Tourism Law in Europe

172 TOURISM LAW IN EUROPE processing and dissemination of data relating to tourism activity in the region. It coordinates public and private initiatives in the fields of tourism development, promotion and information”12. The regional tourism committees are created for this purpose and coordinate promotional actions on national and foreign markets with the departmental tourism committees13. Actions contributing to the execution of the regional plan defined by the regional council were to be the subject of agreements signed between the territorial authorities, but the consultation did not really work. As the Court of Auditors’ report of 2004 denounced, it “has rather resulted in a competition of competences. As a result, the different structures are at the origin of disordered interventions, particularly on external markets and in the dissemination of information”14. The regional council is also competent to grant aid to companies engaged in tourism activities15 . These aid schemes must, however, be notified to the European Union Commission if they exceed the so-called de minimis threshold. Tourism department: In larger regions, the regional council sometimes creates a directorate with a tourism department to develop its tourism policy and its relations with the regional tourism committee. For example, there is a tourism department within the Directorate of Culture, Tourism, Sport and Leisure of the Île de France Regional Council which allocates regional aid to private, public or associative project leaders. These subsidies are specific to each region and, for example, in Ile-de-France they are specifically focused on tourism development and equipment. The development of these already popular destinations makes it possible to improve, enrich and better distribute the tourist offer on the territory. Regional support enables public or private organisations to carry out preliminary studies, to improve or create new reception and accommodation facilities or even sites, routes or other tourist products. 12 C. tourisme, art. L. 131-2. 13 C. tourisme, art. L. 131-5. 14 Rapport de la Cour des comptes, rapport au président de la République 2004, p. 440. Report of the Court of Auditors, Report to the President of the Republic 2004, p. 440. 15 TA Lyon, 27 juin 2001, Association contre l ’ extension et les nuisances de l ’ aéroport de Lyon-Satolas, AJDA 2002.170, note CHOUVEL.

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