The Reminder is making its archives back to 2003 available on our website. Please note that, due to technical limitations, archive articles are presented without the usual formatting.
If Flin Flon must join the ever-growing hotel-tax bandwagon, it needs to do so in the fairest way possible. Which is why city council would be wise to support a proposal, put forth by Victoria Inn manager David Brooks, for a flat tax. When council unveiled plans for an accommodation tax earlier this month, it was to be a five per cent charge on all hotel and motel stays. The problem with this approach is that it picks winners and losers. Rooms that cost more to begin with would charge proportionately more than lower-cost rooms. A better way, as Brooks rightly urged last week, is a flat fee. He suggested $3 per room across the board. Fortunately, some members of council appeared receptive to the concept, though $3 might be a little low for their liking. That may or may not mean a move away from a percentage tax. At this point, we don't even know if the NDP government will allow the tax to proceed in any form. When and if the tax is enacted, it will be incumbent on council to provide clarity on where the revenue will go. All we know at this time is that the money would be allotted for 'promotion and community enhancement.' One person's 'promotion and community enhancement' is another person's frivolous spending. It's only fair, before asking hoteliers to charge this tax and their guests to pay it, that the definition be clear, concise and reasonable.
