NC S769

Creates a 9-member Nature and Heritage Tourism Advisory Board administratively housed within the Department of Commerce's Division of Tourism, Film, and Sports Development, with 3 members each appointed by the Governor, Speaker of the House, and President Pro Tempore of the Senate to serve four-year terms.

Board empowered to make recommendations on increasing nature and heritage tourism, private investment in tourism, identification of state-owned tourism assets, advertising strategies, and interagency cooperation for marketing the state's tourism industry.

Requires the Department of Commerce, in coordination with multiple state departments and agencies, to develop a comprehensive guidebook on nature and heritage tourism sites statewide and make it available electronically and in print by October 1, 2015.

Appropriates $100,000 for fiscal year 2014-2015 to hire a consultant to review operations of state historic and cultural sites and recommend ways to maximize their value while reducing operational costs, with recommendations due October 1, 2015.

Effective July 1, 2014; consultant recommendations must address private entity operation of certain sites and cost-saving measures like limiting hours or mothballing, but cannot recommend selling properties or changing the use or character of historic sites.