Tourism Department seeks $750,000 for out‑of‑state marketing partnerships; committee questions sole‑source and duration

The Alabama Tourism Department presented two sole‑source contracts to the Contract Review Committee: one with Bridal South and another with the United States Civil Rights Trail Marketing Alliance. Grant Wallace, the department presenter, said the firms provide collective marketing and global promotional services that support visitation to Alabama sites.

A committee member noted the combined contract value was approximately $750,000 and asked whether the firms are out of state and whether they have common ownership. Wallace confirmed the firms are Atlanta‑based and that the department has worked with the Bridal South partner for at least a decade; the Civil Rights Trail Marketing Alliance is a more recent, multi‑state collaboration.

The committee also raised a procedural issue: the initial submission lacked a non‑appropriation clause. Wallace said the omission was corrected and pledged that the department would not repeat the error.

Wallace described Bridal South’s role as providing "marketing assessment and end market collective representation" and described the Civil Rights Trail Marketing Alliance as working to "elevate important historical sites that tell the stories of the civil rights movement and inspire travel within our state." The contracts were presented as sole‑source and the department said both firms collaborate with neighboring states on regional marketing efforts.

The transcript records questions and clarifications from committee members but no final recorded vote on the contracts during the meeting.