PORT ANGELES — The Port Angeles City Council approved a resolution that will limit the amount of lodging tax operational fund dollars for which an organization can apply.
As of Tuesday, an organization’s lodging tax operational requests in a single year must not exceed 15 percent of the organization’s operating budget, or $100,000, whichever is greater. Additionally, organizations can now only apply for $10,000 per year in lodging tax event funding.
Previous policy dictated that new events could apply for $10,000 per year, while events in operation for six or more years could apply for $5,000 per year.
The city also updated the Lodging Tax Advisory Committee’s (LTAC) formal meeting procedures and request for proposal procedures. Now, the city attorney’s office will review all lodging tax funding applications to determine if it is eligible before the application is reviewed by the LTAC.
Lodging tax funds are required by the state to be used for activities, operations and expenditures that are designed to increase tourism.
Lodging tax, which is an excise tax of about 2 percent that is applied to lodging for periods of less than 30 consecutive days, brought the city about $1.327 million in 2023.
Of those funds, about 25 percent is for tourism-related marketing; 33 percent is for tourism-related nonprofit business operations; 12 percent is for events and festivals designed for tourists; 5 percent is for LTAC priorities; and 20 percent, plus 5 percent reserved, is for new construction, improvement and renovation.
“The enhanced policy will ensure a balanced approach to funding of lodging tax eligible expenses,” a city council memo stated.
Council member Navarra Carr, the chair of the LTAC, said the lodging tax policy is a living document that gets revised every year and will be looked at again next spring.
When the document is revisited, council member Lindsey Schromen-Wawrin said the focus should be on funding opportunities that build a year-round, rather than seasonal, tourism economy.
One key player in this, Schromen-Wawrin said, is Field Arts & Events Hall.
“I think Field Hall changes the game for the tourist economy in Port Angeles and is one key piece in moving there [toward a year-round tourist economy],” he said.
Schromen-Wawrin said many other cities that have facilities comparable to Field Hall often dedicate a major percentage of their lodging tax funding directly to that facility, which he thinks the city should consider.
“I think that’s a much better outcome than saying, ‘Hmm, maybe Field Hall can do it on their own without [lodging tax] funding, and then reaping the consequences if that’s not true,” he said. “I think we’re taking a really big risk not supporting an organization that is potentially able to completely transform this sector of our economy locally.”
In addition to prioritizing offseason tourism, Schromen-Wawrin said the city council could consider allocating funding toward workforce housing.
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Reporter Emma Maple can be reached by email at emma.maple@peninsuladailynews.com.
