OC Today WWW.OCEANCITYTODAY.COM
AUGUST 23, 2019
SERVING NORTHERN WORCESTER COUNTY
LIFESTYLE
OCEAN CITY JEEP WEEK
Tenth annual event now underway includes beach parades and obstacle course – Page 26
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Room tax increase gets county’s vote Worcester commissioners agree unanimously to raise rate to 5 percent in 2020 By Elizabeth Bonin Staff Writer (Aug. 23, 2019) Ocean City government can expect a sizable increase in revenue in 2020, as the Worcester County Commissioners unanimously voted to increase the hotel tax rate from 4.5 to 5 percent after the public hearing on Tuesday. The tax increase will start Jan. 1, 2020. The last increase on the hotel tax was from 4 to 4.5 percent in 2008. Though the name in the measure states “hotel,” it includes all rental properties such as condominiums. Ocean City Mayor Rick Meehan asked for the hotel tax increase earlier this year, with the city budget office estimating that the half-percent tax boost would produce an additional $700,000 during the last half of this
fiscal year, and $1.7 million for the 2020-21 fiscal year. The commissioners voted in May to proceed with the discussion of increasing rate and to pursue the unanimous commissioner consent required by state law. Meehan, the council and the tourism industry contended from the outset that the increase was necessary to cover the rising costs of special events, advertising and marketing – particularly digital and sports marketing, the latter of which included consideration of a new sports complex. “It’s not just putting a full page ad in the Baltimore Sun anymore,” Meehan said. “It’s being on the internet. We’ve rebuilt our website twice. It’s digital marketing. It’s social media.” In various meetings, Meehan has pointed out that even with an increase, Worcester County will still have the lowest hotel tax in the area. Annapolis is at six percent and Baltimore is eight See ROOM Page 71
Worcester County rentals will need licenses as well Commissioners see move as means of control and as generator of revenue
PHOTO COURTESY STEVE DOCTOR
NEW RECORD Kristy Frashure of Pasadena, holds the 74.5-pound dolphin she caught last Friday while fishing on Haulin N’ Ballin during the 26th annual Capt. Steve Harman’s Poor Girls Open ladies-only tournament. The 74.5-pound dolphin is a new state record. See story on page 79.
By Elizabeth Bonin Staff Writer (Aug. 23, 2019) Rental property owners will be required to obtain a Worcester County rental license in the new year, following the Worcester County Commissioners’ passage Tuesday of a taxation and revenue measure. Rental property owners in Ocean City will not be required to obtain a county license since they are already
operating under the Ocean City rental license program. An application and license fee structure for the county program have yet to be developed. According to Ed Tudor, the county director of review and permitting, rental owners must submit a floor plan and designate which sections of that plan may be rented. The floor plans do not have to be certified as long as they are accurate. Tudor estimated that the county will need to hire two employees to manage the new rental licensing program. The county would also need to implement a See WORCESTER Page 70