BILL ANALYSIS

C.S.S.B. 1413

By: Hegar

Ways & Means

Committee Report (Substituted)

BACKGROUND AND PURPOSE

Texas currently imposes a six percent hotel occupancy tax and local taxing authorities are authorized to impose an additional local tax. According to interested parties, in certain counties such as Bastrop County, different hotel occupancy tax rates are imposed in different parts of the county. C.S.S.B. 1413 seeks to equalize the hotel occupancy tax rate countywide by authorizing certain counties to impose a county hotel occupancy tax at certain rates.

RULEMAKING AUTHORITY

It is the committee's opinion that this bill does not expressly grant any additional rulemaking authority to a state officer, department, agency, or institution.

ANALYSIS

C.S.S.B. 1413 amends the Tax Code to authorize the commissioners court of a county that has a population of 80,000 or less, in which two state parks are located, and through which the Colorado River flows but that is not bordered by that river to impose a county hotel occupancy tax capped at a rate of seven percent of the price paid for a room in a hotel. The bill requires the county to impose the tax at a rate capped at 0.75 percent of the price paid for a room in a hotel if the hotel is located in a municipality that imposes a municipal hotel occupancy tax applicable to the hotel or the extraterritorial jurisdiction of that municipality and the municipality imposes a municipal hotel occupancy tax in that area applicable to the hotel.

EFFECTIVE DATE

On passage, or, if the bill does not receive the necessary vote, September 1, 2011.

COMPARISON OF ORIGINAL AND SUBSTITUTE

C.S.S.B. 1413 differs from the original by authorizing the commissioners court of a county that has a population of 80,000 or less, in which two state parks are located, and through which the Colorado River flows but that is not bordered by that river to impose a county hotel occupancy tax capped at a rate of seven percent of the price paid for a room in a hotel, whereas the original caps that county hotel occupancy tax rate at 7.75 percent of the price paid for a room in a hotel.