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Council delays creation of tourism grant advisory committee amid conflict-of-interest questions
Summary
Muskogee council tabled a proposal Dec. 8 to create a tourism grant advisory committee that would recommend awards up to $5,000 from hotel/motel tax revenues after members raised concerns about committee composition and potential conflicts involving hotel and attraction representatives. The item was set for further review on Jan. 12, 2026.
Justin O’Neil, the city’s tourism lead, proposed creating a tourism grant advisory committee to review applications for awards of up to $5,000 from hotel/motel tax dollars. The proposed body would include three ex-officio members (tourism director, economic development director, and the chamber president) and seven voting members: two hotel/lodging representatives, one financial-institution representative, one tourism-attraction representative, one citizen, and one City Council member.
Councilors questioned the composition and potential conflicts of interest from hotel, lodging and attraction representatives serving as voting members on a committee that would award public funds to entities that could include hoteliers and attractions. Councilor concerns included whether such representatives should be voting members or nonvoting advisers, and whether the committee should review larger awards between $5,000 and $50,000 or reserve those to the council or city manager.
Council directed the item to Public Works for further review and tabled the resolution until Jan. 12, 2026. The motion to table passed on a roll-call vote. Several council members suggested edits to membership language and asked staff to return with clarified terms and a proposed flow for review of grants over $5,000.
