club. Its deal with Miami rapper Pitbull was dropped last year.
“No one-offs, no fluff, no things that we can’t measure. We’re only going to do those things that we can have a quantifiable( return on investment) on ,” said Nelson Mong io vi, Visit Florida’ s new chief marketing officer.
Before the budget deal was reached, the battle took a toll on Visit Florida’s top brass. The agency’s CEO, chief marketing officer and chief operating officer left in December, after it was revealed Pitbull received $1 million as part of a previously secret deal to promote the state. Corcoran had sued the artist’s management company for the contract details.
Nowthe group’s vice president of global meetings, Alfredo Gonzalez, and its international marketing program director, Shari Bailey, are also leaving the agency.