Atlantic City, which faces massive debt and a possible state takeover, wants to impose a fee on hotel rooms.
Hotel guests in Atlantic City already pay a 9 percent luxury tax, but that money goes to the state of New Jersey. City Council President Marty Small said the city needs its own room tax to help it with its fiscal problems.
He said the fee would be used to reduce property taxes in the resort and pay down the city’s more than $400 million in debt. Small also said the city is considering a wage tax on non-city residents that work in the resort.
The two ideas have come out of discussions the city is having to create a plan for fiscal solvency for the resort by November, or face a state takeover of its finances, he said, but so far have not been included in any legislation.
The state’s luxury tax in Atlantic City—which generates about $30 million a year—has been a sore spot in the city for years, along with other state taxes on alcohol and other items. The resort does not get any of those tax revenues.
Council is considering a resolution to formally ask the state legislature for the hotel fee, according to the Press of Atlantic City.
In another matter, Richard Richardella has been installed by the state Department of Community Affairs to be Atlantic City’s new fiscal monitor. Richardella previously worked in Camden and was instrumental in transitioning Camden from a city police force to its county-run Metro force, according to the Press.
