Jackson – The Board of Supervisors addressed the question of how to divvy up funding Tuesday between the Amador Council of Tourism (ACT) and the Amador Chamber of Commerce and Visitors Bureau (ACVB). The heated discussion highlighted what some present perceived as longstanding tensions between the agencies. County Administrative Officer Terri Daly said there is a total budget of $28,109 allotted for funding and county promotion in the current fiscal year budget, $20,000 of which is strictly relative to ACT and ACVB. In past years, the two organizations had split a funding budget of up to $47,000, but the economic depression combined with the closure of major business sponsors like Prospect Motors has strained funding limits. The Supervisors were presented with the options of giving the entire $20,000 to one entity or another, adding additional money to the expenditure line, or choosing to fund neither organization. Each of the competing organizations was given the opportunity to present their case for funding. ACVB Executive Director Jacqueline Lucido said hers is “recognized as the leading agency in the county, the mothership.” She said “over 86 percent of business in this county is affected one way or another by tourism.” She said ACVB only “requires recognition” and the “necessary financial support”, but instead they have to “negotiate a handout.” In reference to methods of advertising, she has chosen not to run ads in the newspaper because “print media is the low man on the totem pole.” Maureen Funk of the Amador Council of Tourism said over 60 percent of her organization’s budget is used to promote tourism. “For every advertising dollar, we get a six time return on our investment,” she said. The two presenters were followed by a parade of audience members involved with various aspects of local tourism who voiced their support for one or both agencies. Jack Mitchell, Publisher of the local newspaper, followed Lucido’s earlier comment about print media by saying, “I’ve put funding towards (ACVB) and ACT as well…we need to fund both organizations.” Supervisor Plasse said these were “two agencies that have had a rather contentious relationship over the years.” Supervisor Richard Forster agreed with Plasse’s assessment and said “both organizations play a valuable role.” He said that while he thinks the Chamber is valuable, ACT is doing a great job of keeping up relationships with everyone in the community. He proposed funding ACT with $20,000 and taking $10,000 out of the contingency fund to give ACVB. This spurred Lucido to stand up and ask Forster to what contention he referred, to which Forster replied: “If you want me to air dirty laundry, I can.” After being further pushed by Lucido, Forster gave a specific example of his complaint by stating he does “not believe chamber employees should be talking to people at events and using swear words.” Supervisor Plasse recommended an additional $5000 be drawn from the contingency fund for each organization. “I am about the most fiscally conservative of anyone in the room…but I see the value from an economic standpoint and I see the value in trying to encourage tourism,” he said. Forster agreed to the amendment of additional funding. The board passed the motion unanimously. Story by Alex Lane This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.