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[Pages S5185-S5186]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
COMMEMORATING ``CRUISE TRAVEL PROFESSIONAL MONTH'' IN OCTOBER 2016
Ms. MURKOWSKI. Mr. President, I ask unanimous consent that the
Commerce Committee be discharged from further consideration of and the
Senate now proceed to the consideration of S. Res. 486.
The PRESIDING OFFICER. Without objection, it is so ordered.
The clerk will report the resolution by title.
The senior assistant legislative clerk read as follows:
A resolution (S. Res. 486) commemorating ``Cruise Travel
Professional Month'' in October 2016.
There being no objection, the Senate proceeded to consider the
resolution.
Ms. MURKOWSKI. I ask unanimous consent that the resolution be agreed
to, the Rubio amendment to the preamble be agreed to, the preamble, as
amended, be agreed to, and the motions to reconsider be considered made
and laid upon the table.
The PRESIDING OFFICER. Without objection, it is so ordered.
The resolution (S. Res. 486) was agreed to.
The amendment (No. 4977) was agreed to, as follows:
(Purpose: To amend the preamble)
Strike the first whereas clause.
In the second whereas clause, strike ``Cruise Lines
International Association supports'' and insert ``cruise
travel professionals support''.
In the second whereas clause, strike ``is'' and insert
``are''.
[[Page S5186]]
In the third whereas clause, strike ``are members of Cruise
Lines International Association and''.
In the seventh whereas clause, strike ``Cruise Lines
International Association and''.
The preamble, as amended, was agreed to.
The resolution, with its preamble, as amended, reads as follows:
S. Res. 486
Whereas cruise travel professionals support policies and
practices that foster a safe, secure, healthy, and
sustainable cruise ship environment and are dedicated to
promoting the cruise travel experience;
Whereas approximately 10,000 travel agencies and 19,000
individual cruise travel professionals participate in ongoing
professional development and training programs to build
cruise industry knowledge;
Whereas cruise travel professionals deliver value to
consumers by providing advice on choosing the best cruise
based on the budgets and interests of the customers and
taking the worry out of vacation planning by arranging the
details of vacations;
Whereas cruise passengers have consistently ranked cruise
travel professionals as the most helpful sources of
information and service among all distribution channels used
for purchasing cruises;
Whereas 70 percent of cruise passengers from the United
States use a cruise travel professional to plan and book a
cruise vacation;
Whereas cruise travel professionals across the world
celebrate and promote October as ``Plan a Cruise Month'';
Whereas the United States has the most cruise passengers in
the world, with almost 11,500,000 cruise passengers in 2014;
Whereas the cruise industry in the United States generated
375,000 jobs across all 50 States in 2014; and
Whereas, in 2014, the cruise industry spent $21,000,000,000
directly with United States businesses and generated
$46,000,000,000 in gross outputs due to the spending of
cruise lines and the crew and passengers of cruise lines,
including indirect economic impacts: Now, therefore, be it
Resolved, That the Senate--
(1) commemorates the inaugural ``Cruise Travel Professional
Month'' in October 2016;
(2) acknowledges the creativity and professionalism of the
men and women of the cruise travel professional community;
and
(3) encourages the people of the United States to observe
``Cruise Travel Professional Month'' with appropriate
ceremonies and activities.
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