Tourism that Gives Back

Did You Know?

Haywood County’s Occupancy Tax (what we charge on hotel and other short-term stays) lags behind most of the others in our region.

We’re leaving millions on the table!

Did you also know that 2/3 of all occupancy taxes received in the county are spent on advertisement?

Tourism shouldn’t only pay for more tourism.

It should make the quality of life better for people who call this place home and make Haywood County a place people want to visit. The last thing we want is a tourist economy that only supports low wage jobs and property values that force all the laborers to commute from out of county.

The county budget is tight.

Before we tax our neighbors, we should tax our tourists in line with the rest of our region

We could raise an extra $1.5 to $3 million dollars.

The County Commissioners should work with state legislators to raise the occupancy tax and rewrite Haywood Co. specific restrictions to allow for wider benefit. Done right, we could keep the TDA’s marketing budget relatively flat while raising $1.5 – $3 million more for schools, parks, or other things for public benefit.