Orange County commissioners voted Tuesday to approve new spending guidelines for Visit Orlando following an audit that raised concerns about how tourist tax dollars were used. It all stems from an audit that found the tourism agency had miscategorized some of its spending.
Florida law dictates how tourist tax dollars can be used, and lawmakers have been reticent to make changes. Right now tourist tax dollars can only be used for tourism promotion or on facilities and programs that benefit tourism.
How should the tax revenue generated from tourists be spent in Orange County? That is a question that has been at the center of a debate for years.
Today, Visit Orlando defended its handling of funds before the Orange County Board of Commissioners, responding to a recent comptroller’s audit that accuses the organization of mishandling millions in Tourist Development Tax dollars.
For the first time since its May grand opening, new numbers are spotlighting the economic surge Universal Epic Universe is fueling in Orange County.
Florida allows counties to collect a tax of up to 6% on hotel rooms and other short-term lodgings. The money must be used for tourism promotion and for facilities and programs that benefit the tourism industry.
The Jacksonville Jaguars will need a place to play their 2027 home season and Florida Citrus Sports is working to set up a temporary home in Orlando.
New numbers show tourists staying in Central Florida hotels brought in more than $359 million in taxes last fiscal year. That amount is expected to increase significantly next year.
Shortly after commissioners voted to approve nearly $75 million in tourist tax dollars, representatives of the organizations hoping for the funding broke out into applause.
Tourist tax collections fell in Orange County in July compared to June, according to the latest numbers released by the county comptroller’s office.
Orange County saw more revenue from hotels in June 2024 than in May or in June 2023, according to the latest Tourist Development Tax numbers released by the comptroller’s office.
Orange County collected fewer tourist tax dollars in May compared to April, according to newly released estimates by the county comptroller’s office, but the county still had a better May than it did in 2023 — by about $2.2 million.
Orange County commissioners will decide whether to spend $3 million in Tourist Development Tax dollars to bring the NFL Pro Bowl back to Orlando in 2025.
Florida law dictates how tourist tax dollars can be used, and lawmakers have been reticent to make changes.
Tourist Development Tax (TDT) collections climbed to a record setting $40,550,000 in March, marking another increase in revenue compared to the previous month according to the Orange County Comptroller.
The Board of County Commissioners held a work session Tuesday that lasted for hours, where many commissioners said they didn't want to rush to make a decision.
Orange County’s comptroller has a big warning for if — and when — the county decides to spend hundreds of millions of dollars in tourism tax revenue.
Orange County’s Tourist Development Tax Citizen Task Force has already made recommendations to spend the bulk of the county’s tourism tax on big venues like the county convention center or the Amway Arena.
Orange County’s Tourist Development Tax collections in May showed decreases from the prior month and year, according to Comptroller Phil Diamond.
A committee designed to review and make recommendations on Orange County's Tourist Development Tax (TDT) met for the first time on Wednesday.
Orange County Comptroller Phil Diamond announced August 2022 set its own bar with the highest Tourist Development Tax collections for the month on record.
The county’s TDT collections for March 2022 were millions of dollars higher than any monthly collection report published in the last several fiscal years.
