Harveys Lake Tahoe is owned by Caesars Entertainment Corp.
Bill Rozak / Tahoe Daily Tribune
Our favorite line from Jenifer Davidson’s State of the County address was describing going to the Legislature to get room tax revenues reallocated to roads and other things is that “the juice isn’t worth the squeeze.”
We’re not sure that Davidson realized at the time that over the state line in California, El Dorado County had voted to shift a portion of its room tax that supported things similar to those in Douglas County to balance the county budget.
Most folks who live in Carson Valley probably don’t recognize the importance of tourism to the Silver State, and in some instances find it kind of a nuisance. However, since Nevada approved gambling in 1931 to help bring it out of the Great Depression, the state has relied on taxing casinos for a big slice of its revenue.
There was a time when Nevadans would only somewhat sarcastically thank Californians for paying their taxes.
By the end of this fiscal year Nevada’s casinos will hand around $1 billion to the state. The current general fund budget approved by the Legislature in 2023 was about $5.2 billion, or $2.6 billion a year. It doesn’t take a calculator to see that gaming accounts for nearly 40 percent of the state budget.
A large portion of the sales taxes that support a third of Douglas County’s budget are paid by people who visit, mainly Lake Tahoe.
As a general rule, room taxes aren’t paid by county residents. But encouraging those folks to come here and to keep coming here is a key factor in keeping that money flowing. That’s why the county devoted a portion of room tax revenues at the Lake to the Tahoe Blue Event Center.
Prior to July 1, 2023, the county received state consolidated taxes based on its population. Douglas is in the second fiscal year where it is reliant on taxable sales generated in the county for its revenue.
Promoting tourism using room taxes helps keep that sales tax flowing, which is critical to funding the construction of a new justice center in Minden, something that likely wouldn’t be possible without the money tourism brings.