Transient Occupancy Tax Ballot Measure

What is a Transient Occupancy Tax, or TOT?

• This tax is paid only by persons, primarily visitors, who rent a hotel room or short-term rental, for stays of 30 consecutive days or less. It is not paid by the property owner. Currently, a hotel is defined in the Rocklin Municipal Code as “any structure, or any portion of any structure, which is occupied or intended or designed for occupancy by transients for dwelling, lodging or sleeping purposes, and includes any hotel, inn, tourist home or house, motel, studio hotel, bachelor hotel, lodging house, rooming house, apartment house, dormitory, public or private club, mobile home or house trailer at a fixed location or other similar structure.” According to the California State Controller’s website, most U.S. cities currently impose this tax, including 419 California cities.

How is a TOT different from a Hotel and Lodging Tax?

• These generally refer to the same thing. Some jurisdictions call their tax a Hotel and Lodging Tax instead of a Transient Occupancy Tax. 

Who pays the TOT?

• People who stay in hotels, short term rentals, or any other facility listed above within the City of Rocklin limits.

Does the TOT apply to renters?

• No, the TOT only applies to persons who occupy short-term lodgings for less than 30 days.

What is the tax currently and what is proposed?

• Rocklin’s TOT rate is currently 8% and has remained unchanged since 1985 when it was first established. Measure F proposes a 2% increase to the rent charged for a hotel room or short-term rental, and expanding the definition of “hotel” to include campground facilities.

What is an example of the increase for the cost of a hotel in Rocklin? 

• If you were staying at a hotel in Rocklin and paying a room rate of $100, the 2% increase would equal about $2. The total tax would be 10% of the room rate, or $10 total.

How does this compare to our neighboring cities?

• Roseville and Colfax also have initiatives on the ballot to increase their TOT to 10%. Lincoln and Yuba City currently have a TOT rate of 10%. West Sacramento, Elk Grove, and Rancho Cordova all have TOT rates at 12%. Unincorporated Placer County, Loomis, and Auburn have a TOT rate of 8%.

How much additional funding would be raised?

• The 2% increase would amount to approximately $300,000 of funding annually.

How would the additional funding be used?

• The City may use TOT revenues for any general unrestricted municipal purpose, including, but not limited to, Police and Fire/Emergency Medical Service response, street/road repair, park maintenance, and other general government services.

Can the tax revenue be taken by the State?

• No. TOT generated in the City of Rocklin stays in Rocklin and cannot be taken by the State of California or federal government.

How does Measure F impact camping in Rocklin?

• Currently there are no public or private campgrounds in the Rocklin City limits. However, the City has had inquiries over the past few years from potential private campground developers that want to provide overnight accommodation for RV and Trailer users or establish a “Glamping” (“Glamour Camping”) amenity in the City. By expanding the definition of “hotel”, if a campground is established in Rocklin, those overnight stays would be subject to the same TOT tax that users of the City’s hotels and other short-term rentals are charged to ensure that the public services used are paid for by those guests.