PRESTONSBURG, Ky. — State officials hope to draw big-name country music acts to attract busloads of tourists to eastern Kentucky.

        Gov. Paul Patton said he will ask lawmakers next year for $2 million to launch a two-year program aimed at drawing tour buses to eastern and western Kentucky.

        Each escorted bus tour that lasts five days can pump $22,000 into the local economy and boost the state's overall $8.8 billion tourism industry, state officials said.

        “Tourism also plays a vital role in the economic-development future of our region,” Mr. Patton said Thursday during the Appalachian Regional Commission conference.

        Tourism officials would use the money to promote the tours, give cash incentives to tour operators and help attract big-name talent for local venues.

        In the plan's first year, the state would promote five-day, four-night tours beginning at Renfro Valley in Rockcastle County. The tour would go to Jenny Wiley Resort Park Amphitheater and the Mountain Arts Center in Floyd County and wind up at the Paramount Theater in Ashland.

        Tourism Secretary Ann Latta said the tour would include stops of local interest during the day.

        Ms. Latta said bus tour operators who came to the state during an August informational visit liked what they saw.

        To make the program work, officials conceded that they will need to draw

        big-name country acts for the tours, which will run for eight weeks beginning in June. The state hopes to attract 50 buses with about 40 people each.

        Loretta Lynn and Ricky Skaggs have signed on to perform, and the state is negotiating with several other Kentucky natives, including Patty Loveless and Billy Ray Cyrus.

        Patricia Mills, who operates Mills Tours Inc. near Branson, Mo., said the overall area is still an unknown to travelers.

        She said sites like Renfro Valley sell themselves, but lesser-known locales — such as Loretta Lynn's homeplace — might be tougher.

        .

        A.J. Head, who operates Virginia Mountain Tours in Bristol, Va., said Kentucky is a tough sell there because of its similarity to his own state. He said officials should cast a wider net, particularly to his home state of Florida.

        If the plan is approved, the tour's second year would shift to southern and western Kentucky.

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