The Laker/Lutz News

Destination Management Organization

Pasco continues taking aim at unlicensed contractors

By

The Pasco County Commission is continuing efforts to stymie unlicensed contracting activity in the county, through an agreement with the Pasco County Sheriff’s Office for investigative services.

The county board approved renewal of an agreement with the Sheriff’s Office pertaining to the county’s Unlicensed Contractor Initiative for its building construction services department.

The county board approved a contract for an amount not to exceed $202,548.72 with the sheriff’s office, resulting in an amount not to exceed $549,856.10 for the two-year contract term, based on the board’s agenda backup materials.

The approval was made as part of the board’s consent agenda, meaning it was passed as one of several items without discussion.

The contract calls for the services of two detective to investigate unlicensed contractor activity. The agreement also allows for four additional automatic one-year renewals on Oct. 1 of each subsequent year, contingent upon board approval.

The aim of the detectives’ work is to “protect the public from falling victim to unlicensed contractors,” according to materials in the board’s agenda packet.

In other action, the board:

  • Authorized the transmittal of a request for a proposed land use change on 188 acres at the northwest quadrant of State Road 52 and Bellamy Brothers Boulevard, for review by state agencies. The request calls for allowing up to 380 single-family homes and townhomes.
  • Adopted a change to the county’s comprehensive plan relating to airport protection zoning and land use compatibility.
  • Accepted the International Association of Fire Fighters (IAFF) 2020-2023 Collective

Bargaining Agreement – IAFF Local 4420, Pasco County Professional Fire Fighter’s Union

  • Approved the purchase of playground equipment at the Sam Pasco Recreation Center playground by utilizing the OMNIA Partners Cooperative Contract No. R170301 with BCI Burke Company LLC (BCI), which is currently in effect. The purchase is not to exceed the amount of $137,457.53 in fiscal year 2022.
  • Approved a change order to extend time and provide $60,000 in additional funding for Starkey Ranch District Park Phase 2A, resulting in a new cumulative NTE contract amount of $4,054,628.37 for fiscal year 2022 and an extension of time by 30 days.
  • Approved $300,000 for the county’s Destination Management Organization, for additional marketing and research initiatives. The DMO’s revenues came in higher than anticipated in 2021 and these funds will allow it to provide more services to Pasco County during fiscal year 2022.

Published January 19, 2022

Pasco wins prestigious tourism marketing honor

By

From left: Cathy Pearson, Kathryn Starkey, Mike Moore, Adam Thomas, Ron Oakley, Christina Fitzpatrick, Jack Mariano and Dan Biles. Pearson is the assistant county administrator for public services, Thomas is the county’s tourism director and Biles is the Pasco County administrator. The others are members of the Pasco County Commission. (Courtesy of Ryan Hughes/Pasco County)

Pasco County’s Destination Management Organization, known as Florida’s Sports Coast, won a 2021 Flagler Award at the annual Florida Governor’s Conference on Tourism, held by Visit Florida. The honor came in the Resource/Promotional Material-Consumer category for development and marketing of the Sports Coast Pilsner with Escape Brewing.

In an appearance before the Pasco County Commission on Sept. 15, Adam Thomas, the county’s tourism director, expressed his gratitude to his department’s staff, the county board, the county’s executive team, the Tourist Development Council board, to Elizabeth Blair of the county attorney’s office and to Escape Brewing.

Thomas said all of them have played a role in the county’s tourism success.

Besides congratulating Thomas, in a separate agenda item, the county board approved an item that supports the county’s tourism efforts.

The board approved a request to amend the county’s consulting services agreement with Downs & St. Germain Research Inc., to extend the research firm’s services for another year. The contract is for $48,000 for fiscal year 2022.

Published October 13, 2021

Changes coming to Pasco tourist tax collections

By

The Pasco County Tax Collector will begin collecting Pasco County’s tourist development taxes, under a change approved by the Pasco County Commission.

Pasco County hotels, motels and other short-term rental accommodations have been remitting Tourist Development Tax collections to the Florida Department of Revenue (DOR).

The Department of Revenue received the collections, then returned them each month to Pasco County.

Under the change approved on June 19, Pasco Tax Collector Mike Fasano’s office will be taking on those duties. The change will be effective once it is transmitted to the state, expected to occur within 10 days of the board’s meeting.

Fasano’s office also will be responsible for enforcement and audits.

The DOR could have charged administrative costs, but did not do so — meaning that the county received 100 percent of the proceeds, according to Pasco County officials.

Shifting the duty to Fasano’s office will result in some costs, as public education efforts get underway, and enforcement actions begin.

Under the previous system, the DOR collected the tax revenues and the county was entirely dependent on the state’s registration database and reporting methodology, according to background information in the board’s agenda packet.

Florida law has confidentiality requirements that prohibited the release of registrants’ information. Because of that, the county had no way to accurately confirm that all vacation rentals within Pasco were collecting and submitting the tax to state revenue officials.

Fasano has assured the Destination Management Organization, which oversees Pasco’s tourism activities, that his office — being privy to the Department of Revenue’s registrant database — will be able to ascertain if there is non-compliance and will be able to compel compliance.

Under state law, up to 3 percent of the tax collected may be retained by the collecting entity, which would be a new expenditure for the tourism office.

But the tax collector and county officials believe that 3 percent will be off-set, as Fasano’s office identifies non-compliant properties.

Adam Thomas, Pasco’s tourism director, said the switch will improve regulation and enforcement, and will result in a quicker remittance of the funds back to the county.

Pasco Commissioner Mike Moore, chairman of the Pasco County Tourism Development Council, advocated for the shift.

“Keeping this local, in my opinion, is what we want to do,” Moore said. “We’ll be able to manage this program better.”

Fasano pointed to a mix-up that became apparent in January when Hillsborough County increased its sales tax. Some Pasco businesses inadvertently paid the Hillsborough tax “because the businesses and the Department of Revenue thought those businesses were in Hillsborough County,” Fasano said.

“Because of the tax collector’s office stepping up, working diligently with the Department of Revenue, they found $624,000 that was collected and given to Hillsborough County,” Fasano said, noting it was discovered that the problem had been happening for years.

Fasano also noted that a hotel in Wesley Chapel had paid its tourist development tax to Hillsborough. In that case, Pasco County received a check from the Department of Revenue for $58,000, the tax collector said.

Fasano said he believes there are short-term rentals — that should be collecting tourist development taxes, but are not doing so.

Fasano said he wanted to be sure that places which offer short-term rentals, such as RV parks, are collecting the tourist development tax.

“If there’s a short-term rental, that’s a business. That means they should have a business tax receipt,” Fasano said. “We want to be sure that people that are renting short-term, or renting a hotel — overnighters — that the tourist development tax of Pasco County is collected and paid, and I believe we can do that. We would be able to enforce, to put liens, garnish.”

To help track records, Fasano said, “we’re going to work with the Property Tax Assessor’s Office.  “We’re going to be able to find out these things,” he said.

The tax collector predicted it will take about three years for his office to break even, because of the costs incurred to perform additional duties the added responsibilities will require.

Published June 26, 2019