Bill > H0739

This bill establishes the Restaurant and Hotel Renovation Tax Refund Program, administered by the Department of Economic Opportunity (DEO), to provide tax refunds to eligible businesses that renovate or improve existing hotels and restaurants. An "applicant" is defined as an entity owning and operating a hotel or restaurant, and a "project" refers to the renovation, improvement, repair, or upgrade of these establishments, excluding new construction. To qualify for a refund, an "applicant" must incur specific minimum expenditures for renovations, such as at least $10,000 per guest room and a total of $2 million for hotels, or at least $100,000 for restaurants, with certain minimums for kitchen upgrades. The refund amount will be 50 percent of the increase in sales and use taxes remitted by the business after the project's completion, compared to its "baseline tax amount," which is the average annual sales tax remitted in the 36 months before the project began. The total refund a "qualified applicant" can receive is capped at 20 percent of their "actual project costs," defined as the expenses incurred during the project's approved timeframe. The DEO will oversee the application process, issue certificates to qualified applicants, and work with the Department of Revenue (DOR) to adopt necessary rules and issue the refunds.