Get Full Government Meeting Transcripts, Videos, & Alerts Forever!
Get email alerts on the Lodgers Tax topic
No spam. Unsubscribe anytime.
Commissioners hear clarification on proposed lodgers-tax increase as statute expands allowable uses
Summary
Montezuma County commissioners discussed proposed ballot language to raise the lodging tax from 2% to 5% and reviewed recent 2024 statutory changes that broaden permitted uses to include housing and childcare for tourism workers, infrastructure, visitor-experience projects and certain public-safety expenditures.
A county commissioner asked the Board of County Commissioners on July 6 to revisit the ballot language for a proposed increase in the county lodging tax, saying recent state legislation has expanded how lodgers-tax revenue may be used.
Commissioner (Speaker 6) told the board that changes enacted in 2024 broadened the permitted uses of lodgers-tax funds beyond traditional advertising and tourism marketing. "Now, over the last few years, there's been a few different pieces of legislation ... that have each expanded the possible uses for the lodgers tax," the commissioner said, listing housing and childcare to support tourism-related and other local workers, projects that facilitate visitor experiences, public infrastructure maintenance or improvements, and funding for certain public-safety measures such as law enforcement, fire protection and emergency medical services.
Representatives of the Lodgers Tax Committee said their proposed ballot measure would keep the five bullet points that specify uses of the revenue and that the committee prefers the longer ballot language that includes those details. A committee member told commissioners the language as written in the packet was drafted by the committee "to raise the county lodging tax specifically from 2% to 5%" and that the long form retains the important bulleted uses. The committee emphasized that changes to those five enumerated uses would be unwelcome without further committee review.
Commissioners and committee members also raised a drafting question about the ballot lead-in. One commissioner asked whether the phrase should read "Shall the Montezuma County lodgers tax be increased" instead of a broader formulation that could be read as a generic county tax increase. The board agreed to review statutory wording and consult the Department of Revenue on timing and required ballot-language deadlines.
No final language was adopted at the meeting; staff said the specific ballot language will be finalized later in the year and must be checked against Department of Revenue deadlines. The commissioners noted that previous board discussion had already moved the concept of a lodgers-tax increase forward, and committee members said they would continue to work with staff on final wording.
Next steps: staff will verify Department of Revenue filing deadlines and return to the board with final recommended ballot language.
