California travel ban to Texas over LGBT adoption bill could spell trouble for tourism industry

Texas business leaders are worried a ban on state-funded travel from California could put a dent in the Lone Star State’s travel industry. Texas business leaders are worried a ban on state-funded travel from California could put a dent in the Lone Star State’s travel industry. Photo: Express-News File Photo Photo: Express-News File Photo Image 1 of / 48 Caption Close California travel ban to Texas over LGBT adoption bill could spell trouble for tourism industry 1 / 48 Back to Gallery

California state employees can no longer use taxpayer dollars to travel to Texas because of a new Texas law the Golden State says discriminates against LGBT people who want to adopt — creating a potential new headache for the state’s tourism and travel industry.

The ban, announced by the California attorney general Thursday, doesn’t apply to California residents who still want to travel to the Lone Star State. But Texas tourism groups and business advocates have repeatedly warned state lawmakers that pursuing legislation perceived as discriminatory could make the state less attractive to businesses, conventions and sporting events, leading to a sizable economic fallout.

"Any travel ban is not good for business," said Casandra Matej, president and CEO of Visit San Antonio, the former city Convention and Visitors Bureau. "San Antonio and Texas remain a warm, inclusive destination that welcomes all, and these decisions position us in a negative light that may have a far greater overall impact than a travel ban from California or any particular state. In our business, perception is reality."

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Already, convention groups set to hold events in Texas are reconsidering their plans. Stephen Hartnett, president of the National Communication Association, based in Washington, D.C., told members Friday that the association is “seriously and sincerely considering a number of possible options” regarding its convention in Dallas in November because the ban “harms” California members who use public funds to travel.

“What is clear, and what has been clear for some time, is that a discriminatory brand creates significant and unnecessary economic risk for the state of Texas,” said Jessica Shortall, managing director of Texas Competes, a business group that backs the LGBT community.

David Teel, Texas Travel Industry Association CEO, blasted the state of California in an emailed statement Friday for “politicizing travel and tourism.”

"It's unfortunate the state of California is choosing to use travel as an economic weapon," Teel said. "Travel isn't a weapon, it's an experience. And, in Texas, we welcome everyone — Californians included — to experience the wonderful diversity of peoples, cultures, places and activities our great state has to offer. Visitors will always find something they like about Texas, and California politics can't change that."

California bars state funds from being used to travel to states that enact laws that "authorize or require discrimination on the basis of sexual orientation, gender identity or gender expression or against same-sex couples or their families," according to the California attorney general's office. On Thursday, California Attorney General Xavier Becerra banned state-funded travel to Texas, Alabama, Kentucky and South Dakota, citing "discriminatory" laws passed this year in all four states.

In Texas, that was House Bill 3859, signed June 15 by Gov. Greg Abbott. It protects religiously affiliated adoption groups that cite "sincerely held religious beliefs" to deny adoptions and services to prospective parents and children. Opponents say the law will allow religious groups to discriminate against LGBT couples who want to adopt.

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“Our country has made great strides in dismantling prejudicial laws that have deprived too many of our fellow Americans of their precious rights,” Becerra said in a statement Thursday. “Sadly, that is not the case in all parts of our nation, even in the 21st century.”

Texas officials were quick to fire back at California, fueling a long-standing rivalry between the two states. State Rep. Dustin Burrows, a Lubbock Republican, tweeted that he hopes Abbott will let state lawmakers “reciprocate” during a special legislative session convening in Austin next month. Abbott and Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton piled on by pointing out how many Californians have left the Golden State to relocate in Texas.

“California may be able to stop their state employees, but they can’t stop all the businesses that are fleeing over taxation and regulation and relocating to Texas,” Abbott spokesman John Wittman said in an email Friday.

“The truth is that businesses look at what is best for their bottom line, and Texas is that place,” he added.

But the California ban worries tourism groups and event organizers.

“We have been concerned that discriminatory legislation could negatively effect tourism in Texas, and this could be the first sign of the impact,” said Tom Noonan, president and CEO of Visit Austin, the state capital’s convention and visitors organization. “Visit Austin doesn’t support discriminatory legislation of any kind, and we will continue to promote the inclusive nature of our city and state.”

South by Southwest Festival, the annual 10-day music, film and technology gathering in Austin, said the Texas legislation has “alarming religious and anti-LGBTQ ramifications. We are concerned that we will lose not only California state employee attendees but also attendees from across the globe if the state of Texas continues to message to the world that it supports and will legalize discrimination.”

Speculation mounted on Twitter that San Jose State University would have to pull out of its Sept. 9 football game against the Texas Longhorns at Darrell K. Royal Stadium in Austin because of the ban.

Not so, said Lawrence Fan, a spokesman for San Jose State. The California ban carves out an exception for commitments made prior to Jan. 1. Officials with San Jose State and the University of Texas signed a contract for the game in September 2016, Fan said, allowing the team to play in Texas — for now.

Tourism groups across the state have fretted for months as lawmakers weighed legislation that would bar transgender Texans from using bathrooms in public buildings corresponding with their gender identity. The legislation died in the regular session, but state lawmakers are scheduled to tackle the issue again in the special session, which starts July 18.

Business leaders have warned state lawmakers that passing such legislation would lead to discrimination and make the state less competitive. A group of 14 executives including Facebook CEO Mark Zuckerberg, Apple CEO Tim Cook, Dell Technologies CEO Michael Dell and Hewlett Packard Enterprises CEO Meg Whitman wrote to Abbott last month imploring the Legislature not to pursue “discriminatory” legislation.

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And officials in San Antonio, Austin, Dallas and Houston — the state’s four largest cities — have said their cities could see combined economic losses of at least $407 million if dozens of groups that have planned or are looking at the state for future meetings pass over Texas should a so-called bathroom bill become law.

In San Antonio, three convention groups that had been expected to bring $3.1 million in spending have already decided not to come here over the possibility of transgender bathroom legislation. City and state officials worry that such legislation could cost San Antonio the NCAA Final Four championship in 2018.

NCAA spokeswoman Stacey Osburn did not return an email requesting comment.

Convention groups have also yanked their events from Texas cities over Senate Bill 4, which will allow law enforcement officers to ask people who get arrested or are detained for questioning about their immigration status and will penalize officers who don’t comply with federal immigration law. The American Hispanic Lawyers Association relocated its 3,000-member conference — set for next year in Grapevine, near Dallas — to San Francisco because of the law.

The National Women’s Studies Association also cited the bill when dropping Dallas from a bidding process for its 2020 convention, VisitDallas spokeswoman Stephanie Faulk said in an email.

jfechter@express-news.net

Twitter: @JFreports