Karl Gillespie
Raleigh – A bill that could have a significant impact on Graham County’s tax revenue seems to be heading toward its second vote in Raleigh.
As of March 23, House Bill 94 – the Graham Occupancy Tax Bill – passed on the House floor by a vote of 106-11, according to a press release from the office of state Rep. Karl E. Gillespie, R-Franklin.
The bill is currently in committee in the state Senate . Due to the nature of the local bill, it will not require a signature from Gov. Roy Cooper.
“Hopefully we’ll see it move through and onto the floor,” said Gillespie, who is one of the bill’s co-sponsors.
The bill would create “Tax District G” – consisting of all the unincorporated land in Graham County – and expand the municipal three percent occupancy tax through the county.
The change would match the occupancy tax in the county with that of its three municipalities.
“Robbinsville and Graham County is very similar to a lot of other counties – in that, used to, all the lodging was in the city limits, and that has changed, so we’re just extending that out so we can broaden the tax base,” Gillespie elaborated.
He also said that residents of Graham County would likely not feel much of a change should the bill take effect, due to the bill focusing on Airbnb and similar services geared toward tourists.
“This is just a way that we can generate some revenue for Graham County – and for the most part, folks from Graham County are not going to be paying that tax,” Gillespie added.
“That type of lodging has really increased, and all of the data that we see seems to indicate that it’s going to continue to increase, so it’s at tax that they will charge that they’ll pass straight along to to the folks who are staying with them, and that’ll be some dollars that Graham County can use.”
He said he was unsure when the bill would be brought to the Senate Floor for a vote, but that he didn’t expect it to take too long.
“I would think that that bill would be like a lot of other bills,” Gillespie said. “It’ll move through in a timely fashion.”
Gillespie also discussed a bill introduced by Rep. Mike Clampitt, R-Bryson City, that would split the state’s Court District 30, which includes the seven counties west of Asheville.
The district has recently seen issues with wait times for cases to go before a judge.
“This has been an ongoing issue with the 30th Judicial District,” Gillespie said. “I actually have a fiscal research meeting with (Clampitt) this week to look at a lot of data that’s surrounding that, to figure out what’s the best way to do that.”