BY MARK J. CRAWFORD
Telegraph Editor
Some are now reporting that a proposed bill targeting county-raised tourist tax dollars is dead.
The Florida Association of Counties, chambers of commerce, and tourism groups like the Florida Restaurant and Lodging Association and the Florida Attractions Association were quick to rally against a proposed committee bill that would have taken locally generated tourist tax revenue for three years and placed the future collection up for vote.
Bradford County levies a 4% tax — often called a bed tax — on hotel and other overnight accommodations. Under the new bill, half of that revenue would have gone to fund Visit Florida, the state’s official tourism marketing corporation. And while rural counties would give up 2%, larger counties that generate millions of dollars to support their tourism goals would give up 5%. (The highest levy in the state is 6%.)
All to support a state corporation that counties already pay to be a part of, according to North Florida Regional Chamber of Commerce President Pam Whittle.
“So does that mean we will no longer pay to be members?” she asked.
Bradford’s Tourist Development Council accepts applications for grants paid for by the bed tax revenue to widely publicize local events and draw people to the county — “to put heads in beds.” Just this week, the county commission approved a grant application to market the Florida State Championship shooting competition at Bradford Sportsmen’s Farm.
The bill would also require all tourist development tax levies to be reauthorized by local referendum every six years, with 60% of the vote required for approval, placing any future funding in jeopardy. Prior to a referendum, counties would have to submit a six-year plan for the use of the tax revenue.
Meanwhile, the bill would prevent any future state appropriations to Visit Florida.
It wasn’t immediately clear how counties would request funds or how Visit Florida would determine how to distribute them. Under the bill, Visit Florida would be required to match what counties contribute, but counties would not be allowed to use the portion of the bed tax they keep to fund their portion. The corporation is also required to ensure that 75% of expenditures benefit state parks, forest and rural counties, but Whittle had her doubts.
“It’s a crappy bill. I mean, somebody from a big county wrote it and figured out a way they can get their money and then turn around and write something to visit Florida and get our money to,” she said.
According to Destinations Florida, which works on behalf of tourist marketing organizations, the committee bill would destroy Visit Florida by reducing it to a shell of its current form, which has been highly successful, providing a $3.27 return on investment of tax revenue for every dollar spent.
If the tax dollars collected are directed away from the state’s largest tourist destination, Visit Florida would be limited in serving as the statewide brand, according to Destinations Florida. They say industry members in non-rural counties are not going to participate in Visit Florida if they cannot benefit from its programming. More than 90 percent of all tourism businesses in the state would be served by less than 25 percent of Visit Florida’s budget, according to their press release. Tourism in areas like central Florida already provides millions in sales tax revenue to the state.
The outcry of these groups may have been successful. According to some, including WFTV in Orlando and the Orlando Business Journal, the bill passed the Florida House Regulatory Reform & Economic Development Subcommittee, but it lacks support to move further in the Legislature.
