Morgan County Commissioners were faced with nearly $600,000 in requests for money from the county’s Hotel/Motel fund for the 2026 Fiscal Year, and settled on a budget of $425,000 to pay for recreation, arts and historical projects locally.
Morgan County collects a 6% lodging tax paid by guests at local hotels, inns and short-term rental properties outside the municipal limits. Half of that tax goes to Travel Berkeley Springs for tourism promotion efforts, while the other half can be sought by local groups to support their projects.
The Hotel/Motel tax is also in effect for lodging businesses inside the Town of Bath, and the town government disperses those funds separately.
On Wednesday, August 6, commissioners agreed after some discussion to the following Hotel/Motel Fund awards:
–Morgan County Parks & Recreation, $40,000
–Waiver of league rent of fields for baseball, soccer & volleyball, $11,575
–Museum of the Berkeley Springs for docents, $4,950
–Morgan Arts Council, $30,000
–Apple Butter Festival, $10,000
–TBS Fireworks, $6,000
–Town of Bath Streetscapes match, $14,000
— Civil War Trails sign maintenance, $800
— Foxglove Garden Club, Old Dutch Cemetery walkway, $10,000
— Foxglove Garden Club gardening expenses, $5,000
— County Maintenance Mowing salary, $48,526
— Bath Christmas Project, $10,000
–South Morgan Fire Company carnival fireworks, $4,500
— Paw Paw Festival committee, $4,900
— Morgan County Historical and Geneaological Society for Bath signs, $3,404
— Bath Civic Trust, $3,000
— Morgan County Wellness Center, $26,750
— Morgan County Saddle Club pavilion, $12,800
— Berkeley Springs Castle roof repair, $10,000
— Morgan County Observatory new telescope, stairs, $12,500
— Greenwood Community Center rubber playground mulch, $4,000
— OnTrac Town of Bath downtown development program, $5,000
— Town of Bath Façade improvements, $4,325
— North Berkeley Rail Trail trailhead federal match, $90,000
— County recreation 16 acre development, phase 1, $40,000
— Reserve, $12,970.
Groups make their funding request through the Morgan County Commission office each year. Projects must match state law provisions for proper use of Hotel/Motel funds.
