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Lodgers tax board: tourism rebounds; county sees longer stays and new marketing focus
Summary
Lodgers tax advisory board vice chair Connor Tharp told County Council the board is monitoring contracts and visitor trends: 5% lodgers tax, ~800,000 trips and ~2 million visitor days from Jan 2024–Jul 19, 2025, with an average stay of about 2–2.5 days and ongoing marketing investments.
Connor Tharp, vice chair of the Lodgers Tax Advisory Board, briefed the Los Alamos County Council on Aug. 19 about recent visitor trends, contract work and how lodgers‑tax receipts are being spent.
Tharp said the lodgers tax is a 5% charge on base nightly room rates collected by lodging establishments and remitted to the county under state statute and county code. He told the council that, from Jan. 1, 2024 through July 19, 2025, the county recorded more than 800,000 trips and over 2,000,000 visitor days, with an average stay of roughly two to two‑and‑a‑half days. Bandelier National Park and other attractions remain top destinations for visitors to the county.
The board noted the largest use of lodgers‑tax revenue is the county’s tourism marketing contract (currently with Sunny505) and visitor services agreements with the Los Alamos Community Development Corporation (LA CDC). Tharp said the board has overseen improvements including a White Rock Visitor Center pavilion and outdoor bathroom and ongoing brochure updates in coordination with community services.
Councillors pressed staff about how tourists are distinguished from frequent visitors or contractors; Tharp and staff said the DataFi analytics system can exclude frequent visitors or apply a radius filter around the lab to reduce contractor counts, and that the board can provide more detailed reports. Tharp offered to supply more detailed revenue figures and to share redacted material where needed.
No council action was taken; the council thanked the board for the presentation and invited follow‑up. The board said it will solicit one upcoming term opening in December and continue oversight of contracts, RFP timing and tourism strategy.
