The Department of Commerce Spends Over $7 Million on Tourism
The Department of Commerce provided over $7 million in grants to tourism Councils and Bureaus.
by Mark Cavers
In 2008 and 2009, the Department of Commerce provided $7,386,192.94 in grants to twelve different tourism agencies. The largest recipient of these funds was the Chicago Convention and Tourism Bureau which received $6,130,844.97. The Chicago Convention & Tourism Bureau is the premier sales and marketing organization that promotes Chicagos world-class assets to global leisure travel and convention business. Its website states that it receives State of Illinois grant monies for development of local conventions and tourism. In addition to state grants, the CCTB is also funded by membership fees, grants from the Metropolitan Pier and Exposition Authority, and it receives a portion of the Chicagos hotel/motel tax.
The second largest recipient of grants was the Western Illinois Tourism Council, which received $257,747.85 in grants (for a complete breakdown of grant amounts by agency see the table below). In addition to these grants, the Department of Commerce also paid the Western Illinois Tourism Council $1,371,133.76 for Professional Services.
You can find this information for yourself by going to IllinoisOpenGov.org, clicking on the Checks to Businesses & People section, and
searching for any of the agencies listed below in the vendor section.
