Rep. Norm Thurston — Voting Record

Bill

Number

H.B. 323 (2022GS)

Sponsor

Rep. Last, B.

Final action

Governor Signed 3/24/2022

Outcome

Became law — signed by Gov. Spencer J. Cox

Summary

What it does

• This bill:
• authorizes certain counties to use a certain amount of transient room tax revenue for visitor management and destination development if the expenditure is prioritized and recommended by a county's tourism tax advisory board;
• modifies provisions related to a transient room tax reserve fund;
• modifies the general powers and duties of a county legislative body related to the transient room tax;
• modifies provisions related to an annual report by a county legislative body; and
• makes technical changes.

Every vote on this bill

Bill text

TRANSIENT ROOM TAX AMENDMENTS
GENERAL SESSION
STATE OF UTAH
Chief Sponsor: Bradley G. Last
Senate Sponsor: 
 Evan J. Vickers
LONG TITLE
General Description:
This bill modifies provisions related to the transient room tax.
Highlighted Provisions:
This bill:
▸ authorizes certain counties to use a certain amount of transient room tax revenue for
visitor management and destination development if the expenditure is prioritized
and recommended by a county's tourism tax advisory board;
▸ modifies provisions related to a transient room tax reserve fund;
▸ modifies the general powers and duties of a county legislative body related to the
transient room tax;
▸ modifies provisions related to an annual report by a county legislative body; and
▸ makes technical changes.
Money Appropriated in this Bill:
None
Other Special Clauses:
This bill provides a special effective date.
Utah Code Sections Affected:
AMENDS:
17-31-2
, as last amended by Laws of Utah 2021, Chapter 376
17-31-3
, as last amended by Laws of Utah 2021, Chapter 376
17-31-5
, as last amended by Laws of Utah 1996, Chapter 79
17-31-5.5
, as last amended by Laws of Utah 2021, Chapters 282 and 376
Be it enacted by the Legislature of the state of Utah:
Section 1. Section 
17-31-2
 is amended to read:
17-31-2.
Purposes of transient room tax and expenditure of revenue -- Purchase
or lease of facilities -- Mitigating impacts of recreation, tourism, or conventions --
Issuance of bonds.
(1) As used in this section:
(a) "Aircraft" means the same as that term is defined in Section 
72-10-102
.
(b) "Airport" means the same as that term is defined in Section 
72-10-102
.
(c) "Airport authority" means the same as that term is defined in Section 
72-10-102
.
(d) "Airport operator" means the same as that term is defined in Section 
72-10-102
.
(e) "Base year revenue" means the amount of revenue generated by a transient room tax
and collected by a county for fiscal year 2018-19.
(f) "Base year promotion expenditure" means the amount of revenue generated by a
transient room tax that a county spent for the purpose described in Subsection (2)(a) during
fiscal year 2018-19.
(g) "Economic diversification activity" means an economic development activity that is
reasonably similar to, supplements, or expands any economic program as administered by the
state or the Governor's Office of Economic Opportunity.
(h) "Eligible town" means a town that:
(i) is located within a county that has a national park within or partially within the
county's boundaries; and
(ii) imposes a resort communities tax authorized by Section 
59-12-401
.
(i) "Emergency medical services provider" means an eligible town, a local district, or a
special service district.
(j) "Tourism" means an activity to develop, encourage, solicit, or market tourism that
attracts transient guests to the county, including planning, development, and advertising for the
purpose described in Subsection (2)(a)(i).
(k) "Town" means a municipality that is classified as a town in accordance with
Section 
10-2-301
.
(l) "Transient room tax" means a tax at a rate not to exceed 4.25% authorized by
Section 
59-12-301
.
(2) Subject to the requirements of this section, a county legislative body may impose
the transient room tax for the purposes of:
(a) establishing and promoting:
(i) tourism;
(ii) recreation, film production, and conventions; or
(iii) an economic diversification activity if:
(A) the county is a county of the fourth, fifth, or sixth class;
(B) the county has more than one national park within or partially within the county's
boundaries; and
(C) the county has a base population of 9,000 or more according to current United
States census data;
(b) acquiring, leasing, constructing, furnishing, maintaining, or operating:
(i) convention meeting rooms;
(ii) exhibit halls;
(iii) visitor information centers;
(iv) museums;
(v) sports and recreation facilities including practice fields, stadiums, and arenas;
(vi) related facilities;
(vii) if a national park is located within or partially within the county's boundaries, the
following on any route designated by the county legislative body:
(A) transit service, including shuttle service; and
(B) parking infrastructure; and
(viii) an airport, if:
(A) the county is a county of the fourth, fifth, or sixth class; and
(B) the county is the airport operator of the airport;
(c) acquiring land, leasing land, or making payments for construction or infrastructure
improvements required for or related to the purposes listed in Subsection (2)(b);
(d) as required to mitigate the impacts of recreation, tourism, or conventions in
counties of the fourth, fifth, and sixth class, paying for:
(i) solid waste disposal operations;
(ii) emergency medical services;
(iii) search and rescue activities;
(iv) law enforcement activities; and
(v) road repair and upgrade of:
