Enrolled Bill Summary

            House Bill 1886 amends Tax Code provisions relating to municipal hotel occupancy taxes to delete obsolete provisions relating to a municipality that has a population of at least 1.2 million and has adopted a capital improvement plan for convention and exposition facilities. No municipalities fall within those parameters at present. It amends other provisions relating to a municipality with a population exceeding 440,000, located in a county of one million or more, that has adopted a capital improvement plan for convention center facility expansion. The change eliminates the applicability of such provisions to a city with a population of 1.5 million or more with such a capital improvement plan, the practical effects of which are to lower the maximum tax rate for such a city from nine to seven percent and to eliminate certain powers relating to the pledge of tax revenue. The bill also amends provisions relating to the allocation of municipal hotel occupancy tax revenue. As amended, those provisions provide that the portion of revenue collected by a municipality with a population of more than 1.6 million that may be used for advertising and conducting solicitations and promotional programs to promote tourism and convention and hotel industry may not be less than 23 percent of the total collected. The 23 percent limitation is subject to the authority of the municipality to pledge all or any portion of the revenue to the payment or refunding of bonds or to spend the revenue for the operation and maintenance expenses of convention center facilities.