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Orange County appears to have lost the battle in the Legislature to fund affordable housing projects with the lucrative tourist tax stream. It’s a huge tax bill that an opposing Central Florida lawmaker called “convenient gold.”
However, it is likely that there will be a fight to ease spending restrictions in the future.
Some supporters envision a better outcome with a tax plan that could have raised $56 million a year to buy local affordable housing.
“Other counties are realizing that if they have flexibility, they can better serve their communities in ways they haven’t been able to do before,” said Rep. Anna Eskamani, adding that counties have a 1% He proposed an amendment to the tax bill that would impose “the effects of ” If approved by voters, it would add an additional fee to hotel room rentals. “While we were not successful on our first attempt, we hope that over time we will gain support from some people on this issue and be able to allow the Legislature to offer that option to Orange County voters.” .”
Eskamani, an Orlando Democrat, introduced proposed rule changes recommended last summer by Orange County Mayor Jerry Demings’ citizen-led Tourism Tax Advisory Committee, over the objections of hoteliers.
This was one of the county’s top legislative priorities for the current session, which begins Jan. 9 and ends March 8.
However, the amendment was rejected by a voice vote on February 14th by the Republican-controlled House Ways and Means Committee.
Still, the measure prompted committee Chairman Stan McClain (R-Ocala) to hold an “education” session Tuesday on the history and purpose of the locally collected tourism development tax, known as the TDT. It became.
“We introduced several bills this Congress and last Congress that address specific parts of TDT and how people want to change it,” McClain said. “I’m not saying they don’t have merit…but I don’t think that’s the best way for us to set public policy.”
Orange County TDT Task Force Members Suggest Other Spending Ideas
He said the tax revenue is intended to fund convention centers, promote tourism and build stadiums.
Among the few pending bills proposing other uses for TDT is state Sen. Linda Stewart’s proposal to allow counties to use a portion of the proceeds to incentivize film and television production within their jurisdictions. There is a bill introduced by the Democratic Party of Orlando.
Tourism taxes are levied in all but five of Florida’s 67 counties. Osceola County passed his first tax in 1977.
Orange County’s collections last year reached a record $359 million.
The state’s total TDT revenue has nearly tripled over the past decade, from $660 million a decade ago to $18 million this fiscal year, according to an overview by Kimberly Berg, the commission’s deputy executive director. It is predicted to be worth $1 billion.
He noted that Florida’s TDT levy does not have an expiration date, and revenue tax bill HB 7073 proposes changing the expiration date. The bill would require voters to renew the tourist tax collection every six years, unless the proceeds have already been used to pay off construction debt.
The Florida Senate version of the bill does not require the levy to be updated regularly.
Demings said he has personally lobbied the County Legislature and the Florida Association of Counties for support, but that the county is concerned about the perception that TDT is well-funded.
He worried that the state might try to take action.
Rep. David Smith, R-Winter Springs, acknowledges funding challenges to building affordable housing, improving infrastructure and addressing transportation needs, but is wary of expanding TDT use. I asked him to become.
“I think the Legislature sometimes finds itself in the trenches between people reaching out and trying to get some convenient gold nuggets because the county’s general fund is so low,” he said. . “Then they can talk to themselves about why they have to spend TDT on something it wasn’t originally intended for.”
During his first term as Orange County mayor, Mr. Demings created the Housing for All Task Force and made at least an annual contribution to a local trust fund to promote affordable housing projects in tourist hubs. We have committed to investing $10 million.
County leaders put $67.7 million in public money into the fund over five years, Budget Director Kurt Petersen said. About $3 million has been spent so far, with about $39 million committed to projects in the planning stages.
Jane Healy, former editor-in-chief of the Orlando Sentinel and co-chair of the TDT Tax Committee, said she was disappointed that the impact tax didn’t gain more support in its first session before lawmakers. However, he said he was not surprised.
“The industry was against it,” she says.
Eskamani said housing issues are different here than in other communities because of the dominance of tourism.
Central Florida’s “service economy creates an environment where many of the best and brightest workers who provide the most magical experiences struggle to keep a roof over their heads and put food on the table.” “There is,” she said.
Eric Gray, executive director of the Christian Service Center, which provides services to people in need, urged members of the Ways and Means Committee to address the “strain on community infrastructure” caused by tourism.
He said Orlando receives 75 million tourists a year, twice as many as Paris.
“This is a big deal and we should all benefit from it. We should all bask in its glory,” said Gray, who is also a member of the county’s TDT task force. “I think we have an opportunity to do that if we just rethink how we manage the tourism development tax.”
Tourism lobby tries to coerce Orange County hotel tax group | Commentary
shudak@orlandosentinel.com
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