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Harney County court debates lodging tax options as a way to shore up tight finances
Summary
Commissioners and the presiding judge discussed a proposed transient lodging tax to raise revenue, weighing a 6% unincorporated-only levy against a lower countywide rate, complexities with municipal TLTs, likely opposition from lodging operators, collection and enforcement challenges, and ballot-timing constraints.
Court members spent more than an hour on Feb. 4 discussing a proposed transient lodging tax (TLT) intended to raise revenue for county services that see extra demand from visitors. The discussion covered possible rate structures, legal distribution splits, municipal negotiations and outreach strategy.
Judge Hart (presiding) noted the TLT had failed previously when proposed on the ballot in 2020 and 2022 and outlined a proposal to levy 6% in the unincorporated areas rather than countywide. "This is not a tax on local Harney County community," he said, emphasizing that the tax is applied to short-term visitors staying in lodging facilities.
Other commissioners urged alternative approaches. One commissioner said a countywide uniform rate, even at 3%, would likely raise more revenue and be fairer to residents across city limits: "I would probably prefer a lower tax rate, like 3% done uniformly across the county," the commissioner said. Commissioners also suggested producing revenue projections to show potential dollars and possible uses to make the measure more sellable to voters.
Practical issues were raised: collection and enforcement for short-term rentals (Airbnb/VRBO) remain unclear; staff indicated the county treasurer or a consolidated collection arrangement with municipalities could be options, and that some platforms may remit taxes automatically but that needs verification. The court also discussed allowable administrative retainage for lodging owners (5% of collected TLT to cover recordkeeping and remittance costs) and the potential effect of pending state legislation that would change the distribution between tourism and general county operations.
Timing and ballot logistics were central to the discussion: county staff flagged March 19 as a likely filing deadline for ballot titles and noted piggybacking a measure on an already scheduled primary or general election could avoid extra ballot costs. Commissioners acknowledged the political difficulty of passing a new levy without intense outreach; local lodging operators historically opposed the measure, and past public misunderstanding conflated the TLT with funding for homelessness rather than tourism-related services.
Court members agreed to return to county counsel with draft verbiage and revenue examples, to contact cities (Burns and Hines) about intergovernmental agreements if the court pursues an overlay on municipal TLTs, and to gather additional financial projections before making a final decision.