(A) class B roads, as defined in Section 
72-3-103
;
(B) class C roads, as defined in Section 
72-3-104
; or
(C) class D roads, as defined in Section 
72-3-105
; and
(e) making the annual payment of principal, interest, premiums, and necessary reserves
for any of the aggregate of bonds authorized under Subsection (5).
(3) (a) The county legislative body of a county that imposes a transient room tax at a
rate of 3% or less may expend the revenue generated as provided in Subsection (4), after
making any reduction required by Subsection (6).
(b) The county legislative body of a county that imposes a transient room tax at a rate
that exceeds 3% or increases the rate of transient room tax above 3% may expend:
(i) the revenue generated from the transient room tax at a rate of 3% as provided in
Subsection (4), after making any reduction required by Subsection (6); and
(ii) the revenue generated from the portion of the rate that exceeds 3%:
(A) for any combination of the purposes described in Subsections (2) and (5); and
(B) regardless of the limitation on expenditures for the purposes described in
Subsection (4).
(4) Subject to Subsections (6) and (7), a county may not expend more than 1/3 of the
revenue generated by a rate of transient room tax that does not exceed 3%, for any combination
of the purposes described in Subsections (2)(b) through (2)(e).
(5) (a) The county legislative body may issue bonds or cause bonds to be issued, as
permitted by law, to pay all or part of any costs incurred for the purposes set forth in
Subsections (2)(b) through (2)(d) that are permitted to be paid from bond proceeds.
(b) If a county legislative body does not need the revenue generated by the transient
room tax for payment of principal, interest, premiums, and reserves on bonds issued as
provided in Subsection (2)(e), the county legislative body shall expend that revenue for the
purposes described in Subsection (2), subject to the limitation of Subsection (4).
(6) (a) In addition to the purposes described in Subsection (2), a county legislative
body
:
(i)
 may expend up to 4% of the total revenue generated by a transient room tax to pay a
provider for emergency medical services in one or more eligible towns[
.
]
; and
(ii) may expend up to 10% of the total revenue generated by a transient room tax for
visitor management and destination development if:
(A) a national park is located within or partially within the county's boundaries; and
(B) the county's tourism tax advisory board created under Subsection 
17-31-8
(1)(a) or
the substantially similar body as described in Subsection 
17-31-8
(1)(b) has prioritized and
recommended the use of the revenue in accordance with Subsection 
17-31-8
(4).
(b) A county legislative body shall reduce the amount that the county is authorized to
expend for the purposes described in Subsection (4) by subtracting the amount of transient
room tax revenue expended in accordance with Subsection (6)(a) from the amount of revenue
described in Subsection (4).
(7) (a) Except as provided in Subsection (7)(b), a county legislative body in a county of
the fourth, fifth, or sixth class shall expend the revenue generated by a transient room tax as
follows:
(i) an amount equal to the county's base year promotion expenditure for the purpose
described in Subsection (2)(a)(i);
(ii) an amount equal to the difference between the county's base year revenue and the
county's base year promotion expenditure in accordance with Subsections (3) through (6); and
(iii) (A) 37% of the revenue that exceeds the county's base year revenue for the purpose
described in Subsection (2)(a)(i); and
(B) subject to Subsection (7)(c), 63% of the revenue that exceeds the county's base year
revenue for any combination of the purposes described in Subsections (2)(a)(ii) through (e) or
to pay an emergency medical services provider for emergency medical services in one or more
eligible towns.
(b) A county legislative body in a county of the fourth, fifth, or sixth class with one or
more national recreation areas administered by the National Park Service or the Forest Service
or national parks within or partially within the county's boundaries shall expend the revenue
generated by a transient room tax as follows:
(i) for a purpose described in Subsection (2)(a) and subject to the limitations described
in Subsection (7)(d), the greater of:
(A) an amount equal to the county's base year promotion expenditure; or
(B) 37% of the transient room tax revenue; and
(ii) the remainder of the transient room tax not expended in accordance with
Subsection (7)(b)(i) for any combination of the purposes described in Subsection (2) and,
subject to the limitation described in Subsection (7)(c), Subsection (6).
(c) A county legislative body in a county of the fourth, fifth, or sixth class may not:
(i) expend more than 4% of the revenue generated by a transient room tax to pay an
emergency medical services provider for emergency medical services in one or more eligible
towns; or
(ii) expend revenue generated by a transient room tax for the purpose described in
Subsection (2)(e) in an amount that exceeds the county's base year promotion expenditure.
(d) A county legislative body may not expend:
(i) more than 1/5 of the revenue described in Subsection (7)(b)(i) for a purpose
described in Subsection (2)(a)(ii); and
(ii) more than 1/3 of the revenue described in Subsection (7)(b)(i) for the purpose
described in Subsection (2)(a)(iii).
(e) The provisions of this Subsection (7) apply notwithstanding any other provision of
this section.
(f) If the total amount of revenue generated by a transient room tax in a county of the
