New hotel tax revenue numbers show Columbia on track

New numbers obtained from the city’s finance department for 2016 give a clearer picture of how much hotel tax revenue could be raised to pay for terminal renovations at the Columbia Regional Airport.

The city started collecting the tax in January so only January 2017 tax revenue numbers are available. The February taxes are due March 20.

The numbers showed revenue increased by 22 percent from 2016 to 2017. On Monday, ABC17 News only had the total revenue numbers collected in January 2016 and used that to project how soon the city could raise the $10 million it needs for the renovations.

January revenue in 2016 was about $140,000, which turned out to be the lowest revenue collected that year. The highest monthly revenue for 2016 was in October, when the city collected about $272,000 in hotel/motel tax.

Below are projections for 2017, based on 2016 revenue numbers. Keep in mind only the 1 percent increase funds airport terminal improvements. The other 4 percent continues to fund the Convention and Visitors Bureau.

Below is the yearly total projection that the 1 percent increase will bring into the city and that was multiplied by 20 years. The city could raise more than $10 million before the tax sunsets in 2038 if the revenue brought in each month stays about the same.

ABC17 News has requested revenue from the last five years to check on the consistency of the hotel tax revenue.