Sec. 351.101. USE OF TAX REVENUE.
Text of subsection as amended by Acts 2015, 84th Leg., R.S., Ch. 666 (H.B. 3772), Sec. 1
(a) Revenue from the municipal hotel occupancy tax may be used only to promote tourism and the convention and hotel industry, and that use is limited to the following:
(1) the acquisition of sites for and the construction, improvement, enlarging, equipping, repairing, operation, and maintenance of convention center facilities or visitor information centers, or both;
(2) the furnishing of facilities, personnel, and materials for the registration of convention delegates or registrants;
(3) advertising and conducting solicitations and promotional programs to attract tourists and convention delegates or registrants to the municipality or its vicinity;
(4) the encouragement, promotion, improvement, and application of the arts, including instrumental and vocal music, dance, drama, folk art, creative writing, architecture, design and allied fields, painting, sculpture, photography, graphic and craft arts, motion pictures, radio, television, tape and sound recording, and other arts related to the presentation, performance, execution, and exhibition of these major art forms;
(5) historical restoration and preservation projects or activities or advertising and conducting solicitations and promotional programs to encourage tourists and convention delegates to visit preserved historic sites or museums:
(A) at or in the immediate vicinity of convention center facilities or visitor information centers; or
(B) located elsewhere in the municipality or its vicinity that would be frequented by tourists and convention delegates;
(6) for a municipality located in a county with a population of one million or less, expenses, including promotion expenses, directly related to a sporting event in which the majority of participants are tourists who substantially increase economic activity at hotels and motels within the municipality or its vicinity;
(7) subject to Section 351.1076, the promotion of tourism by the enhancement and upgrading of existing sports facilities or fields, including facilities or fields for baseball, softball, soccer, and flag football, if:
(A) the municipality owns the facilities or fields;
(B) the municipality:
(i) has a population of 80,000 or more and is located in a county that has a population of 350,000 or less;
(ii) has a population of at least 75,000 but not more than 95,000 and is located in a county that has a population of less than 200,000 but more than 160,000;
(iii) has a population of at least 36,000 but not more than 39,000 and is located in a county that has a population of 100,000 or less that is not adjacent to a county with a population of more than two million;
(iv) has a population of at least 13,000 but less than 39,000 and is located in a county that has a population of at least 200,000;
(v) has a population of at least 70,000 but less than 90,000 and no part of which is located in a county with a population greater than 150,000;
(vi) is located in a county that:
(a) is adjacent to the Texas-Mexico border;
(b) has a population of at least 500,000; and
(c) does not have a municipality with a population greater than 500,000;
(vii) has a population of at least 25,000 but not more than 26,000 and is located in a county that has a population of 90,000 or less; or
(viii) is located in a county that has a population of not more than 300,000 and in which a component university of the University of Houston System is located; and
(C) the sports facilities and fields have been used, in the preceding calendar year, a combined total of more than 10 times for district, state, regional, or national sports tournaments;
(8) for a municipality with a population of at least 70,000 but less than 90,000, no part of which is located in a county with a population greater than 150,000, the construction, improvement, enlarging, equipping, repairing, operation, and maintenance of a coliseum or multiuse facility;
(9) signage directing the public to sights and attractions that are visited frequently by hotel guests in the municipality;
(10) the construction, improvement, enlarging, equipping, repairing, operation, and maintenance of a coliseum or multiuse facility, if the municipality:
(A) has a population of at least 90,000 but less than 120,000; and
(B) is located in two counties, at least one of which contains the headwaters of the San Gabriel River; and
(11) for a municipality with a population of more than 175,000 but less than 225,000 that is located in two counties, each of which has a population of less than 200,000, the construction, improvement, enlarging, equipping, repairing, operation, and maintenance of a coliseum or multiuse facility and related infrastructure or a venue, as defined by Section 334.001(4), Local Government Code, that is related to the promotion of tourism.
