Press Release: Gov. Evers Delivers Radio Address Celebrating Record-Breaking Year for Wisconsin Tourism

State of Wisconsin sent this bulletin at 06/15/2023 10:10 AM CDT
Office of Governor Tony Evers
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE: June 15, 2023
Contact: GovPress@wisconsin.gov 
 
Gov. Evers Delivers Radio Address Celebrating Record-Breaking Year for Wisconsin Tourism
 
Audio File of Radio Address.

MADISON — Gov. Tony Evers today delivered the Democratic Radio Address celebrating 2022 economic impact data showing Wisconsin’s tourism industry generated $23.7 billion in total economic impact, surpassing the previous record year of $22.2 billion set in 2019. More information on Wisconsin’s record-breaking year can be found here, and more information on Governor Evers’ plans to bolster the state’s tourism industry can be found here.

Hey there, folks. Governor Tony Evers here with some great news to share.

In 2022, Wisconsin’s tourism industry had a great year—a record-breaking year, in fact!

All told, Wisconsin’s tourism industry had a whopping $23.7 billion—that’s billion with a B—total economic impact, leaving our previous record year in 2019 in the dust.

According to the numbers, each one of our 72 counties saw year-after-year growth in total economic impact. The industry supported 174,600 jobs across various sectors of the industry and generated $1.5 billion—that's with a B—in state and local tax revenue.

This record-breaking year is a testament to the hard work of our business owners, workers, and marketing partners across the industry, to Secretary Sayers and her team at the Department of Tourism, and to our strategic investments to bolster the industry over the past few years.

And in my state budget, I proposed several strategic investments that would’ve helped Wisconsin tourism grow even bigger.

While we didn’t get everything we wanted in our budget, I'm committed to keep supporting Wisconsin tourism to ensure it continues to break records.

And we’re excited to see new investments in promotion and opportunity attraction and in marketing that will surely be put to good use.

It’s clear that this industry and our Department of Tourism are a powerhouse of economic development and prosperity in our state.

And it’s because of experiences that are uniquely Wisconsin and people—Wisconsinites and Wisconsinites at heart—who help make memories last a lifetime and keep families coming back.

All of it is what makes record-breaking years like 2022 possible and what makes Wisconsin such a special place to visit and call home.

Thank you.
 
An online version of this release is available here.
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