COVID State Stimulus, 2020

I spearheaded a strategy to secure state stimulus funding during the pandemic as travel shutdowns cratered travel industry revenue. Visit California’s assessment collections were down 90% or more across all industry segments, forcing the organization to cancel all marketing programs and close all international offices, in addition to reducing staff by more than 50%.

I developed this document to make the case for a one-time $45 million state General Fund appropriation to get the travel industry back on its feet.

The effort was wildly successful, and the state appropriated $110 million across two fiscal years to fund Visit California marketing programs, accelerating the industry’s recovery from the pandemic.