SeaTac Lodging Tax Funding Program

The SeaTac Lodging Tax Funding Program is a recurring local tourism funding initiative administered by the City of SeaTac through its Hotel Motel Advisory Committee (HMAC). The program is funded through a one percent lodging tax authorized under RCW 67.28 and is intended to support tourism promotion, visitor attraction, destination development, and tourism-related economic activity within the City of SeaTac, Washington. The funding opportunity is directly tied to the City’s Tourism Destination Development Plan, which outlines a long-term strategy for increasing visitor spending, improving the visitor experience, extending overnight stays, and strengthening SeaTac’s identity as a tourism destination connected to Seattle-Tacoma International Airport. The City emphasizes projects that contribute to measurable tourism impacts while also benefiting local businesses, hospitality providers, and community stakeholders. The Tourism Destination Development Plan establishes a ten-year framework for tourism growth and identifies several major strategic priorities. These priorities include activating the areas surrounding the city’s three light rail stations, improving the visitor experience along International Boulevard, supporting cultural and entertainment programming, strengthening destination branding, and enhancing tourism-related infrastructure and mobility. The plan also highlights the importance of leveraging SeaTac’s diverse population, multicultural businesses, outdoor recreation assets, and proximity to the airport to create a stronger sense of place and increase overnight visitation. Applicants are expected to demonstrate how their projects align with one or more strategic initiatives identified in the Tourism Destination Development Plan, including arts activation, cultural tourism, recreation, entertainment, placemaking, tourism marketing, and visitor-serving business development. Eligible uses of lodging tax revenues include tourism marketing; marketing and operations of special events and festivals designed to attract tourists; operations and capital expenditures for tourism-related facilities owned or operated by municipalities or public facility districts; and operations of tourism-related facilities owned or operated by nonprofit organizations under sections 501(c)(3) or 501(c)(6) of the Internal Revenue Code. The City specifically seeks projects capable of generating overnight visitation and paid lodging activity within SeaTac hotels and accommodations. The application materials repeatedly emphasize measurable tourism outcomes, including increases in room nights, attendance, long-distance visitation, and visitor spending. Funding is reimbursement-based, meaning recipients are reimbursed only after eligible expenses have been incurred, documented, and approved by the City. The application process includes both biennial and rolling funding opportunities. For the 2027-2028 biennial funding cycle, applications must be submitted by noon on May 29, 2026. Applications submitted outside the biennial process must generally be received at least ten days before a regularly scheduled Hotel Motel Advisory Committee meeting. Applicants are required to submit a completed application packet, supporting organizational documentation, nonprofit registration verification if applicable, promotional materials, and detailed budget information. The application asks organizations to provide comprehensive information regarding their tourism program, event, or facility, including visitor attraction strategies, tourism marketing plans, projected attendance, lodging generation estimates, risk mitigation strategies, and alignment with the Tourism Destination Development Plan strategic framework. The City notes that incomplete or late applications will not be considered and that all submitted materials become public records. Applicants are required to estimate tourism impacts using approved methodologies outlined in the application. These include direct counts, indirect counts, representative surveys, informal surveys, and structured estimates. Organizations must provide projected attendance figures, estimates of visitors traveling more than fifty miles, overnight lodging projections, and paid room night calculations attributable to the funded activity. The City also requests information regarding promotional strategies such as social media campaigns, digital advertising, partnerships, public relations, influencer marketing, event listings, and collaborations with tourism organizations. Explore Seattle Southside, the regional destination marketing organization, is identified as a potential promotional and branding partner for funded activities. Applicants are encouraged to coordinate with the City’s Economic Development and Communications teams to ensure alignment with broader tourism branding efforts. The funding program places strong emphasis on accountability, reporting, and measurable economic impact. Organizations receiving funding must submit reimbursement requests with invoices and proof of payment, as well as tourism impact reports documenting actual visitor metrics and overnight visitation results. Recipients may also be required to execute additional municipal services agreements or scopes of work with the City. Applicants must certify that they either possess or can obtain general liability insurance appropriate for their project or event. The City additionally requires organizations to disclose prior lodging tax funding history, identify anticipated non-City revenue sources, and explain how SeaTac lodging establishments, restaurants, and local businesses will benefit from the funded activity. The Tourism Destination Development Plan attached to the application materials provides extensive context regarding the City’s broader tourism strategy. The plan highlights SeaTac’s role as the gateway to the Pacific Northwest and identifies opportunities to create stronger destination identity through public art, entertainment programming, station activation, multicultural experiences, and recreation-based tourism. Strategic recommendations include supporting the SeaTac Angle Lake Station cultural district, strengthening tourism connections to North SeaTac Park and BMX facilities, developing entertainment and event districts near SeaTac/Airport Station, improving multimodal transportation access, and increasing branding and beautification efforts along major visitor corridors. The City views tourism as a tool for both economic development and community enhancement and seeks projects that can contribute to long-term visitor growth, civic identity, and sustainable tourism development.

Demonstrate clear alignment with the Tourism Destination Development Plan strategic initiatives; emphasize measurable overnight visitation and paid lodging room nights; provide detailed tourism marketing strategies; show partnerships with SeaTac businesses and hotels; and include realistic attendance and tourism impact methodologies.