2013-06-19T22:47:04-04:00 Rep. Sam Farr http://www.huffingtonpost.com/author/index.php?author=rep-sam-farr Copyright 2008, HuffingtonPost.com, Inc. HuffingtonPost Blogger Feed for Rep. Sam Farr Good old fashioned elbow grease. tag:www.huffingtonpost.com,2012:/theblog//3.1856076 2012-09-05T07:30:00-04:00 2012-11-05T05:12:01-05:00

Rep. Sam Farr http://www.huffingtonpost.com/rep-sam-farr/
The dedicated workers in these fields form a large part of what is the travel and tourism industry here in America. Alongside travel guides, recreational workers, local shop owners and countless other jobs, millions of employees rely directly on tourism for their paycheck.

Travel also indirectly supports even more jobs. For instance, we see this indirect impact when a hotel or restaurant pays a third-party vendor for their goods or services. These dollars continue to flow down the supply chain, helping to boost the economy along their way. Money spent by a traveler ripples through a local economy, supporting other jobs such as farmers who grow food or utility workers who help provide energy for production.

As the co-chair of the Congressional Travel and Tourism Caucus, I understand the vital role this industry plays in our nation's economic recovery. Travel injects $1.9 trillion into the national economy and supports 14.4 million jobs here in the United States.

That is 14.4 million and counting because those numbers are not just growing but are growing at a faster pace than almost every other employment sector. The travel industry is expanding at a rate of 29% per year, faster than the economy as a whole.

Travel and tourism's ability to outpace the rest of the recovery is due, in large part, to the influx of foreign visitors in recent years. Two years ago, I helped pass the Travel Promotion Act to create Brand USA, the first national destination marketing organization for the United States.

Brand USA's goal is simple: bring more visitors to the United States. The goal is simple but the challenge is huge. Working in conjunction with the Department of Commerce, Brand USA is developing strategies to bring millions more foreign visitors here to the United States.

Thanks to their efforts, we have already seen an influx of foreign travelers -- not just in the typical hot spots like New York City or Las Vegas but throughout the entire country. As part of its Discover America campaign, Brand USA ran advertisements in Canada, Japan, the United Kingdom, China, Brazil and South Korea, effectively promoting travel destinations all across the great country. The proof is in the results: Travel now ranks as the number six industry in total U.S. employment and is in the top ten for 48 of 50 states.

Seeing the potential for job growth, President Obama announced last January a national tourism strategy focused on job creation. Standing in front of Disney World's Cinderella Castle, he called tourism "the number one service we export."

We have already begun to see the success of the President's announcement. In the first six months of this year, international visitors spent an estimated $82.2 billion on U.S. travel and tourism-related goods and services, an 11 percent increase over the same period last year. Each one of those foreign dollars helps build up our economy and create new jobs that can never be outsourced overseas.

We are just now beginning to realize the benefits of Brand USA and the President's national tourism strategy. In the coming months, Brand USA will continue to invest in drawing more foreign visitors to the United States by marketing ourselves to the world. In doing so, the future not only looks bright for the travel industry but for the national economy as well.

This post is part of the HuffPost Shadow Conventions 2012, a series spotlighting three issues that are not being discussed at the national GOP and Democratic conventions: The Drug War, Poverty in America and Money in Politics. Check out the Shadow Conventions big news page here, and join the conversation at HuffPost Live.]]> tag:www.huffingtonpost.com,2011:/theblog//3.830278 2011-03-02T11:56:48-05:00 2011-05-25T18:35:25-04:00

Rep. Sam Farr http://www.huffingtonpost.com/rep-sam-farr/
Through war and conflict, Peace Corps volunteers have delivered to the world an inspiring, uplifting side of humanity that reflects Americans' better nature -- service to others in the common cause of global peace and development.

As we write this, more than 8,600 Peace Corps volunteers are working in 77 developing countries on crucial health, education and infrastructure projects. Even as the international community is fractured by transnational conflict and escalating nuclear threats, the Peace Corps stands alone as an unparalleled beacon of peace and optimism.

It does all this at a fraction of the cost that Washington pays to send other Americans overseas. For the price of deploying one solider to Afghanistan, the Peace Corps can send 13 volunteers to serve their country in a developing nation.

In fact, the Peace Corps' total budget amounts to .01 percent of our total federal budget. Dollar for dollar, Peace Corps volunteers are one of the federal government's most effective agents of diplomacy and development, yielding an incredible return on investment. There are more than 20 countries now asking for their first volunteers and still other countries have requested an increase in the number they do have.

Within five years after Kennedy's call to action in 1961--and under the skillful leadership of Sargent Shriver--the Peace Corps had more than 15,000 volunteers working in 44 developing countries. This project demonstrated to the international community the solid American values of peace and prosperity, then overshadowed by the Cold War.

Today, the Peace Corps stands as one of the most enduring expressions of international cooperation. It has allowed more than 200,000 Americans to serve in 139 developing countries. Volunteers work shoulder-to-shoulder with millions of individuals on essential health, education, agricultural and technology projects, designed to lift up local capacity and aid community ownership.

Peace Corps volunteers are helping countless individuals who want to build a better life for themselves, their children and their communities. Volunteers are working in Samoa to improve literacy; helping build a community library and computer lab in Ghana, and increasing water access for indigenous villages in Panama.

With little resources, these volunteers serve with the spirit of public service that makes America an enduring beacon of hope and prosperity.

Taken together, the Peace Corps has contributed more than 400,000 years of service to the world in the spirit of peace and development. While the Peace Corps has now a world-renowned institution, it continues to innovate and evolve - responding to the needs of a rapidly changing world.

Peace Corps volunteers represent the hope and opportunity that make America great. We mark the 50th anniversary by honoring their service and ushering in the next generation of volunteers to serve our nation in the name of peace.

Rep. Mike Honda (D-Calif.) Honda served in in the Peace Corps in El Salvador from 1965-67. Rep. Sam Farr (D-Calif.) served in the Peace Corps in Colombia from 1964-66. Rep. Tom Petri (R-Wis.) served in Somalia from 1966-67. Rep. John Garamendi (D-Calif.) served in Ethiopia from 1966-68.]]>