That’s it. Now, the biggest topic of conversation from Mayor David Holt during today’s State of the City report was Oklahoma City’s growth, and the mayor says a big part of that is tourism. With a hotel tax increase scheduled to be voted on in August, the mayor says it’s necessary to keep things moving. Tourists pay for the city’s core functions. Not only does the tourist industry have an annual economic impact on Oklahoma City of $2.6 billion, but he estimates that tourists pay at least a quarter of the city’s sales tax in August. Oklahoma City is set to vote on a proposal to increase the hotel tax from about 14% to more than 17%, and during Tuesday’s State of the City report, Mayor David Holt urged community leaders to vote in favor. “Tourists pay for our police officers, our firefighters, and the maintenance of our roads,” the mayor says. The city is attracting more people than ever before, and it also has the capacity to accommodate them. But this vote is about getting tourists to pay a little more, putting more resources into those efforts without raising taxes on residents. They say it will help promote the facility, etc. The hotel tax is often used to promote Oklahoma City and to support two major venues that drive event business. Cities like Tulsa already have the highest hotel tax in the U.S. at 16.5%, but he says this rate needs to change if Oklahoma City is to stay competitive with other large cities. If the tax rate is much lower than peer cities, they may not be putting enough money into attracting visitors and therefore not being able to stay competitive. The vote is scheduled for Tuesday, August 27th, and the last time a hotel tax increase was approved was in 2004.
Mayor David Holt urged voters to pass a hotel tax increase to help grow tourism in Oklahoma City.
Mayor David Holt spoke about the issue during his State of the City address.
Updated: July 23, 2024 5:15pm CDT
Oklahoma City continues to grow as a city and make itself felt on the national stage. | Read More | OKC City Council informs voters of hotel tax increase Growth was the biggest topic during Mayor David Holt’s State of the City address on Tuesday, as he said tourism also needs to grow. The mayor said that will happen when he votes in August to increase the city’s hotel tax. “Tourists pay for the primary function of our city. Not only does tourism bring $2.6 billion to Oklahoma City annually, we estimate that tourists pay at least a quarter of the city’s sales tax,” Holt said. Oklahoma City will vote in August to increase its hotel tax from about 14% to more than 17%. In his speech, Holt urged local leaders to vote “yes.” “Tourists pay for our police officers, our firefighters, and the maintenance of our roads,” Holt said. The city is attracting more people than ever before and has the capacity to accommodate them, but this vote is about getting tourists to pay a little more, Holt said. “This will allow us to put more resources into those efforts without raising taxes for our residents,” Holt said. City leaders said the hotel tax will help promote a well-used amenity. “It’s to promote Oklahoma City, to support events, and to support our two major venues that are the drivers of our events business,” Holt said. Cities such as Tulsa already have higher hotel taxes than Oklahoma City, at 16.5 percent. Holt said the change will help Oklahoma City stay competitive with other big cities. “If you’re a lot lower than your peers, you’re probably not staying competitive because you’re not putting enough money into attracting tourists,” Holt said. The vote is scheduled for Tuesday, Aug. 27. The hotel tax increase was last approved in 2004.TOP STORIESBody camera footage shows Watonga man being slammed to the ground by police during morning walk with sonOHP identifies 25-year-old woman killed in weekend multi-vehicle crash near GuthrieOHP announces one woman killed, another critically injured in head-on crash in Creek CountyWho’s No. 2? A Democratic frontrunner who could be Kamala Harris’ VP pickBody camera footage reveals chaotic scene after a deputy shot and killed an Illinois woman who called 911 for help
Oklahoma City –
Oklahoma City continues to grow as a city and make a name for itself on the national stage.
| Read more | OKC City Council notifies voters of hotel tax increase
Growth was a top talking point during Mayor David Holt’s State of the City address on Tuesday, when he said tourism also needs to grow. The mayor said his vote in August to increase the city’s hotel tax will do just that.
“Tourists pay for our city’s core functions. Not only does tourism generate $2.6 billion in annual economic impact for Oklahoma City, we estimate that tourists pay at least a quarter of the city’s sales tax,” Holt said.
Oklahoma City will vote in August on whether to raise hotel taxes from about 14% to more than 17%, and Mayor Holt used his speech to urge local leaders to vote “yes.”
“Tourists pay for police officers, firefighters and road maintenance,” Holt said.
Holt said the city is attracting more people than ever before and has the capacity to accommodate them, but the vote is about getting visitors to pay a little more.
“This will allow us to put more resources into these efforts without raising taxes for our residents,” Holt said.
City leaders said this would help promote those amenities where hotel taxes are often used.
“It’s to promote OKC, to support events and also to support two major venues that drive the events business,” Holt said.
Cities like Tulsa already have a higher hotel tax than Oklahoma City, at 16.5 percent, and Holt said the change would help Oklahoma City stay competitive with other large cities.
“If your room rates are much lower than your peer cities, you’re probably not investing enough money in attracting tourists to stay competitive,” Holt said.
The vote is scheduled for Tuesday, Aug. 27. The last time a hotel tax increase was approved was in 2004.
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