These statistics marks a 12% year-over-year rise in income produced by the three cities’ “1% for Air” local-option sales taxes. Between Oct. 2021 and Jan. 2022, this brought in $1.35 million.
The “1% for Air” taxes placed for the past decade adds 1% to transactions frequently made by tourists. In Hailey, for instance, the tax is applied to car rental and rooms in hotels; in Sun Valley, it’s on event tickets, lift, food and beverage deal and memberships related to golf; and Ketchum applies it to sales on alcoholic beverage, lift tickets, event rentals, season passes, hotels and short-term rentals.
The funds at present, raised by the tax are paid out to two of the core air service and marketing organizations of Blaine County: the Sun Valley Air Service Board, to strengthen flight service in and out of Friedman Memorial Airport via assured revenue contracts with United Airlines and Alaska Airlines, and Visit Sun Valley, to promote Sun Valley to potential travelers.
This spring, the pay structure could change. All three cities, on May 16, will carefully think of a ballot measure requesting to split their respective “1% for Air” tax into “.5% Housing, .5% Air.”
Tags: Air” taxes, Airlines
