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Chaffey County business owners urge delay as commissioners weigh up to 4% lodging tax increase
Summary
Dozens of Chaffey County lodging operators urged the county commissioners to postpone or scale back a proposed lodging tax increase that could raise local collections by millions; commissioners discussed allocations for tourism marketing, roads, public safety and municipal distributions but did not adopt final ballot language at the meeting.
Dozens of lodging operators and related business owners told the Chaffey County Board of County Commissioners on Sept. 2 that a proposed increase in the county lodging tax should be delayed, scaled or clarified before being placed on a ballot. Public commenters said the proposal — which under state law would allow the county to adopt up to 4 percentage points of additional lodging tax collections — would raise costs for visitors and could reduce occupancy and local revenue unless the levy and its uses are clearly explained.
Why it matters: Lodging tax revenue is a major funding source for county tourism promotion, local municipal services and transportation projects. Business owners said sudden, large increases risk lowering occupancy, harming employees and widening confusion about which entities benefit from new collections.
At the meeting, multiple hoteliers and rental operators from Buena Vista, Salida and other Chaffey County communities described how the proposed change would affect their pricing and operations. Brent Jewell, owner of the Best…
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