fourth, fifth, or sixth class is less than the county's base year promotion expenditure:
(i) Subsections (7)(a) through (d) do not apply; and
(ii) the county legislative body shall expend the revenue generated by the transient
room tax in accordance with Subsections (3) through (6).
Section 2. Section 
17-31-3
 is amended to read:
17-31-3.
Reserve fund authorized -- Use of collected funds -- Limitation on
surplus in fund.
(1) The county legislative body may create a reserve fund.
(2) (a) Subject to [
Subsection (2)(b)
] 
Subsections (2)(b) and (c)
, a county legislative
body shall retain any transient room tax funds collected but not expended during any fiscal year
in the reserve fund to be used in accordance with Sections 
17-31-2
 through 
17-31-5
.
(b) [
The
] 
Except as described in Subsection (2)(c),
 accumulated unappropriated surplus
in the reserve fund, as determined before the county's adoption of a tentative budget, may not
exceed 50% of the total transient room tax revenue for the current fiscal year.
(c) For a fiscal year beginning on or after July 1, 2019, and ending on or before July 1,
2023, if a county receives more than 150% of total transient room tax revenue in the fiscal year
compared to the total transient room tax revenue received in the previous fiscal year,
accumulated unappropriated surplus in the reserve fund, as determined before the county's
adoption of a tentative budget, may not exceed 50% of the total transient room tax revenue for
the previous fiscal year plus an amount equal to the total transient room tax revenue that is
more than 100% of total transient room tax revenue from the previous fiscal year.
Section 3. Section 
17-31-5
 is amended to read:
17-31-5.
General powers and duties of a county legislative body related to the
transient room tax.
[
The county legislative body may do and perform any and all other acts and things
necessary, convenient, desirable, or appropriate to carry out the provisions of Sections 
17-31-2
through 
17-31-5
.
]
The legislative body of each county that imposes a transient room tax in accordance
with Section 
17-31-2
:
(1) shall at least annually consider the priorities and recommendations of the county's
tourism tax advisory board created under Subsection 
17-31-8
(1)(a) or the substantially similar
body as described in Subsection 
17-31-8
(1)(b) in one or more public meetings before finalizing
decisions on expenditures of revenue from the transient room tax in each fiscal year;
(2) shall prepare and provide the annual written report for each fiscal year as described
in Section 
17-31-5.5
; and
(3) may do and perform any and all other acts and things necessary, convenient,
desirable, or appropriate to carry out the provisions of Sections 
17-31-2
 through 
17-31-5.5
.
Section 4. Section 
17-31-5.5
 is amended to read:
17-31-5.5.
Report by county legislative body -- Content.
(1) The legislative body of each county that imposes a transient room tax under Section
59-12-301
 or a tourism, recreation, cultural, convention, and airport facilities tax under Section
59-12-603
 shall prepare annually a 
written
 report in accordance with Subsection (2).
(2) The report described in Subsection (1) shall include a breakdown of expenditures
into the following categories:
(a) for the transient room tax, identification of expenditures for:
(i) establishing and promoting:
(A) recreation;
(B) tourism;
(C) film production;
(D) conventions; and
(E) economic diversification activity;
(ii) acquiring, leasing, constructing, furnishing, or operating:
(A) convention meeting rooms;
(B) exhibit halls;
(C) visitor information centers;
(D) museums; and
(E) related facilities;
(iii) acquiring or leasing land required for or related to the purposes listed in
Subsection (2)(a)(ii);
(iv) mitigation costs as identified in Subsection 
17-31-2
(2)(d); and
(v) making the annual payment of principal, interest, premiums, and necessary reserves
for any or the aggregate of bonds issued to pay for costs referred to in Subsections
17-31-2
(2)(e) and (5)(a); and
(b) for the tourism, recreation, cultural, convention, and airport facilities tax,
identification of expenditures for:
(i) financing tourism promotion, which means an activity to develop, encourage,
solicit, or market tourism that attracts transient guests to the county, including planning,
product development, and advertising;
(ii) the development, operation, and maintenance of the following facilities as defined
in Section 
59-12-602
:
(A) an airport facility;
(B) a convention facility;
(C) a cultural facility;
(D) a recreation facility; and
(E) a tourist facility; and
(iii) a pledge as security for evidences of indebtedness under Subsection 
59-12-603
(3).
(3) For the transient room tax, the report described in Subsection (1) shall include a
breakdown of each expenditure described in Subsection (2)(a)(i), including:
(a) whether the expenditure was used for in-state and out-of-state promotion efforts;
(b) an explanation of how the expenditure targeted a cost created by tourism; and
(c) an accounting of the expenditure showing that the expenditure was used only for
costs directly related to a cost created by tourism.
(4) [
A
] 
On or before October 1, the
 county legislative body shall provide a copy of the
annual written
 report described in Subsection (1) 
for the previous fiscal year
 to:
(a) the Utah Office of Tourism within the Governor's Office of Economic Opportunity;
(b) the county's tourism tax advisory board; and
(c) the Office of the Legislative Fiscal Analyst.
Section 5. 
Effective date.
This bill takes effect on July 1, 2022.