City of Grover Beach

Measure L-18 Ordinance - Majority Approval Required

The City Council of the City of Grover Beach has placed Measure L-18 on the November 6, 2018 ballot to ask the voters to approve an ordinance that would enact an increase in the City’s Transient Occupancy Tax on hotel accommodations operating within the City.  The City of Grover Beach imposes a transient occupancy Tax (“TOT”), also called a “room” tax, at the rate of ten percent (10%) of the rent paid by guests for the ability to occupy a room or other space in a hotel or other similar accommodation for dwelling lodging or sleeping purposes (collectively “occupancy” and a “hotel”) for a period of thirty (30) consecutive days or less.  This TOT currently is imposed upon paying hotel guests for the ability to occupy a room or other hotel space and collected by the hotel operator.

Passage of Measure “L-18” would amend the City’s Municipal Code as follows:

·         Increase the TOT rate from ten percent (10%) to twelve percent (12%) of the rent paid by guests for hotel occupancy.  Because the tax is a general tax, its proceeds may be used for any City general governmental purposes, including but not limited to fire and police services, street operations and maintenance, library and parks and recreation facilities and other general municipal services.  The tax will remain in effect until voters amend or repeal it.

The current ordinance considers a person transient and subject to the tax up to a total of 30 consecutive days and the TOT will apply only to the first 30 consecutive days of occupancy at a hotel.

Measure L-18 must be approved by a majority of the votes cast by the City voters who vote on the ballot proposition.

A “yes” vote on Measure L-18 will authorize the amendments to the City’s Municipal Code described above.

A “no” vote on Measure L-18 will prohibit the City from adopting the amendments to its Municipal Code as described above and the TOT will remain in place at ten percent (10%) until otherwise revised by a majority vote of the voters who vote on a future ballot proposition.

AN ORDINANCE OF THE CITY COUNCIL OF THE CITY OF GROVER BEACH

AMENDING SECTION 10602 OF CHAPTER 6, ARTICLE X OF THE GROVER BEACH MUNICIPAL CODE RELATING TO INCREASING THE TRANSIENT OCCUPANCY TAX

                WHEREAS, the City has adopted Chapter 6 of Article X of the Grover Beach Municipal Code for the purpose of establishing a Transient Occupancy Tax; and

                WHEREAS, the current Transient Occupancy Tax is levied for the purpose of establishing a tax revenue and a monitory exaction for the privilege of occupying a hotel/motel within the jurisdictional boundaries of the City; and

                WHEREAS, the typical individuals for which this tax is imposed are transient to the City and the impact of this tax is not typically born by residents of the City of Grover Beach, and

                WHEREAS, the amount of the tax is 10% of the rent charged by the operator of the hotel/motel; and

                WHEREAS, the City has not amended or revised this amount since 1991 and desires to increase this amount to remain consistent with other communities and to address inflationary costs associated with general governmental services; and

                WHEREAS, the Council is intending to increase the amount of the tax from 10% to 12%; and

                WHEREAS, the City Council placed Measure L-18 on the ballot at the November 6, 2018 General Municipal Election that proposed the City enact an increase in the City’s Transient Occupancy Tax to 12%.

                NOW, THEREFORE, THE CITY COUNCIL OF THE CITY OF GROVER BEACH does hereby ordain; and BE IT ORDAINED BY THE VOTERS OF GROVER BEACH as follows:

                PART 1.  Section 10602 of Chapter 6 of Article X of the Grover Beach Municipal Code is hereby amended to read as follows:

Sec. 10602. Tax Imposed. For the privilege of occupancy in any hotel/motel, each transient is subject to and shall pay a tax in the amount of twelve (12%) percent of the rent charged by the operator. Said tax constitutes a debt owed by the transient to the City which is extinguished only by payment to the operator or to the City. The transient shall pay the tax to the operator of the hotel/motel at the time the rent is paid. If the rent is paid in installments, a proportionate share of the tax shall be paid with each installment. The unpaid tax shall be due upon the transients ceasing to occupy space in the hotel/motel. If for any reason the tax due is not paid to the operator of the hotel/motel, the Tax Administrator may require that such tax shall be paid directly to the Tax Administrator.

                PART 2.  If any section, subsection, subdivision, paragraph, sentence, clause, or phrase of this Ordinance or any part thereof is for any reason held to be in violation of the law, such decision shall not affect the validity of the remaining portion of this Ordinance or any part thereof. The City Council hereby declares that it would have passed each section, subsection, subdivision, paragraph, sentence, clause, or phrase thereof, irrespective of the fact that any one or more sections, subsections, subdivisions, paragraphs, sentences, clauses or phrases be declared in violation of the law.

                PART 3. This Ordinance shall become effective thirty (30) days after the date of its adoption, and within fifteen (15) days after its adoption, it shall be published once, together with the names of the Council Members voting thereon, in a newspaper of general circulation within the City.