Christy Sherman, executive director of the Richmond Hill Convention and Visitors Bureau, recently attended the Capitol’s "Tourism, Hospitality and Arts Day," along with other representatives from the Georgia tourism industry.

Attendees presented Governor Nathan Deal with a "check" symbolic of the $3 billion in state tax revenue generated from tourism-related expenditures for the year.

"The impact of the industry in Georgia is $59 billion," Sherman said. "In Bryan County alone, tourism supports 376 jobs, generates nearly $43 million in direct tourist spending and creates $1.7 million in state tax revenues and generates $1.3 million in local tax revenues."

The annual state event, a collaborative effort between several public and private organizations including the Georgia Association of Convention and Visitors Bureaus, Georgia Agritourism Association, Georgia Arts Network, Georgia Hotel and Lodging Association, Georgia Restaurant Association, and Georgia Department of Natural Resources, highlights the larger travel and tourism community during the legislative session.