HS HCS HB 488 -- TOURISM (Koller)

This substitute:

(1)  Allows the governing body of any city or county having more
than 350 hotel and motel rooms inside its jurisdiction to impose
a room tax upon voter approval of not more than 5% on all
transient guests of hotels or motels if it has not done so under
other provisions of law.  The proceeds from this tax will be
used for the promotion of tourism and for funding a convention
and visitors bureau;

(2)  Allows the City of Maryland Heights to impose a tax of not
more than 0.5%.  The substitute spells out the ballot language
and procedures for adoption of the tax;

(3)  Allows the City of Parkville, upon voter approval, to
impose a lodging tax of at least 2% but not more than 5% on all
transient guests of hotels, motels, bed and breakfast inns,
campgrounds, and docking facilities used by transients for
sleeping;

(4)  Allows Platte County on voter approval to levy a $1 fee
upon each short-term motor vehicles rental.  All revenue
collected from the imposition of the fee will be used solely for
tourism;

(5)  Sets the maximum allowed for a lodging tax in Platte County
at 0.5% per occupied room per night.  The current maximum is
0.25%;

(6)  Allows the governing bodies of counties containing at least
700 miles and not more than 900 miles of shoreline of a Corps of
Engineers lake to order an election for a sales tax, not to
exceed 1.5%, for promoting water quality, infrastructure, and
tourism programs designed to affect economic development within
the approving county.  The following counties will be affected:
Taney, Stone, Barry, and Ozark.  The revenue from the tax will
be placed in a special trust fund.  The governing body of the
county will administer the moneys in the fund in the following
manner:  one-third of the yearly revenue collected will be for
tourism, one-third for water quality, and one-third for
infrastructure.  The Department of Revenue will collect and
distribute the retail sales tax to the appropriate county
treasurer.  All expenditures from the fund will be by
appropriation enacted by the governing body of the county.
Various programs are described for which money in the fund may
be spent.  The sales tax may be repealed if at least 20% of
voters of the county submit a proposal to repeal the tax.  A
majority of the voters of the county is needed for approval; and

(7)  Allows any county, city, town, or village with a population
of less than 100,000 inhabitants to establish a tourism
community enhancement district.  The district will be a body
corporate and politic of the state and may impose a sales tax of
up to 1%.  To establish a tourism community enhancement
district, a petition setting forth the boundaries, the maximum
proposed sales tax, and signatures containing at least 2% of the
registered voters of a county, city, town, or village within the
proposed district must be filed with the clerk of the county,
city, town, or village that includes a majority of the area
within the proposed district.  If the governing body, following
a hearing, decides to establish the proposed district, it must
adopt an order or ordinance.  Each tourism community enhancement
district will have at least 5 directors.  The terms, selection,
and duties of the directors and other officers are spelled out.
The procedures for submitting and implementing a tax proposal to
residents of a district are outlined in the substitute.
Expenditures from the tourism community enhancement district
sales tax will be as follows:

(a)  10% of any revenues will be used for education purposes;

(b)  10% will be used for senior citizen, youth, or community
enhancement purposes within the district;

(c)  75% will be used by the board of directors for marketing,
advertising, and promotion of tourism;

(d)  2% will be distributed among each destination marketing
organization located within each school district in the district
based upon the amount of sales tax collected within each school
district;

(e)  2% will be transmitted to the not-for-profit organization
conducting and administering the marketing plan within the
district; and

(f)  1% will be for the collection of the tax (Department of
Revenue).

The substitute contains procedural provisions for the expansion
of a district and board and for the dissolution of a tax or
district.

Currently and through Fiscal Year 2010, a portion of the
increase in state sales taxes collected from the retail sale of
tourist-oriented goods and services will be used to determine
the amount of increase to the transfer to the Tourism
Supplemental Revenue Fund.  The amount to be transferred is
determined by computing the state sales taxes derived from
retail sale of tourist-oriented goods and services from the
third year prior to the fourth year prior to the fiscal year the
transfer is made.  If the increase in the sales taxes is at
least 3% more than the fourth prior year, then half of the
amount above a 3% increase will be used to determine the amount
of increase in the transfer to the fund.  Transfers have a $3
million cap in each year.

The substitute decreases the 3% to 2% and indexes the $3 million
maximum amount of increase to the growth of tourist-oriented
sales and services.

Sales of tourist-oriented goods and services are those sales by
businesses registered with the Department of Revenue under
certain SIC Codes or their successors.

An inactive SIC Code is removed and replaced with a new SIC Code.

FISCAL NOTE:  Transfer from General Revenue Fund of $0 in FY
2002, $2,322,430 in FY 2003, and $4,067,850 in FY 2004.
Transfer to Tourism Supplemental Revenue Fund of $0 in FY 2002,
$2,322,430 in FY 2003, and $4,067,850 in FY 2004.

Missouri House of Representatives
Last Updated November 26, 2001 at 11:44 am