SLO County News BlogGolf, Wine, Real Estate, Business & Travel NewsBusy Tourist Season in SLOThursday, September 22, 2005Tourists and their dollars came to San Luis Obispo in July, pushing hotel tax returns for the city up 14 over last year.The city earned about $506,594 from the key tax that month, up from $442,947 the year before. Hotel tax, a 10 percent city surcharge tacked on to the cost of a hotel stay in the city, makes up about 10 percent of the city's $37.9 million general fund. City officials said a busy Fourth of July weekend brought visitors to town and pushed up receipts. They expect hotel tax to increase by 3 percent this year. The city's budget year starts in July, and while officials said they hope late summer vacations in August and September continue the positive trend, a good first month isn't necessarily a sign of a strong year. Last year, for example, hotel tax returns grew by 13 percent one month, only to drop by 10 percent a few months later. Ultimately, the tax outperformed last year's projection of 3 percent growth. The city actually took in 4 percent more in hotel taxes -- despite the ups and downs -- then it had the year before. From Biz Buzz, The Tribune, Leslie Griffy To see more of The Tribune, or to subscribe to the newspaper, go to www.sanluisobispo.com. (c) 2005, The Tribune, San Luis Obispo, Calif. Distributed by Knight Ridder/Tribune Business News. Read More
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