Each summer Illinois' tourism industry heats up as millions visit our state for a wide variety of attractions. At $15 billion a year, tourism is a booming industry and major source of revenue for local, county and state government. As Comptroller, I am pleased to watch our economy grow through the utilization of such tourist activities.

Conventions, festivals, professional sports, museums, theater, historical landmarks and other attractions are what bring international, national and local visitors into a community. With tourists come businesses, and businesses bring jobs, housing and economic growth.

Excluding shopping malls, the ten top attractions in Illinois in 1994 with their attendance figures were:

1. Chicago museums (8.5 million)
2. Chicago sporting events (5.4 million)
3. Carlyle Lake (4.0 million)
4. Lincoln Park Zoo (3.0 to 4.0 million)
5. Lake Shelbyville (3.1 million)
6. Six Flags Great America (2.9 million)
7. Taste of Chicago (2.8 million)
8. Illinois Beach Park (2.5 million)
9. Brookfield Zoo (2.1 million)
10. Chicago Air and Water Show (1.9 million)

Illinois' rich and diverse history is also a major enhancement to its tourism industry, and another big reason why visitors choose this state for travel. Nearly 13 out of every 100 visitors to Illinois come here specifically for our historic offerings — 12.8 (excluding Chicago) compared to 8.4 as the average for midwestern states. The national average is slightly less than Illinois' at 12.4.

Statewide, estimated employment generated by domestic travel in Illinois for 1992 (the latest year for which complete comparative data is available) is 207,000 jobs or 4.0% of total state employment.

Illinois is an attractive destination for both business and recreational travelers. As home to 40 of the Fortune 500 companies and O'Hare, the nation's busiest airport, Illinois is a major destination for business travelers.

Illinois actively markets its parks and other outdoor attractions to residents from surrounding states. Southern Illinois is noted for its scenery and many historic river towns. Central Illinois draws more than a million visitors each year to its Abraham Lincoln historic sites. Chicago's world class cultural sites are attracting growing numbers of international travelers.

The good news is that travel continues to increase... from 1983 to 1993, spending on domestic travel in Illinois grew 123.4%. Over the same period, total state employment increased 17.4%.

What does Illinois spend to receive the $15 billion dollars annually in tourist dollars? In fiscal year, 1994, the General Assembly appropriated $27.4 million for the state's travel promotion program. Illinois ranked second to Hawaii ($29.0 million travel budget) in travel spending among states. What we can learn from these numbers is that our return on investment is doing quite well and secondly it becomes clear that tourism is fast becoming one of Illinois' leading industries.

August 1995 / Illinois Municipal Review / Page 25