Tourism Could Play a Role in State Economic Recovery — But the Agency Overseeing It Needs More Accountability

A series of articles produced by the Oregon Journalism Project and published on the Source website this past month have highlighted an ongoing concern regarding the state’s tourism promotion agency, Travel Oregon. According to OJP reporting, Travel Oregon’s executive director — who’s formally retiring this week — has earned a salary that far outstrips the salaries of department leaders in state government who manage far bigger teams, with far bigger budgets and far more important tasks. But unlike the scrutiny faced by department heads at the Oregon Health Authority or the Oregon Department of Transportation, for example, Travel Oregon doesn’t have to put its budget — or the salary of its executive — under the microscope of lawmakers. What’s more, according to the reporting, that lack of oversight may have led to the misuse or under-investment of monies dedicated to supporting tourism businesses in the state. In addition, Travel Oregon is not required to seek competitive bids when it goes out for things like advertising contracts, as they would in a more formal state agency, leading to a potential ballooning of costs.

This all concerning on a number of levels.

As OJP’s James Neff put it: “In a state with abysmal educational outcomes, the nation’s second-highest rate of unsheltered homelessness, and mental health services that consistently languish at the bottom of national rankings, there are far larger problems than a dysfunctional tourism agency. But the governor and the Legislature’s benign neglect of Travel Oregon is, to some critics, evidence of the lack of accountability elsewhere in state government.”

Travel Oregon’s executive reports to a Legislature-appointed board, which has continually voted to raise the salary of its ED, beyond industry norms, and far beyond the percentages afforded to managers in other state agencies. A 2020 audit by the Oregon Secretary of State found the same — that Travel Oregon’s ED and his staff were lavishly paid.

With a search forthcoming for a new executive director, now’s the time for a reset. That could come in the way of a recalibrated salary for the new leader. Ensuring fairness among government and quasi-government leadership salaries is one way to right this ship. But there’s another reason for a reset.

Last month, Oregon lawmakers found they will have about $500 million less to spend for the 2025-2027 budget cycle than they thought just a few months prior. Looming cuts to Medicaid from the federal level could be another big hit for Oregon, where the Oregon Health Plan is covered by Medicaid.

Tourism and outdoor recreation helped transform Oregon’s economy from an extractive, timber-based economy to one where our state’s natural beauty is celebrated and admired. Locally, tourism plays a big role in Central Oregon’s economy – perhaps to the point where some locals don’t want the area advertised any longer. But there’s no denying the economic boon tourism has been to our region.

State lawmakers must have seen the potential when they created the Travel Oregon agency 20 years ago and decided to fund it through a portion of hotel taxes. According to the OJP reporting, tourism generates about $14 billion for the state annually and creates about 120,000 jobs.

While this year’s legislative session is nearly over, next session, the Legislature should consider bringing new oversight to the agency, and more fiscal guardrails, not least in part because tourism has a place in any economic recovery. If the state is in trouble financially, shouldn’t we get the most bang for our buck in how we advertise our state to visitors?

With so many jobs and so much money riding on tourism, it’s more than appropriate to require that the stewards of a $45 million Travel Oregon budget should have the oversight necessary to ensure they’re not just participating — but perhaps even leading — the charge in any economic recovery efforts Oregon will need to mount in the coming years.

This article appears in Source Weekly June 26, 2025.