Okanogan County LTAC recommends $1.04 million in lodging-tax allocations, forwards proposal to commissioners

The Okanogan County Lodging Tax Advisory Committee on a voice vote agreed to forward a set of lodging-tax allocation recommendations totaling about $1,044,699 to the County Commissioners for final approval. Committee members reviewed higher-than-expected carryover and a statewide adjustment that reduced receipts by roughly $100,000, then adjusted baseline allocations before walking through dozens of marketing, operations and capital requests.

The committee’s budget discussion began after staff reported a carryover of about $1.233 million, well above the earlier estimate of $927,700. Members said the increase reflected stronger-than-expected actual receipts from the prior year; staff also noted a roughly $100,000 state adjustment that reduced available funds but did not eliminate the surplus. Committee members agreed to raise the baseline allocation used for internal calculations to reflect the larger carryover.

Members reviewed and approved recommended awards across three buckets: DMO and year-round marketing, capital projects, and operational support for visitor information centers and local organizations. The committee recommended a $351,500 allocation for the county DMO’s year-round marketing request, and set capital awards for trail and small infrastructure projects (including a rounded $60,000 allocation for a Mazama pedestrian/bridge package, with design and engineering to be verified through public-works bidding). The committee repeatedly stressed that capital improvements must be on municipally owned property to qualify for capital funding; if a project is on private property, the request was ruled ineligible for LTAC capital funding.

On visitor information centers and visitor centers (VIC/VIX), members distinguished operations from capital: operations lines were set to be eligible for up to 100% funding, while capital work required municipal ownership and documentation. The Twisp visitor center’s request was amended to a $17,020 award strictly for operations; the committee recorded a condition in the recommendation that those funds not be used for bathroom upgrades or other capital work absent municipal ownership and proper procurement documentation.

Committee members also raised procurement and conflict-of-interest concerns. Several members asked that any awards tied to local contractors include a requirement that bidders and costs be disclosed before payment, and that the county’s public-works procurement process govern any bridge or infrastructure contracts. Staff agreed to require bids and an explicit contract condition limiting payment until bids and contractor identities are provided.

After reviewing individual line items across chambers, arts groups, town visitor centers and capital projects, staff presented consolidated totals. With the recommendations on the table, a member moved and another seconded forwarding the budget and allocation proposals to the County Commissioners for formal approval; the motion passed on a voice vote with ayes recorded and no detailed roll-call tally announced in the meeting audio.

The committee also discussed membership: a long-serving member announced he will not seek a fourth term when his term ends in June; members agreed to advertise the opening and noted Missy Smith has expressed interest and will submit a letter of support from Methow Arts.

The recommended allocation package now goes to the Okanogan County Commissioners for final action. Committee members conditioned several awards on obtaining required bids, municipal ownership for capital projects, and standard contract provisions to reduce the risk of conflicts of interest or unvetted sole-source awards.