HB25-1247: Talking Points
CLARA members can count on us as a resource for legislative advocacy efforts with supporting resources like talking points to prepare for lawmaker outreach.
When it comes to HB25-1247, CLARA has taken a position of opposition to the bill as currently written. Read on for reasons why, which you can use to help craft your talking points or written testimony on this particular bill.
CLARA supported the 2% lodging tax bill in 2023 which was established to support workforce housing and childcare needs for counties. CLARA was happy to support these important needs with that initial iteration of this bill.
However, the current revision which would increase the tax from 2% up to 6%, subject to voter approval, opens up the bill to much broader infrastructure needs. While CLARA agrees that these infrastructure needs are important, we do not believe it is fair to place the full burden on the lodging community for these needs. As such, we do not support the bill as currently written and believe that these broader community needs would be better supported by a uniform sales tax measure.
CLARA’s detailed position statement on HB25-1247 can be found on our overview of the bill in an earlier blog post.
Talking Points to Consider
As you prepare for public comment or written testimony, CLARA has a few points you may want to consider. Bear in mind that public comment is limited to 2 minutes per speaker - be sure to time your remarks to be sure you can share your most important points!
As with public testimony on any legislation that could impact you, share a bit about your vacation rental. What makes it special to your family? Why did you choose the destination for a home purchase? What are your goals for the future - do you plan to retire there, share it with family and friends, or something else?
Consider your current total tax collected per guest. How much would an additional 4% lodging tax raise your total tax rate? For example: if your current total tax collected is 8%, an additional 4% would mean a 50% increase. That is a huge jump!
What other taxes, fees, or regulations are already in place in your community?
As a constituent of the community where your vacation rental is located, what sorts of infrastructure needs would you like to see better supported? Which ones feel appropriate for lodging to support, and which ones seem best supported by the community as a whole?
If some of the extra infrastructure items were removed from this bill, and the focus were be to narrowed to just workforce related needs - would you support it?
What changes would you like to see made to this bill in order to be supportive of it going forward?
Rather than adamantly opposing the bill, what ideas do you have that could make it more palatable?
While CLARA is opposed to this bill as currently written, we are willing to bring our best advocacy efforts to the table to discuss potential solutions that we would support. As with every public comment we deliver, CLARA supports our members bringing creative ideas to the table that could yield a positive result or at least some insightful conversation.
Be sure to be constructive and respectful with your remarks, as always, and by showing up with actionable solutions you are much more likely to gain the respect and interest of lawmakers. If you have questions about your public comment or would like further assistance drafting your remarks, reach out to us via the contact page on this website. We would be happy to help!
Members of CLARA can rely on us to keep you up to date on legislative proposals like this one that could impact vacation rentals in Colorado. Stay connected with us to enjoy unlimited access to member resources by maintaining your membership via the membership tab on this website.