Text of subsection as amended by Acts 2015, 84th Leg., R.S., Ch. 979 (H.B. 3615), Sec. 1
(a) Revenue from the municipal hotel occupancy tax may be used only to promote tourism and the convention and hotel industry, and that use is limited to the following:
(1) the acquisition of sites for and the construction, improvement, enlarging, equipping, repairing, operation, and maintenance of convention center facilities or visitor information centers, or both;
(2) the furnishing of facilities, personnel, and materials for the registration of convention delegates or registrants;
(3) advertising and conducting solicitations and promotional programs to attract tourists and convention delegates or registrants to the municipality or its vicinity;
(4) the encouragement, promotion, improvement, and application of the arts, including instrumental and vocal music, dance, drama, folk art, creative writing, architecture, design and allied fields, painting, sculpture, photography, graphic and craft arts, motion pictures, radio, television, tape and sound recording, and other arts related to the presentation, performance, execution, and exhibition of these major art forms;
(5) historical restoration and preservation projects or activities or advertising and conducting solicitations and promotional programs to encourage tourists and convention delegates to visit preserved historic sites or museums:
(A) at or in the immediate vicinity of convention center facilities or visitor information centers; or
(B) located elsewhere in the municipality or its vicinity that would be frequented by tourists and convention delegates;
(6) for a municipality located in a county with a population of one million or less, expenses, including promotion expenses, directly related to a sporting event in which the majority of participants are tourists who substantially increase economic activity at hotels and motels within the municipality or its vicinity;
(7) subject to Section 351.1076, the promotion of tourism by the enhancement and upgrading of existing sports facilities or fields, including facilities or fields for baseball, softball, soccer, flag football, and rodeos, if:
(A) the municipality owns the facilities or fields;
(B) the municipality:
(i) has a population of 80,000 or more and is located in a county that has a population of 350,000 or less;
(ii) has a population of at least 75,000 but not more than 95,000 and is located in a county that has a population of less than 200,000 but more than 160,000;
(iii) has a population of at least 36,000 but not more than 39,000 and is located in a county that has a population of 100,000 or less that is not adjacent to a county with a population of more than two million;
(iv) has a population of at least 13,000 but less than 39,000 and is located in a county that has a population of at least 200,000;
(v) has a population of at least 70,000 but less than 90,000 and no part of which is located in a county with a population greater than 150,000;
(vi) is located in a county that:
(a) is adjacent to the Texas-Mexico border;
(b) has a population of at least 500,000; and
(c) does not have a municipality with a population greater than 500,000;
(vii) has a population of at least 25,000 but not more than 26,000 and is located in a county that has a population of 90,000 or less;
(viii) has a population of at least 7,500 and is located in a county that borders the Pecos River and that has a population of not more than 15,000;
(ix) is located in a county that has a population of not more than 300,000 and in which a component university of the University of Houston System is located; or
(x) has a population of at least 40,000 and the San Marcos River flows through the municipality; and
(C) the sports facilities and fields have been used, in the preceding calendar year, a combined total of more than 10 times for district, state, regional, or national sports tournaments;
(8) for a municipality with a population of at least 70,000 but less than 90,000, no part of which is located in a county with a population greater than 150,000, the construction, improvement, enlarging, equipping, repairing, operation, and maintenance of a coliseum or multiuse facility;
(9) signage directing the public to sights and attractions that are visited frequently by hotel guests in the municipality;
(10) the construction of a recreational venue in the immediate vicinity of area hotels, if:
(A) the municipality:
(i) is a general-law municipality;
(ii) has a population of not more than 900; and
(iii) does not impose an ad valorem tax;
(B) not more than $100,000 of municipal hotel occupancy tax revenue is used for the construction of the recreational venue;
(C) a majority of the hotels in the municipality request the municipality to construct the recreational venue;
(D) the recreational venue will be used primarily by hotel guests; and
(E) the municipality will pay for maintenance of the recreational venue from the municipality's general fund;
(11) the construction, improvement, enlarging, equipping, repairing, operation, and maintenance of a coliseum or multiuse facility, if the municipality:
(A) has a population of at least 90,000 but less than 120,000; and
(B) is located in two counties, at least one of which contains the headwaters of the San Gabriel River; and
(12) for a municipality with a population of more than 175,000 but less than 225,000 that is located in two counties, each of which has a population of less than 200,000, the construction, improvement, enlarging, equipping, repairing, operation, and maintenance of a coliseum or multiuse facility and related infrastructure or a venue, as defined by Section 334.001(4), Local Government Code, that is related to the promotion of tourism.
