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Tourism Spending Increased Last Year in West Virginia
By: Associated Press
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MORGANTOWN, W.Va. (AP) – West Virginia Gov. Jim Justice says tourism spending in the state increased last year for the first time since 2012.
News outlets report Justice made the announcement Wednesday during the Governor’s Conference on Tourism in Morgantown. He cited figures from research performed by Dean Runyan, a national tourism research firm.
Justice said tourism spending started a steady decline in 2012, dropping more than 14 percent, from $4.84 billion that year to $4.141 billion in 2016. But last year, the numbers increased to $4.3 billion, up by nearly 4 percent.
Justice said the state still has challenges, but things appear to be improving.