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HomeMy WebLinkAbout06/04/2019 05A Lodging Tax Advisory Committee Report $6 ++++,t l�oRpoR.Ev•,$ J BUSINESS OF THE CITY COUNCIL YAKIMA, WASHINGTON AGENDA STATEMENT Item No. 5.A. For Meeting of: June 4, 2019 ITEM TITLE: Lodging Tax Advisory Committee report SUBMITTED BY: Mayor Kathy Coffey, Committee Chair SUMMARY EXPLANATION: The Lodging Tax Advisory Committee met on May 21, 2019 and has the following to report on: • The new 2020 lodging tax application was made available on the city's website March 1st through the deadline for completion of May 1st • 6 applications were received by staff and distributed to Committee members prior to meeting. • Using initial 2020 forecast of revenue, and the grant applications, the process started with a deficit of ($438,500). • After much discussion, 3 applications were eliminated — Globista Media was ineligible due to not being non-profit or municipal, Yakima Valley Museum and Hispanic Chamber of Commerce due to insufficient trackable room-night data. Those applicants were notified by staff. • Initial reductions to 2 applicants' requests got the committee to a ($107,000) deficit and then the committee decided to defer final reductions to allow three more months of lodging tax revenues to re-evaluate forecasted revenue to make final reductions to get to a balanced recommendation. • The committee will make recommendations to City Council on 2020 applicants following the August meeting, which allows time for the city to communicate Council's perspective and hear back from the LTAC within the 45-day window prior to budget adoption. ITEM BUDGETED: STRATEGIC PRIORITY: APPROVED FOR SUBMITTAL: City Manager 2 STAFF RECOMMENDATION: BOARD/COMMITTEE RECOMMENDATION: