Hotels in Seattle propose $2-per-night tax for tourism promotion

Hotels in Seattle want to add a $2-per-night room tax to fund a tourism promotion campaign, according to The Seattle Times.

A majority of the 53 hotels that would be included already have signed petitions expressing support and the Seattle City Council could vote on the measure this summer, it says. The new tax would raise about $6 million to be spent next year, mostly for advertising.

The hotels in the city already charge 15.6% in sales taxes and a room tax.

"I think traditional sources of funding tourism in many cities and many states is changing dramatically," Tom Norwalk, CEO of Seattle's Convention and Visitors Bureau, told the paper. "We're really using something that's been adopted widely around the country."

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