(b) Revenue derived from the tax authorized by this chapter shall be expended in a manner directly enhancing and promoting tourism and the convention and hotel industry as permitted by Subsection (a). That revenue may not be used for the general revenue purposes or general governmental operations of a municipality.
(c) The governing body of a municipality by contract may delegate to a person, including another governmental entity or a private organization, the management or supervision of programs and activities funded with revenue from the tax authorized by this chapter. The governing body in writing shall approve in advance the annual budget of the person to which it delegates those functions and shall require the person to make periodic reports to the governing body at least quarterly listing the expenditures made by the person with revenue from the tax authorized by this chapter. The person must maintain revenue provided from the tax authorized by this chapter in a separate account established for that purpose and may not commingle that revenue with any other money. The municipality may not delegate to any person the management or supervision of its convention and visitors programs and activities funded with revenue from the tax authorized by this chapter other than by contract as provided by this subsection. The approval by the governing body of the municipality of the annual budget of the person to whom the governing body delegates those functions creates a fiduciary duty in the person with respect to the revenue provided by the tax authorized by this chapter.
(d) A person with whom a municipality contracts under this section to conduct an activity authorized by this section shall maintain complete and accurate financial records of each expenditure of hotel occupancy tax revenue made by the person and, on request of the governing body of the municipality or other person, shall make the records available for inspection and review to the governing body or other person.
(e) Hotel occupancy tax revenue spent for a purpose authorized by this section may be spent for day-to-day operations, supplies, salaries, office rental, travel expenses, and other administrative costs only if those administrative costs are incurred directly in the promotion and servicing expenditures authorized under Section 351.101(a). If a municipal or other public or private entity that conducts an activity authorized under this section conducts other activities that are not authorized under this section, the portion of the total administrative costs of the entity for which hotel occupancy tax revenue may be used may not exceed the portion of those administrative costs actually incurred in conducting the authorized activities.
(f) Municipal hotel occupancy tax revenue may not be spent for travel for a person to attend an event or conduct an activity the primary purpose of which is not directly related to the promotion of tourism and the convention and hotel industry or the performance of the person's job in an efficient and professional manner.
(g) Nothing in this section shall prohibit any private entity, person, or organization from making subgrants by contract to any other person, entity, or private organization for expenditures under Section 351.101(a)(4). A subgrantee shall:
(1) at least annually make periodic reports to the governing body of its expenditures from the tax authorized by this chapter; and
(2) make records of these expenditures available for review to the governing body or other person.
(h) In addition to the uses authorized by Subsection (a), a municipality described by Subsection (a)(7)(B)(viii), as added by Chapter 546 (S.B. 585), Acts of the 83rd Legislature, Regular Session, 2013, may use revenue derived from the tax authorized by this chapter to promote tourism and the convention and hotel industry by constructing, maintaining, or expanding a sporting-related facility owned by the municipality if:
(1) the majority of the events at the facility involve participants staying at hotels in the municipality; and
(2) for a fiscal year, the municipality does not reduce the amount of that revenue that it uses for a purpose described by Subsection (a)(3) to an amount that is less than the lesser of:
(A) the amount of that revenue used by the municipality for that purpose during the municipality's 2015 fiscal year; or
(B) the total amount of that revenue received in the fiscal year.
(i) In addition to the purposes provided by Subsection (a), a municipality that has a population of at least 75,000 but not more than 95,000 and that is located in a county that has a population of more than 160,000 but less than 200,000 may use revenue from the municipal hotel tax to promote tourism and the convention and hotel industry by constructing, operating, or expanding a sporting related facility or sports field owned by the municipality, if the majority of the events at the facility or field are directly related to a sporting event in which the majority of participants are tourists who substantially increase economic activity at hotels in the municipality.
