letter to the editor
Delay Hotel-Motel Tax implementation due to COVID-19
Honorable Mayor and elected officials and townspeople of Farragut:
This is an open “APPEAL TO REASON.”
Recently and after much dialog and discussion the Town of Farragut passed a Hotel Occupancy Tax to be imposed on guests in hotels in the Farragut area. This NEW tax is to begin with occupancy after June 1, 2020. At the time of discussion and the vote the businesses of all in the area was robust, although in Farragut the hotel occupancy was not at high levels.
This tax was presented to be a “no impact on the citizens and only a pass-along tax” on those visiting Farragut hotels. The revenues from such tax were to be utilized to promote Farragut tourism, etc. Now, the “Appeal to Reason.”
Since the vote on the NEW tax, our country has been literally shut down to most traffic, thus the occupancy in our hotels has plummeted to almost nothing in only a matter of weeks. The President has mandated and governors throughout our country have backed up social distancing and the closure of all but essential businesses.
