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8 LONG TITLE
9 General Description:
10 This bill amends provisions related to the transient room tax.
11 Highlighted Provisions:
12 This bill:
13 ▸ allows a county legislative body to use a portion of the county's transient room tax
14 revenue to pay for emergency medical services in a town that is a resort community;
15 and
16 ▸ makes technical and conforming changes.
17 Money Appropriated in this Bill:
18 None
19 Other Special Clauses:
20 None
21 Utah Code Sections Affected:
22 AMENDS:
23 17-31-2, as last amended by Laws of Utah 2018, Chapter 240
24 17-31-5.5, as last amended by Laws of Utah 2016, Chapter 353
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26 Be it enacted by the Legislature of the state of Utah:
27 Section 1. Section 17-31-2 is amended to read:
28 17-31-2. Purposes of transient room tax and expenditure of revenue -- Purchase
29 or lease of facilities -- Mitigating impacts of recreation, tourism, or conventions --
30 Issuance of bonds.
31 (1) As used in this section:
32 (a) "Eligible town" means a town that:
33 (i) is located within a county that has a national park within or partially within the
34 county's boundaries; and
35 (ii) imposes a resort communities tax authorized by Section 59-12-401.
36 (b) "Town" means a municipality that is classified as a town in accordance with
37 Section 10-2-301.
38 (c) "Transient room tax" means a tax at a rate not to exceed 4.25% authorized by
39 Section 59-12-301.
40 [
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42 (a) establishing and promoting recreation, tourism, film production, and conventions;
43 (b) acquiring, leasing, constructing, furnishing, maintaining, or operating:
44 (i) convention meeting rooms;
45 (ii) exhibit halls;
46 (iii) visitor information centers;
47 (iv) museums;
48 (v) sports and recreation facilities including practice fields, stadiums, and arenas; and
49 (vi) related facilities;
50 (c) acquiring land, leasing land, or making payments for construction or infrastructure
51 improvements required for or related to the purposes listed in Subsection [
52 (d) as required to mitigate the impacts of recreation, tourism, or conventions in
53 counties of the fourth, fifth, and sixth class, paying for:
54 (i) solid waste disposal operations;
55 (ii) emergency medical services;
56 (iii) search and rescue activities;
57 (iv) law enforcement activities; and
58 (v) road repair and upgrade of:
59 (A) class B roads, as defined in Section 72-3-103;
60 (B) class C roads, as defined in Section 72-3-104; or
61 (C) class D roads, as defined in Section 72-3-105.
62 (3) (a) The county legislative body of a county that imposes a transient room tax at a
63 rate of 3% or less may expend the revenue generated as provided in Subsection (4), after
64 making any reduction required by Subsection (6).
65 (b) The county legislative body of a county that imposes a transient room tax at a rate
66 that exceeds 3% or increases the rate of transient room tax above 3% may expend:
67 (i) the revenue generated from the transient room tax at a rate of 3% as provided in
68 Subsection (4), after making any reduction required by Subsection (6); and
69 (ii) the revenue generated from the portion of the rate that exceeds 3%:
70 (A) for any combination of the purposes described in Subsections (2) and (5); and
71 (B) regardless of the limitation on expenditures for the purposes described in
72 Subsection (4).
73 [
74 may not expend more than 1/3 of the [
75 room tax [
76 following purposes:
77 (a) (i) acquiring, leasing, constructing, furnishing, maintaining, or operating:
78 (A) convention meeting rooms;
79 (B) exhibit halls;
80 (C) visitor information centers;
81 (D) museums;
82 (E) sports and recreation facilities including practice fields, stadiums, and arenas; and
83 (F) related facilities; and
84 (ii) acquiring land, leasing land, or making payments for construction or infrastructure
85 improvements required for or related to the purposes described in Subsection (2)(a)(i);
86 (b) as required to mitigate the impacts of recreation, tourism, or conventions in
87 counties of the fourth, fifth, and sixth class, to pay for:
88 (i) solid waste disposal operations;
89 (ii) emergency medical services;
90 (iii) search and rescue activities;
91 (iv) law enforcement activities; and
92 (v) road repair and upgrade of:
93 (A) class B roads, as defined in Section 72-3-103;
94 (B) class C roads, as defined in Section 72-3-104; or
95 (C) class D roads, as defined in Section 72-3-105; or
96 (c) making the annual payment of principal, interest, premiums, and necessary reserves
97 for any or the aggregate of bonds authorized under Subsection [
98 [
99 as permitted by law, to pay all or part of any costs incurred for the purposes set forth in
100 Subsection [
101 (b) [
102 does not need the revenue generated by the transient room tax [
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104 provided in Subsection [
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106 limitation of Subsection [
107 [
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110 [
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112 [
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114 (6) (a) In addition to the purposes described in Subsection (2), a county legislative
115 body may expend up to 4% of the total revenue generated by a transient room tax to pay a
116 provider for emergency medical services in one or more eligible towns.
117 (b) An emergency medical services provider means an eligible town, a local district, or
118 a special service district.
119 (c) A county legislative body shall reduce the amount that the county is authorized to
120 expend for the purposes described in Subsection (4) by subtracting the amount of transient
121 room tax revenue expended in accordance with Subsection (6)(a) from the amount of revenue
122 described in Subsection (4).
123 Section 2. Section 17-31-5.5 is amended to read:
124 17-31-5.5. Report to county legislative body -- Content.
125 (1) The legislative body of each county that imposes a transient room tax under Section
126 59-12-301 or a tourism, recreation, cultural, convention, and airport facilities tax under Section
127 59-12-603 shall [
128 (2) The report described in Subsection (1) shall include a breakdown of expenditures
129 into the following categories:
130 (a) for the transient room tax, identification of expenditures for:
131 (i) establishing and promoting:
132 (A) recreation;
133 (B) tourism;
134 (C) film production; and
135 (D) conventions;
136 (ii) acquiring, leasing, constructing, furnishing, or operating:
137 (A) convention meeting rooms;
138 (B) exhibit halls;
139 (C) visitor information centers;
140 (D) museums; and
141 (E) related facilities;
142 (iii) acquiring or leasing land required for or related to the purposes listed in
143 Subsection (2)(a)(ii);
144 (iv) mitigation costs as identified in Subsection 17-31-2[
145 (v) making the annual payment of principal, interest, premiums, and necessary reserves
146 for any or the aggregate of bonds issued to pay for costs referred to in Subsections
147 17-31-2[
148 (b) for the tourism, recreation, cultural, convention, and airport facilities tax,
149 identification of expenditures for:
150 (i) financing tourism promotion, which means an activity to develop, encourage,
151 solicit, or market tourism that attracts transient guests to the county, including planning,
152 product development, and advertising;
153 (ii) the development, operation, and maintenance of the following facilities as defined
154 in Section 59-12-602:
155 (A) an airport facility;
156 (B) a convention facility;
157 (C) a cultural facility;
158 (D) a recreation facility; and
159 (E) a tourist facility; and
160 (iii) a pledge as security for evidences of indebtedness under Subsection 59-12-603(3).
161 (3) A county legislative body shall provide a copy of the report described in Subsection
162 (1) to:
163 (a) the Governor's Office of Economic Development;
164 (b) its tourism tax advisory board; and
165 (c) the Office of the Legislative Fiscal Analyst.