(j) In addition to the purposes provided by Subsection (a), a municipality that has a population of not more than 5,000 and at least part of which is located less than one-eighth of one mile from a space center operated by an agency of the federal government may use revenue from the municipal hotel occupancy tax for expenses, including promotion expenses, directly related to a sporting event in which the majority of participants are tourists who substantially increase economic activity at hotels and motels within the municipality or its vicinity.
(k) In addition to other authorized uses, a municipality that is intersected by both State Highways 71 and 95 may use revenue from the municipal hotel occupancy tax for the promotion of tourism by the enhancement and upgrading of an existing sports facility or field as specified by Subsection (a)(7), provided that the requirements of Subsections (a)(7)(A) and (C) are met.
Added by Acts 1987, 70th Leg., ch. 191, Sec. 1, eff. Sept. 1, 1987. Amended by Acts 1989, 71st Leg., ch. 2, Sec. 14.24(a), eff. Aug. 28, 1989; Acts 1989, 71st Leg., ch. 1110, Sec. 4, eff. Oct. 1, 1989; Acts 1993, 73rd Leg., ch. 680, Sec. 3, eff. Sept. 1, 1993; Acts 1995, 74th Leg., ch. 1027, Sec. 1, eff. Aug. 28, 1995; Acts 2001, 77th Leg., ch. 755, Sec. 1, eff. June 13, 2001; Acts 2001, 77th Leg., ch. 1308, Sec. 3, eff. June 16, 2001; Acts 2003, 78th Leg., ch. 209, Sec. 90, eff. Oct. 1, 2003; Acts 2003, 78th Leg., ch. 303, Sec. 1, eff. June 18, 2003.
Amended by:
Acts 2005, 79th Leg., Ch. 1247 (H.B. 1734), Sec. 1, eff. June 18, 2005.
Acts 2007, 80th Leg., R.S., Ch. 1144 (S.B. 765), Sec. 1, eff. June 15, 2007.
Acts 2009, 81st Leg., R.S., Ch. 402 (H.B. 1789), Sec. 1, eff. June 19, 2009.
Acts 2009, 81st Leg., R.S., Ch. 1220 (S.B. 1247), Sec. 3(a), eff. June 19, 2009.
Acts 2009, 81st Leg., R.S., Ch. 1322 (H.B. 3098), Sec. 1, eff. June 19, 2009.
Acts 2011, 82nd Leg., R.S., Ch. 91 (S.B. 1303), Sec. 23.004, eff. September 1, 2011.
Acts 2011, 82nd Leg., R.S., Ch. 247 (H.B. 970), Sec. 1, eff. June 17, 2011.
Acts 2011, 82nd Leg., R.S., Ch. 764 (H.B. 1690), Sec. 1, eff. June 17, 2011.
Acts 2011, 82nd Leg., R.S., Ch. 1163 (H.B. 2702), Sec. 120, eff. September 1, 2011.
Acts 2013, 83rd Leg., R.S., Ch. 161 (S.B. 1093), Sec. 19.012, eff. September 1, 2013.
Acts 2013, 83rd Leg., R.S., Ch. 541 (S.B. 551), Sec. 1, eff. June 14, 2013.
Acts 2013, 83rd Leg., R.S., Ch. 546 (S.B. 585), Sec. 1, eff. June 14, 2013.
Acts 2015, 84th Leg., R.S., Ch. 663 (H.B. 3595), Sec. 1, eff. June 17, 2015.
Acts 2015, 84th Leg., R.S., Ch. 665 (H.B. 3629), Sec. 1, eff. June 17, 2015.
Acts 2015, 84th Leg., R.S., Ch. 666 (H.B. 3772), Sec. 1, eff. June 17, 2015.
Acts 2015, 84th Leg., R.S., Ch. 970 (H.B. 1585), Sec. 1, eff. September 1, 2015.
Acts 2015, 84th Leg., R.S., Ch. 979 (H.B. 3615), Sec. 1, eff. June 19, 2015.
Acts 2015, 84th Leg., R.S., Ch. 979 (H.B. 3615), Sec. 2, eff. June 19, 2015.
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