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Santa Barbara County Residents Going To Be Asked To Hike Motel, Hotel Bed Tax

Santa Barbara County residents are going to be asked to approve an increase in the county’s “transient occupancy tax” from 10% to 12% for motel, and hotel guests in unincorporated parts of the county.

It would bring the TOT tax in line with the 12% currently charged by the cities of Santa Barbara, Goleta, Carpinteria, Buellton, and Solvang. County Supervisors yesterday moved to put the proposal on the November ballot.

If approved by voters, the increased tax on motel, and hotel guests would boost the county’s bed tax revenue from around $9.4 to more than $10.3 million dollars in the first year after being implemented.

The tax would impact visitors from out of town, but would provide additional funding for programs, and services in the county.

Lance Orozco has been News Director of KCLU since 2001, providing award-winning coverage of some of the biggest news events in the region, including the Thomas and Woolsey brush fires, the deadly Montecito debris flow, the Borderline Bar and Grill attack, and Ronald Reagan's funeral.