by Trish Rudder
The deadline to request hotel/motel tax funds from the Town of Bath is February 28. Community groups must submit an application to seek the funds which come from the local hotel tax.
The request is for fiscal year 2021-22, which begins July 1, 2021 and ends June 30, 2022.
The hotel/motel occupancy tax helps fund organizations that promote tourism, beautification, historical or cultural efforts in the town.
Each year the town finance committee reviews the funding applications to determine how the organization/project will benefit tourism in the Town of Bath.
As dictated by law, 50 percent of the lodging tax collected goes to the local tourism bureau, Travel Berkeley Springs, for tourism promotion. The other half is distributed to the local groups that are approved by the finance committee.
About 12 groups received hotel/motel tax funds in the past. The town encourages organizations to apply that would benefit tourism in Bath and qualifies them to receive hotel/motel occupancy tax funds.
The hotel/motel tax collected for the town for fiscal year 2019-20 (July 1, 2019 through June 30, 2020) was $70,862, said Sharron Corrick, Town of Bath clerk.
The application form can be downloaded from the town website (townofbath.org) or picked up at Town Hall at 271 Wilkes St.
Corrick said on Monday that only three applications were submitted so far.