Gov. Laura Kelly seeks to put tourism division under Kansas Department of Commerce

Gov. Laura Kelly said Monday that she will restructure the executive branch and attempt to put the state's tourism division under the Department of Commerce.

The governor's office cited input from businesses, destination marketing organizations and other key industry partners for the move, as a way to use Kansas’ tourism efforts primarily as an economic development tool.

“Consolidating our Tourism focus within the Department of Commerce sends a clear message to our industry partners and prospective companies that this administration will use every tool at our disposal to spur new economic development,” Kelly said in a statement. “This realignment will benefit our business community, our tourism industry, and Kansas’s economic recovery as a whole.” 

The tourism division is currently under the Kansas Department of Wildlife, Parks and Tourism, but after this move, "tourism" will be dropped from the name.

The division will be housed within business development at the Department of Commerce. The department already has experience with increasing tourism, including the Kansas Athletic Commission and the STAR Bond program. 

Department of Commerce Secretary David Toland told The Topeka Capital-Journal this was a common-sense move.

"Right now we have a system where we got the state's tourism efforts happening at the Department of Wildlife and Parks. You've got the development of tourist destinations happening at the Department of Commerce," he said. "We're missing opportunities to develop the high-quality attractions that are going to import net new dollars into the state. That's what tourism is about."

Currently, there have been some obstacles in developing tourism with this disjointed structure. The commerce department, for instance, is generally under nondisclosure agreements, so it isn't allowed to discuss tourism-related projects outside the agency.

"It's simply easier to have coordination when you're all part of the same agency," Toland said. 

Tourism-related groups like the Travel Industry Association of Kansas, the Kansas Restaurant & Hospitality Association and the Kansas Economic Development Alliance have come out in support of this move.

“The Kansas Restaurant & Hospitality Association agrees the Kansas hospitality community will be best served by having our Travel and Tourism efforts within the Kansas Department of Commerce,” association president Adam Mills said. “At a time when hospitality needs every reform possible this reorganization will reposition us as we grow out of the recent strains of the pandemic.”

The move becomes official July 1 unless the Legislature objects. Lawmakers have done so in the past when the governor wanted to merge the Department for Children and Families with the Department for Aging and Disability Services.

Toland said he doesn't expect lawmakers to object.

"The tourism partners ... they're all supporting this and I know they've had a number of conversations with legislators and the feedback that we've gotten is that legislators see the wisdom of making this change," he said.

A spokesperson for Senate President Ty Masterson, R-Andover, said he had no comment on the matter.