Defense, tourism industries among winners in massive, $1.1 trillion spending bill

A Michigan boot-maker, potato farmers and more than 1,200 contractors that supply parts for a next-generation fighter plane are among the many winners in the $1.1 trillion omnibus spending bill passed by Congress.

The travel and tourism industry won a six-year renewal of the Corporation for Travel Promotion, or Brand USA, to promote tourism in the United States.

Supporters of manufacturers added a provision that would create public-private partnerships to accelerate the transition of new technologies from basic research to commercial applications.

The items were widely supported but had failed to advance in a Congress beset by feuding and stalemate. So they caught a ride on the unstoppable omnibus measure, the last major bill coming from Capitol Hill this year.