Get Full Government Meeting Transcripts, Videos, & Alerts Forever!
Get email alerts on the Lodging Tax Contracts topic
No spam. Unsubscribe anytime.
San Miguel Lodging Tax Board appoints John Duncan chair, approves 2026 contractor agreements and will seek rebate of 3% treasurer fee
Summary
The San Miguel Lodging Tax Board on Dec. 18 appointed John Duncan chair, approved 2026 agreements with the Norwood Chamber and the Telluride Tourism Board and voted to ask county commissioners to consider reimbursing a newly applied 3% treasurer administrative fee that will reduce contractor payments.
John Duncan, a member of the San Miguel Lodging Tax Board, was appointed chair and Kirsten Strand was named vice chair during the board’s Dec. 18 meeting. The board approved minutes from June and confirmed leadership in a unanimous voice vote.
The panel considered two 2026 contractor agreements — one with the Norwood Chamber of Commerce and one with the Telluride Tourism Board — and approved both agreements on voice votes. The agreements authorize use of lodging-tax funds to support marketing and visitor-services work performed by those entities.
Discussion centered on a newly applied administrative charge by the county treasurer. County staff described a discretionary interpretation of state statute that allows the treasurer to collect an administrative fee on funds she collects; staff and board members cited a 3% figure during the meeting. "3% is what I was recalling," an unnamed staff speaker said. Board members characterized that charge as a significant reduction in funds available to contractors: "this is a 3% haircut off of what they had been receiving," an unnamed staff speaker said.
John Duncan moved that the lodging tax panel ask the San Miguel County commissioners to exempt or reimburse the panel and its two subcontracted entities for treasurer fees taken from lodging-tax revenues. "I move that that we appeal to the county commissioners, to make an exemption for the 3% treasurer's fees coming out of the lodging tax pool here," Duncan said. The motion was seconded and approved by voice vote; the board directed staff to draft an email and, if requested by the commissioners, to present at a commissioners' meeting.
Board members discussed procedural options: approve the contractor agreements now so programs can proceed and then seek reimbursement from the county, or postpone signing until the fee issue is resolved. The board favored approving the agreements for timely program continuity while pursuing reimbursement through the commissioners.
The board also scheduled its next regular meeting for March 19, 2026, at 1:00 p.m.
What happens next: staff will prepare the formal request to the county commissioners seeking reimbursement or an exemption for the 3% treasurer fee; if commissioners accept the request, the lodging tax panel will amend budgets or contractor payments accordingly.
