There is a decent chance that you club is leaving money on the table. Money that could be used to help fund your state’s gourd festival. And the best part is – it really isn’t to terribly difficult to try and get it.
The money I’m talking about is from a special fund that nearly every city/county has at its discretion. It is called “lodging tax” –
What is the Lodging Tax?
More Great Ways to Maximize Your Event
“The lodging tax, also referred to as the hotel-motel tax, is a consumer tax on lodging charges for periods of less than 30 consecutive days for hotels, motels, rooming houses, private campgrounds, RV parks, and similar facilities.” – from MRSC.org
Next time you stay at a hotel, take a closer look at your final bill. Chances are you’ll see you room charge, followed by state/local tax – but then you’ll see something else – It’s going to be something along the lines of occupancy tax/lodging tax/hotel-motel tax or identified by some other fashion. Well that money has a special purpose in cities and counties – specifically that it must be used for activities, operations, and expenditures designed to increase tourism. These functions can include
- Tourism related marketing
Marketing and operations of special events and festivals to attract tourists
- Operations and capital expenditures for tourism related facilities.
The above was quoted from www.mrsc.org Which covers Washington state, but generally every state is going to have a similar program written into their laws. With a little research you should be able to find what your municipality calls it, and more importantly how to get it.
It’s bullet number 2 that we are interested in —
Marketing and operations of special events and festivals to attract tourists
A state gourd festival is AN event – YOUR gourd association’s festival is an event that is eligible to receive this money that is collected.
How do you get it?
1) Find out what your state calls the tax.
Since each state passes its own laws regarding taxes – it can be a little confusing finding the exact term for your area. What we recommend is simply Google:
<Your City Name> tourism grant
From here you should see the exact nomenclature your municipality uses.
2) Download the application
Even if you aren’t sure you want to purse grant funding, download the application. The applications can vary from city to city, even within the same state – so you’ll want to get a hold of one and take a look at it. Immediately you want to look at these items:
- Grant Timelines – Are you late for this year? Will you get funding in time? If not this year, what will next years timelines be?
- Grant Awards – How much are they awarding total? How much can you apply for?
- Grant Restrictions – is you group eligible for the grant? Are you a registered 501(c)3 – are there other requirements that need to be met?
3) Answer the questions
Here is where the rubber meets the road. You must be concise and precise when answering the grant application questions.
Now – your first instinct will be to go on and on about how great your state’s festival is, the classes that you’ll offer, and the speakers you’ll have. You may want to talk about your gourd show, and perhaps you’ll touch the history or gourd art, and how enriching and culturally rich your festival is.
RESIST THAT TEMPTATION
The people reviewing your application and very likely local hotel/resort operators and other experts in the tourism industry. They are going to want to know why, very specifically, the Show Me Gourd Festival is worthy of the money you are asking for.
Speaking from direct experience, I can tell you with assurance, that means you need to demonstrate how your festival will fill hotel rooms. That’s it. It won’t matter that you have Ginger Summit or Jim Widess are your keynote speakers. Those names likely won’t resonate with the committee. What will means something is that if you can demonstrate how your festival will bring in 100 rooms nights, or 50, or even 10.
In Part II, we’ll talk about the most common questions you’ll be facing, and also the best strategies for answering them. For now – get that application, and find out what your deadlines are. If you are having a hard time determining if your municipality has a lodging tax grant, contact us and we’ll see if we can’t help you out determining if it does.
