Oklahoma City voters will decide Tuesday whether to increase the local hotel occupancy tax in an attempt to generate more funding to promote the city’s tourism industry.
If passed, the tax would go from its current rate of 5.50% to 9.25%, effective Oct. 1. The tax increase would be charged to people staying overnight in a hotel or renting home-sharing properties, such as Airbnbs, in Oklahoma City.
Proponents of the hotel tax increase, including Oklahoma City Mayor David Holt , say the 3.75% increase in funding would be crucial in helping attract more visitors to the city by expanding marketing efforts and supporting large events.
“A lot of people don’t realize that behind the scenes, oftentimes when we’re talking about big events, there’s some sort of incentive involved in it, just like there is with economic development,” Holt told reporters shortly after early voting Thursday. “You’ve got to have resources for that, and you’ve got to have resources that are commensurate with your peer cities.”