Tag Archives: Hotel Occupancy Tax
Despite its name, the Live Music Fund is not just for live music
The 650-plus applications for grants from the city’s inaugural Live Music Fund are in the early stages of evaluation and scoring, with the awards of $5,000 and $10,000 slated for initial distribution beginning in September. The Music Commission received a…
Music & Entertainment • By Chad Swiatecki • Jun 9, 2023
Tourism Commission seeks answers on stalled hotel tax to fund homeless services
The Tourism Commission wants to take a hard look at the lack of progress on, and new considerations involved in, the long-discussed taxing district that could see large hotels contribute a new tax levy toward costs associated with homelessness. Next…
Austin • By Chad Swiatecki • May 12, 2023
Arts, music commissions to renew push for short-term rental tax collections
It appears arts and music advocates will likely ask City Council to reach an agreement with short-term rental platforms such as Airbnb and begin receiving millions of dollars in uncollected hotel taxes that could in part benefit the local creative…
Austin • By Chad Swiatecki • Apr 11, 2023
City’s hotel tax on the upswing after pandemic
The city’s Arts Commission heard an update last week on the status of the Cultural Arts Fund and Hotel Occupancy Tax collection numbers for the first quarter of Fiscal Year 2022-23. After a rough showing during the pandemic, there are…
Budget • By Nina Hernandez • Feb 1, 2023
Music Commission shows support for STR agreement but delays recommendation to Council
The Music Commission voiced support Monday for the city to enter into an agreement with short-term rental platforms such as Airbnb, but opted to gather more information from staff and held off on making a recommendation to City Council over…
Music & Entertainment • By Chad Swiatecki • Apr 6, 2022
Council moves forward with arts funding plan, promising relief for nonprofit grant applicants
Following the recommendations of the Arts Commission, City Council has approved funding for cultural arts programs with plans to significantly expand its nonprofit relief grant program. That’s good news for the program’s applicants, who can all expect to see checks…
City Council • By Kali Bramble • Nov 23, 2021
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Music Commission opts to reevaluate Live Music Fund after affirming diversity goals
The Music Commission will gather more community feedback on the guidelines for the city’s $2.3 million Live Music Fund, but agreed Monday that diversity and inclusion will be one of its baseline goals. The commission unanimously approved three resolutions related…
Music & Entertainment • By Chad Swiatecki • Nov 5, 2021
Tovo eyes historic preservation funds for undisclosed property negotiations
The grant program that uses Hotel Occupancy Tax money to help improve historic sites could be put on hold for a year so the city could use its funding to purchase historic sites. At City Council’s Audit and Finance Committee…
City Hall • By Chad Swiatecki • Sep 24, 2021
Tourism Commission recommendations include gondolas funded by hotel tax
A transit system geared toward tourists, paying Austin musicians to promote local tourism, and a variety of programming and promotional efforts for historic sites are among a new batch of recommended uses for the city’s Hotel Occupancy Tax dollars. This…
Austin • By Chad Swiatecki • May 13, 2021
Music Commission eyes funding apart from hotel tax among 2021 priorities
The Music Commission wants to decrease the role that Hotel Occupancy Tax will play in funding arts and music programs in the coming years, possibly relying more on the city’s General Fund or other revenue sources while the local hospitality…
Music & Entertainment • By Chad Swiatecki • Jan 12, 2021
City considers racial equity in Hotel Occupancy Tax distribution
Earlier this month, the city’s Economic Development Department provided an update and offered a handful of recommendations for how it plans to use Hotel Occupancy Tax funds to achieve greater racial equity in Austin. The three high-level recommendations mainly have…
City Hall • By Alyssa Weinstein • Oct 23, 2020
Music Commission eyes police dollars instead of hotel tax to support Black music fund
Included in the Music Commission’s request to create a Black Live Music Fund may be a suggestion that the city look for money outside of the Hotel Occupancy Tax – including funds intended for law enforcement – to rebuild the…
