The Lansing City Council voted on Thursday to raise the tax it charges those staying in one of the city’s lodging facilities.
First proposed at a work session in April, the increase will bring the city’s transient guest tax charged on gross receipts from short-term lodging stays up to 7 percent from the previous 4-percent rate.
Compared to other nearby cities, Lansing’s Economic Development and Convention and Visitors Bureau Director Nolan Sunderman told the council in April that the previous rate was low.
The city was also spreading that amount even further by offering a less-than-common program that makes a percentage of the transient guest tax revenues available to lodging facilities for capital improvements.
In June, the council passed a charter ordinance that would allow them to increase the tax. The petition period for that charter ordinance ended Aug. 29.
The new rate will take effect Oct. 1.
