Office of Tourism outlines marketing performance fund, warns of lower funding and prioritizes stewardship

Summary

The Utah Office of Tourism told the appropriation subcommittee that tourism supports jobs and tax revenue statewide, that the tourism marketing performance fund has fallen by about $2.5 million to its lowest level (excluding COVID years) in nearly a decade, and that marketing, co‑op grants and stewardship remain core priorities.

Office of Tourism reports fund structure, resident sentiment and marketing priorities

Natalie Randall, managing director of the Utah Office of Tourism, briefed the Economic and Community Development Appropriation Subcommittee on Oct. 14, 2025, on the structure and recent performance of the Tourism Marketing Performance Fund and the office’s current marketing and stewardship strategy.

The fund matters because tourism dollars circulate through local businesses, support state and local tax revenue, and underwrite marketing and stewardship efforts the office says help spread visitation across the state.

What the office presented

Randall described the fund’s current allocation: 10 percent automatically goes to the Utah Sports Commission, 20 percent finances the office’s cooperative marketing grant program for local communities, and the remaining 70 percent supports statewide marketing, development and stewardship work. She told the committee that reductions in recent budgets have trimmed the tourism marketing performance fund by about $2.5 million from prior…

Office of Tourism outlines marketing performance fund, warns of lower funding and prioritizes stewardship

Summary

Subscribe to keep reading