While August usually serves as a welcome respite from the many meetings that occupy the other 11 months of the year, TIABC continues to work on several files that remain open and active.

 

This week, Policy Committee chair Bruce Okabe, vice-chair Paul Nursey and I met with Minister Peter Fassbender (Minister responsible for Translink) to formally present TIABC's policies on ride-sharing and short-term rentals. Minister Fassbender has been charged with soliciting feedback from a wide array of stakeholders to explore issues and opportunities pertaining to the sharing economy with a view to determining government's role in regulating or facilitating changes. A report on what government now refers to as 'ride-sourcing' will be ready for further public input in September.

 

On a related note, TIABC was successful in its bid to host a workshop during September's UBCM convention in Victoria on the ramifications of short-term rentals (STRs) throughout the province. While I have the privilege of moderating the session, I'm more excited by the calibre and influence of the panellists that include:  Tourism Whistler CEO Barrett Fisher; BC Hotel Association CEO James Chase; Tofino Mayor Josie Osborne; Nelson Mayor Deb Kozak; and Revelstoke Chamber of Commerce Executive Director Jamie Mayes. TIABC continues to play a lead role on this file with the goal of seeing a provincial regulatory framework to allow for the collection of accommodation taxes by service providers such as Airbnb. It is expected that the workshop will be lively and well attended as communities debate a proposed resolution on STRs.

 

Last week, TIABC submitted a formal position to the province on formula funding for Destination British Columbia (DBC).  Our board's preferred option revolves around the premise that an annual budget appropriation is necessary supplemented by a percentage of the aggregate PST collected by accommodation providers, bookended with a floor and ceiling on the amount remitted to DBC in any given year.  The province is actively reviewing formula funding with an anticipated outcome sometime this fall.

 

Other files on the go include TIABC's work on the Emergency Preparedness and Reputation Management initiative being led by Destination BC with committee members that also include Cariboo Chilcotin Coast Tourism Association's Amy Thacker (chair), TOTA's Glenn Mandziuk, Aboriginal Tourism BC's Brenda Baptiste, Angela Rafuse, and Andrew Little of the Tourism Policy Branch.  The committee's mandate is to provide advice on future roles and responsibilities, as well as actions tourism industry organizations and stakeholders can take when dealing with emergency situations or activities that may impact the reputation of tourism partners, tourism regions and/or the province as a whole.  The committee's first report and recommendations will be unveiled in September.

 

You may recall that TIABC submitted a position paper with recommendations to government in January regarding proposed regulation changes that would have seriously impacted British Columbia's burgeoning Agri-tourism sector. We are pleased to see that government has brought clarity to permitted agri-tourism activities and established new opportunities around events such as weddings , concerts and festivals on farmland to help farmers supplement their incomes . Complete details are available on the Ministry of Agriculture's website:  news.gov.bc.ca/ministries/agriculture

 

On the labour file, TIABC has partnered with go2HR to develop a report that helps to inform the business case on the need for a Seasonal Tourism Workers Program (STWP) to address labour shortages throughout BC.  The report will be shared with the federal government who is in the midst of reviewing the revised Temporary Foreign Workers Program with more anticipated changes to be introduced this fall.  We recognize that STWP is not the panacea for labour challenges but merely one step as part of a much larger solution to address the need. However, it behoves us to explore interim measures to provide some relief to employers before more permanent or broader changes are implemented.

 

And finally (at least for this newsletter), I am pleased to have been asked to serve on the committee overseeing the development of a first-ever joint strategy to support, sustain, and grow adventure tourism (AT) in the province.  The s trategy will help to shape the future of the AT sector for years to come, inspiring new ways of th inking about adventure tourism and its many benefits, as well as identifying concrete measures to support the AT businesses that play such a key role in providing world-class experiences to visitors to BC.

 

Please be sure to visit the Members-only section of our website for further details on our formula funding submission.  In the meantime, I hope you take time to #ExploreBC this summer.