Hotel Tax Collections and a Local Mega-Event

Cities compete for the opportunity to host events that draw large crowds of visitors. The argument is that these visitors bring with them lots of spending in hotels and restaurants, providing jobs for workers in the service industry, and generating sales tax revenues for the city. In many places, there is also a separate tax on hotel and motel accommodations. Indeed, taxes on accommodations are one example of jurisdictions exporting their tax burdens, as people who pay the accommodations taxes are visitors. This paper looks for the beneficial impact of a megaevent by focusing on the accommodations tax collections in and around the jurisdiction that hosts the event.