Generally speaking, representatives for Utah’s tourism industry are supportive of state lawmakers’ plans to lure Major League Baseball to Salt Lake City with a new stadium development.
But to pay for it, House Bill 562 would raise the transient room tax, or TRT, by 1.5% statewide. That means extra costs for anyone booking a hotel, Airbnb or campground.
Park City Chamber President and CEO Jennifer Wesselhoff said the tourism lobby is working to push the tax rate increase down to 1%.
“What this bill currently doesn’t take into account is the growth of the lodging industry over the course of the next 10 years,” Wesselhoff said. “There are 2,000 units being built in 2024 today in Salt Lake, so we think that we can still help them achieve their revenue goals, but still lessen that impact on that statewide TRT and make it more equitable.”
The bill also includes a 2.5% increase to the rental car tax.
Wesselhoff said the chamber is supportive of a provision in the bill that would exempt group business bookings, which are defined as greater than 20 rooms, from the increased hotel tax.
“Group business generally is more sensitive to the overall checkout rate,” she said. “For us here in Park City, the group market makes up about a quarter of our total overnight business, so it’s a really important market to us. We want to continue to grow that as well, so it’s important that we have that carve out so that we can stay competitive.”
Utah Gov. Spencer Cox has endorsed tapping into the hotel tax to build a stadium.
The MLB is aiming to expand from 30 to 32 teams by 2030, and Salt Lake City is considered a favorite. The tax increases in the bill would not take effect until an agreement between Utah officials and the baseball league is signed.
When the MLB last expanded, Tampa Bay and Arizona were announced as new teams in 1995, but didn’t play ball until 1998.
