Taxing People From Out-of-Town

A famous saying about taxes, attributed to the late Senator Russell Long of Louisiana, runs: “Don’t tax him. Don’t tax me. Tax the fellow behind the tree.”  Cities and states have enthusiastically endorsed the spirit of Senator Long’s rhyme, raising revenue from targeted taxes on travel-related items and services. These taxes are paid mostly by visitors, who are the quintessential “fellows behind the tree.” 

The Global Business Travel Association’s (GBTA) 2012 survey of state and local travel taxes finds that taxes for car rentals, hotel rooms, and meals for those travelling to 50 popular cities are an average of 57% higher than general sales taxes in the same places. The three cities with the highest total single-day tax burden for travelers are:  Chicago ($40.31), New York ($37.98), and Boston ($34.83).  The three cities with the highest extra taxes on travel services, over and above the general sales tax, are: Portland, Oregon ($22.45); Boston ($19.17), and Chicago ($16.59).

Connecticut also taxes visitors at a higher rate, including 15% for a hotel room and 9.35% for a rental car. These rates are 136% and 47%, respectively, higher than Connecticut’s 6.35% general sales tax rate.  No Connecticut locations appear in either the GBTA’s 10 most or 10 least expensive cities lists.

http://advocacyblog.acponline.org/2009/07/dont-tax-him-dont-tax-me-tax-that-man.html

http://hub.gbta.org/resources2/view/profile/id/22904/vid/13