City with no hotels introduces bed tax
The small city of Oakland, Oregon is to impose a bed tax, despite not having a single registered accommodation business.
The City Council has voted to impose a 8% transient occupancy tax ordinance.
There are no hotels or motels in its jurisdiction and there are no current plans to open any either.
Mayor Bette Keehley said: "There are no accommodations in our town right now. We decided to jump on this before we have the need for it."
Keeley told the Roseburg News-Review there is a solitary one room vacation rental but that would be exempt until the council proposes specific regulations for Airbnb-type rentals.
If the ordinance passes a second reading on January 2, it will take effect 30 days later, even though it won’t generate a single dollar.
The city has a population of less than 1,000 but has a historic downtown filled with antique and curiosity shops.
It is also located close to several Umpqua Valley wineries but is too far off the freeway to attract any motel chains, Keehley explained.
"If they did get off the freeway they would find a great little town," she added.
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