DOR: Hotel, meal, beverage tax collections climb in June

THE R.I. DEPARTMENT OF REVENUE released its 1 percent hotel and meal and beverage tax collections reports, as well as its 5 percent hotel tax allocation report, all of which showed increases in June collections year over year. / COURTESY R.I. DEPARTMENT OF REVENUE
THE R.I. DEPARTMENT OF REVENUE released its 1 percent hotel and meal and beverage tax collections reports, as well as its 5 percent hotel tax allocation report, all of which showed increases in June collections year over year. / COURTESY R.I. DEPARTMENT OF REVENUE

PROVIDENCE – Hotel tax collections grew 7.3 percent year over year in June, and meal and beverage tax collections increased 6.6 percent, according to the R.I. Department of Revenue.
The state agency on Friday released its local 1 percent tax collection reports.
It said that hotel tax collections totaled $358,427 in June compared with $334,022 collected in June 2014. On a fiscal year-to-date basis, collections increased 8.8 percent, or $275,411, to $3.4 million compared with the same fiscal period a year ago.
The tax is collected on the rental of rooms in the state and remitted to the municipality where the room rental was located.
“Obviously, Rhode Island proved to be an attractive destination for tourists and other visitors this past fiscal year. With a new state level tourism promotion and business attraction campaign set to be launched by the Rhode Island Commerce Corporation in [fiscal] 2016, I am confident we can improve on these numbers in the coming fiscal year,” Acting Director of Revenue David M. Sullivan said in a statement.
Meal and beverage tax collections totaled $2.3 million in June compared with $2.2 million in June 2014. Meal and beverage tax collections increased 7 percent on a fiscal year-to-date basis to $23.9 million when compared with $22.3 million during the previous fiscal period.
Sullivan said meal and beverage tax collections “finished with a flourish on a year-over-year basis for June.” He also said that the 7 percent increase fiscal year over fiscal year represents the “highest growth rate” for a fiscal year since fiscal 2012.
“This sizable growth is lost on the state’s residents and visitors as the data clearly shows,” he said.
Like the hotel tax, the meal and beverage tax is collected on the sale of a meal or beverage prepared away from home and remitted, in full, to the municipality in which the meal and beverage was consumed.
In other news, the state also released its 5 percent hotel tax allocation report, showing that fiscal year to date through June, collections increased 8.8 percent to $17 million when compared with the previous fiscal period when $15.7 million was colleccted.
For June alone, collections increased 7.3 percent year over year to $1.8 million.
Sullivan said that it appeared the 2015 tourist season got off to a “solid start” in June, given the numbers. He also said that the $1.4 million increase fiscal year over fiscal year was the highest level recorded since fiscal 2011.
“Suffice it to say, the $9 million plus of state hotel tax revenues that were allocated for tourism and visitor promotion should serve the state well in the coming fiscal year,” he said.

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