January Resort Tax Up From December but Down From Last Year

Haynie attributes a large part of the lower collections total to discounted room rates following the Sept. 11, 2001 terrorist attacks and the shrinking economy nationally.

January occupancy was 54% versus 63.2% in January 2001, according to Smith Travel Research of Hendersonville, TN. Average room rates dropped to $91.83 compared to $101.34 for the comparable month last year.

Resort tax collections are crucial to Orlando's tourism industry because they pay for the $750 million Orange County Convention Center expansion and fund year-long marketing programs for the area's 113,800 hotel and motel rooms and 20,000 timeshare units.

Prior to the 2001 recession start, Orange County had been averaging $100 million in annual collections which amount to 5% of the daily room rate. The $7 million January collection equates to an annualized $84 million total. Collections in 2001 totaled $95 million.

That revenue wasn't enough to cover the debt load for the one million-sf exhibit space addition being completed at the convention center. In 1998, the county had projected tax collection increases of 3% per year, a goal that hasn't been reached.

To cover the convention center work, commissioners approved refinancing the county's total debt load over 30 years to $2.09 billion from $2 billion, as GlobeSt.com reported Jan. 17. The county's revenue bonds still attain an A rating with the national bond ranking firms, according to industry newsletters.