During the legislative session “off-season” General Assembly members work hard to study ongoing issues and priorities in the state. One of those members. Sen. Drew Echols of Alto, chairs the Senate Study Committee on Making Georgia the Number 1 State for Tourism.
Echols, a farmer and business owner, saw the need to study tourism as more people come to Georgia to enjoy all the activities the state has to offer. Echols, who owns and operates Jaemor Farms, said tourism runs in his family. Additionally, Echols’ wife and former state senator, Shelly Echols, came from a family that owned and operated a charter bus business.
“Our family, we know a fair amount about tourism. We know that our livelihood depends very much on tourism,” Echols said.
On the motivation for starting the committee, Echols said that it was mostly due to his desire to learn more about how Georgia conducts tourism in comparison to neighboring states such as North Carolina, Tennessee and Florida. Echols said that he expects the study committee’s goals to develop as the committee continues meeting into the fall. He hopes that the committee will look at giving local governments more flexibility with hotel motel excise taxes and adding funding to the state budget for tourism marketing.
Echols said that he anticipates this study committee will be successful in shedding more light on tourism in Georgia. He is also hopeful that by educating the legislators who were appointed to this committee, the industry as a whole will garner bipartisan support in the Senate.
“If nothing else, the industry is going to have some champions there in the Senate, because it’s been a long time since tourism has been given a real fair shake and a real hard look as to what we can do as a state to make it better,” said Echols.
Change From Within
During the first meeting of the tourism committee in Gainesville, Ga., several speakers came from outside of Georgia to speak about the tourism industry. Echols said, the committee is reviewing models from several states to see how they can improve the $80-billion industry in Georgia.
Breaking down departmental silos in the state government is part of the process, Echols said. The study committee plans to look at the growth in more detail along with key partners at state agencies, including the Georgia Department of Transportation, Department of Natural Resources and Department of Agriculture.
“We need to look at ways to make industries and departments in the state of Georgia more efficient. The right hand always needs to know what the left hand is doing and if there’s any overlap from department to department, we need to make sure there’s a lot of communication there.”
Focus On the Outdoors
Echols plans to cover “agritourism” agricultural-based tourism that offers people opportunities to visit farms, ranches, or related locations—and nature-based tourism in a meeting later this year in Valdosta. While there is a niche to fill with agritourism, he wants to hear out community concerns as well, including growth and zoning issues.
Nature-based tourism preserves green space and natural environments while enhancing quality of life, giving people the option to be outdoors in nature. Echols has hopes that cities and agribusiness can work together to foster good growth, a sentiment shared by the Georgia Agribusiness Council.
Georgia Agribusiness Council’s Director of Governmental Relations Jake Tench said, “When agribusiness and municipalities work together, rural Georgia wins. Jobs, infrastructure, and community all grow from a successful partnership.”
Joining the Movement
It is no question that cities and local governments must be part of the conversation, Echols pointed out that cities can and should be role models for others. While cities such as Savannah have a large, longstanding tourism industries, smaller cities like Gainesville are finding innovative tourism opportunities, too. One example is the location of the first Senate study committee meeting.
“Obviously, I’m partial to my hometown [of Gainesville],” he joked. “But it was a great way to showcase a beautiful tourism/economic development project in the Boathouse on Lake Lanier that is 100% paid for by hotel motel taxes.”
Overall, Echols encouraged cities to think outside the box, while also maintaining local control, by looking at ways that they can capitalize on their community’s unique aspects.
“Georgia is a patchwork of a beautiful quilt, with oceans and mountains and rivers, historical landmarks, cities with cultural identities that date back a couple hundred years,” said Echols.
This committee will encourage cities to promote tourism in their area. Additionally, Echols noted he wants to promote communication and collaboration between cities, saying that they should be proactively working together to become more competitive tourist destinations.
“Everybody wins in that regard,” he said.
Looking To The Future
Georgia’s cities have a tremendous opportunity to showcase their communities on a world stage when the FIFA World Cup 26™ comes to Atlanta in the summer of 2026.
Echols recalled the MLB All-Star week in July of 2025 as a similar opportunity. His farm, located just north of Gainesville, saw several tourists who were in town for the All-Star festivities travel outside of metro Atlanta to experience all that Georgia had to offer. Cites outside of metro Atlanta should be prepared to see increased tourism during that time, Echols said.
“People coming from outside of Georgia are going to want to see our rivers, lakes, and oceans,” Echols said.