PROVIDENCE – One percent and five percent hotel tax collections increased both year over year in November and fiscal year over fiscal year through the five-month period, the R.I. Department of Revenue said Monday.
The 1 percent hotel tax is collected on the rental of rooms and remitted to the municipality where the room rental was located, while the 5 percent hotel tax is collected on the rental of rooms in the state and distributed according to a formula.
One percent hotel tax collections totaled $233,232 in November, an 8.4 percent increase compared with $215,086 in November 2015. In the fiscal year comparison period, 1 percent hotel tax collections rose 13.8 percent to $2.4 million from $2.1 million.
Newport had the largest nominal increase in 1 percent tax collections over the year at $14,759, followed by New Shoreham at $3,675 and Middletown, $3,386, while the largest nominal decreases were in Westerly, South Kingstown and Pawtucket at $4,736, $1,963 and $1,705, respectively.
Over the fiscal period, Narragansett has the largest nominal increase at $79,693, and Pawtucket had the largest nominal decrease at $11,952.
Five percent hotel tax collections climbed 7.2 percent to $1.15 million in November from $1.1 million in November 2015, while collections rose 4 percent over the fiscal year period to $11.1 million from $10.7 million.
Five percent hotel tax collections are distributed to regional tourism districts, municipalities, R.I. Commerce Corp. and the Providence Warwick Convention & Visitors Bureau.
Year over year in November, regional tourism districts saw a 7.5 percent increase in collections to $450,909, and a nearly 4 percent increase in collections, to $4.6 million, over the fiscal period.
Municipalities experienced an 8.3 percent gain in collections over the year in November, to $267,195, and a 4.8 percent increase in collections over the fiscal period to $2.6 million.
Commerce RI had an 18.6 percent increase over the year to $272,776, and 11.2 percent increase over the fiscal year, to $2.5 million. The PWCVB saw collections grow 5 percent over the year to $157,107, and 3.8 percent, to $1.3 million, over the fiscal period.
