M a r c h 3 , 2 0 2 2 | A p p e n M e d i a . c o m | A n A p p e n M e d i a G r o u p P u b l i c a t i o n | 5 0 ¢ | Vo l u m e 2 5 , N o . 9
County Commission moves to raise hotel tax Board also agrees to condemn land for road widening
By CHAMIAN CRUZ chamian@appenmedia.com
By JAKE DRUKMAN jake@appenmedia.com FORSYTH COUNTY, Ga. — Forsyth County commissioners approved a resolution Feb. 22 to raise the local hotel and motel tax, a move that would bring in more money to market the area for tourism and business. If the measure passes legislative approval, it could bring in another $300,000 annually. State law allows local governments to impose a tax on hotels and motels between of between 1% and 8%, but the law restricts what local governments can use the revenue for. For localities taxing less than 6%, at least 40% of the revenue must be used for tourism, convention and trade show activities, while the other 60% is unrestricted. Localities taxing 8% have 37.5% of the revenue unrestricted, while the rest must go to tourism-related activities. Forsyth County may see slightly higher prices for their lodging, but the increased tax will enable the county to invest in attracting more tourists and visitors. In 2021, the county collected $566,000 from its 5% hotel and motel tax. Of that total, about $226,000 was committed to tourism. The remaining $340,000 was unrestricted. Had the tax been 8%, the county would have collected around $905,000. The unrestricted share would remain the same due to the smaller percentage of unrestricted revenue, but the county would have more than twice as much
Campaign begins for ’22 Duck Dive to benefit schools
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The Forsyth County Board of Commissioners took the first step toward raising the county’s hotel tax from 5% to 8% Feb. 22. money — $566,000 — to put toward tourism development. County Manager Kevin Tanner provided more than a dozen examples of nearby cities and counties that impose an 8% tax, including Gwinnett County, Cobb County, Alpharetta and Dahlonega. Tanner said several local hotels actually requested the tax increase due to its potential to increase tourism. “They said in the letters they sent that the more we invest in Forsyth County, the better their business is,” Tanner said. “This is not an adversarial decision with the hotel industry — they’re actually asking for this.” The tax increase still has a fairly long road to travel before it becomes official.
After the county’s final approval, the tax increase must be approved by both .houses of the Georgia Legislature and signed by the governor. It then comes back to the county board, where it is subject to legal notifications and public hearings before it can be adopted. In other matters at the work session, the commission moved to approve a barrage of new property condemnations to make way for the McGinnis Ferry Road widening project. The business-packed Tuesday work session included eight condemnations on the agenda, all approved by the board. The property acquisitions will
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FORSYTH COUNTY, Ga. — The third annual Duck Dive for Education kicked off Feb. 23, giving anyone in the community a chance to win $10,000 while supporting Forsyth County Schools. The deadline to “adopt a duck” is March 25 and will end with a drawing on April 1 at the Cumming Aquatic Center. The event is hosted by the Forsyth County Education Foundation, which was created by the school board in 2015 as an extension of the Partners in Education program. Last year, the Duck Dive raised $115,000 that went toward 27 grants for classroom and schoolwide projects that align with the district’s Learner Profile and School Improvement Plans. However, since it was started in 2016, it has provided over $350,000 in grants. There are 20,000 ducks available for adoption for $10 each. Past winners include the North Forsyth Rotary Club and a family from Silver City Elementary School. To participate, visit the Forsyth County School Board of Education building at 1120 Dahlonega Highway in Cumming or forsyth.k12.ga.us/domain/5154.