Hotel Occupancy Tax (HOT): 15% for Arts Remains Intact

From Cookie Ruiz of Ballet Austin to the Austin Arts Alllance:

 

Dear A³C colleagues,

The final meeting of the Visitor Impact Task Force was held yesterday from 3-8:15PM. The meeting ended with the final recommendation from the Task Force that the Convention Center Expansion move forward with a plan that is referred to as “Option 2B.”  In this scenario the current 15% of the total Hotel Occupancy Tax (HOT) fund allocated for nonprofit arts funding remains intact. This has been a long, long journey, but we are pleased to be able to share this news with you. 

 

This Option 2B plan will eventually create a fund of money referred to as “waterfall money” (additional money) that could be accessed in 2021 when the current 2% venue fee expires. The VITF spent a lot of time and care listening to many proposals for the use of that potential 2% (funds that are not currently accessed by Austin nonprofit arts organizations, fiscally sponsored projects and individual artists). Some of the VITF’s current recommendations include using these new funds for a program similar to our current process for Austin’s commercial musicians. Another favored use by the VITF seems to be an increase in the funding of Historic Preservation.

 

While these meetings have been long and complex, what we would suggest is that we continue to follow along with oversight on your behalf as these recommendations make their way to City Council; making you aware of key moments along the way. There will certainly be citizens approaching City Council with their own ideas, so we will also watch and monitor the pathways of those discussions.

 

Matt, Peter and I appreciate the many emails of encouragement and support along the way and those who were able to join us. That said, we remain committed to this opportunity to work together and thank you being part of this effort to present ourselves as a collective. 

 

In late June we will post times and a number for a couple of dial-in phone calls, and will be on the line for anyone who calls in so that we might answer the many questions we expect you may have. Further we would like to gauge your interest in continuing on as a coalition beyond the Visitor Impact Task Force. As a reminder, we are an all-volunteer effort so should members of the group decide that they would prefer to drop off at this point, we want everyone to have that opportunity.  The information we’ve been sending to you is dense and at times confusing, so the goal of these calls will be to answer those questions and to set up additional time for those wanting to know more. Deeply sharing information about the Hotel Occupancy Tax (Chapter 351 of the Texas Tax Code) remains a key outcome of this process.

 

We are pleased and more than a bit relieved to share this good news today…though we remain protective and vigilant as this process moves to City Council.