JACKSON, Wyo. — The Jackson Hole Travel & Tourism Board (JHTTB) has released its annual report, detailing the ways in which the state’s lodging tax is used to fund town and county services.
Across Wyoming, a lodging tax of 5% is imposed on overnight stays at hotels, motels, RV parks, campgrounds, guest ranches, rental properties and more. A portion of that money is remitted to the state, funding the Wyoming Office of Tourism. The remaining revenue goes to funding local tourism and mitigating its impacts on infrastructure and services.
Locally, 60% of the lodging tax revenue is directed by JHTTB toward tourism marketing and events. The remaining 40% is divided between the Town of Jackson and Teton County. From July 2022 through June 2023, Teton County’s lodging tax generated $10,095,202.90. From that sum, the Town of Jackson collected $2,487,676 and Teton County collected $2,581,977.
JHTTB’s report notes that 60% of the Town’s allocated funds and 49% of the County’s allocated funds were directed toward public transportation. The rest of the Town’s sum was divided among parks and recreation, public safety and the Pathways system. The County split the rest of its funds among parks and recreation, fire/EMS services, the Jackson Hole Historical Society and Museum and Grand Targhee Resort.
“As evidenced in the pages of the FY23 JHTTB Annual Report, tourism is the backbone of our local economy,” JHTTB Board Chair Erik Dombroski wrote in the report’s introduction. “The revenue it generates supports our infrastructure, local businesses and essential services for our residents. Between July 1, 2022 and June 30, 2023, tourism to Teton County generated $1.7 billion in revenue, $10 million in lodging tax funds and 7,890 tourism-related jobs.”
The report includes detailed statistics comparing tax figures by year and month. The lodging tax drop for FY23 was close to 9%, according to the report.
Read the full report here.
