Our View: Vote ‘Yes’ on lodgers tax ballot question

An increase in Durango’s lodgers tax, which ought to occur, has a long list of supporters and few if any naysayers. A major supporter is the Durango Area Hospitality and Lodgers Association; it is those business owners who collect the tax from lodgers when they check out.

The current tax of 2% does not go as far as it did when it was instituted in 1980. In the interim, the average lodgers tax across Colorado has risen to 3.6 percent.

A “yes” vote on this April’s ballot, which will reach Durangoans early next week, will increase our tax to 5.25%. Combined with sales taxes, the total tax paid on checkout here still will remain below the state average.

Averages can vary by season and level of lodging, of course, but the increase is estimated to add about $4 to a night’s stay. That is aggressive, and it should be; 1980 was a long time ago.

Each year, 55% of the revenue generated by the increase would go to sustainable tourism marketing; 20% to transportation and transit services (which will go a long way toward replacing the state funding that is being reduced); 14% to arts and culture programs; and 11% to any of the previous uses or other special needs the council might identify in a particular year.

The City Council put the lodgers tax on the ballot. It is the only question on the ballot in addition to filling three council seats.

By increasing the lodgers tax, we allow tourists to help support city services, which they, like residents, take advantage of when they are visiting.

The Herald’s Editorial Board urges Durangoans to vote “yes” for the increase in our lodgers tax.

-The Durango Herald