Get Full Government Meeting Transcripts, Videos, & Alerts Forever!
Get email alerts on the Tax Policy topic
No spam. Unsubscribe anytime.
Council discusses imposing a transient room tax to capture short-term rental revenue
Summary
Councilors reviewed the process for imposing a transient room tax (TRT) on short-term rentals and lodging, discussed registration and business-license ties, and asked staff to outline steps to implement a 1% town TRT collected via the tax commission.
Lynndyl — Planning and zoning members and councilors discussed whether to impose a transient room tax (TRT) so the town can collect a share of lodging revenue now captured by the county and state.
Speaker 6 described the TRT as a tax on rentals of fewer than 30 days and explained the town can impose up to a 1% tax that, if adopted, would be collected and processed through the tax commission after council approval and posting. "What will happen now is there will be a – it could be up to a 1% tax on that, which will come to the town," Speaker 6 said.
Councilors noted that Airbnb and other platforms are already collecting taxes for state and county but that the town has not imposed TRT, so those proceeds do not presently flow to Lynndyl. Discussion covered the implementation steps: a public hearing (compared to a truth-in-taxation process), posting requirements, and coordination with the state tax commission to register the town and make collections automatic once imposed. Several members urged staff to draft an outline for imposing TRT and to confirm interactions with business licenses and registration.
What happens next: Staff agreed to prepare an outline of steps and to coordinate with the state tax commission and clerk to implement a town TRT if council decides to proceed.
