Loans and Grants Available

Various municipalities within Kittitas County impose a lodging tax assessed on the sale or charge made for furnishings of lodging according to RCW 67.28.180 and RCW 67.28.181. In accordance with the tax and Washington State Law, Lodging Tax Advisory Committees may also be established by various jurisdictions. The committees’ purpose is to advise and recommend to the legislative authority of the city or county how excise taxes on lodging should be allocated to support tourism which in turn generates revenue.

According to State Statute and the inter-local agreement between Kittitas County and the Cities of Cle Elum, Ellensburg, and Roslyn, funds awarded under this process may be used for the following:

1. Tourism marketing;
2. The marketing and operations of special events and festivals designed to attract tourists;
3. Supporting the operations of tourism-related facilities owned or operated by nonprofit organizations described under 26 U.S.C Sec. 501 (c) (3) and 26 U.S.C. Sec. 501 (c) (6) of the internal revenue code of 1986, as amended.

Definitions included in state law which should be considered in any application requesting funding include:

1. Tourism means economic activity resulting from tourists, which may include sales of overnight lodging, meals, tours, gifts, or souvenirs.
2. Tourism promotion means activities, operations, and expenditures designed to increase tourism, including but not limited to advertising, publicizing, or otherwise distributing information for the purpose of attracting and welcoming tourists; developing strategies to expand tourism; operating tourism promotion agencies; and funding marketing or the operation of special events and festivals designated to attract tourists.
3. Tourism-related facility means real or tangible personal property with a usable life of three or more years, or constructed with volunteer labor that is: (a) (i) Owned by a public entity; (ii) owned by a nonprofit organization described under section 501 (c) (3) of the federal internal revenue code of 1986, as amended; or (iii) owned by a nonprofit organization described under section 501 (c) (6) of the federal internal revenue code of 1986, as amended, a business organization, destination marketing organization, main street organization, lodging association, or chamber of commerce and (b) used to support tourism, performing arts, or to accommodate tourist activities.

Review Process:

Cle Elum, Roslyn, Ellensburg, and Kittitas County have all agreed to collaborate in review of grant applications and awarding lodging tax funds for special events and festivals. Each municipality’s committee or designees will review all complete applications, score them based on the information provided by the application, rank the applications, recommend any funding awards, and forward the score sheets, ranking, and funding recommendations to Kittitas County.

The score sheets, rankings, and funding recommendations will be compiled by the County for further consideration by Consolidated Lodging Tax Advisory Committee (CLTAC). The CLTAC will be comprised of an equal number of members from each participating jurisdiction. The CLTAC will receive the scoring, ranking, and recommendations list and will conduct a public meeting where each applicant which received a funding recommendation will have the opportunity to present their application and answer questions. The CLTAC will publicly deliberate on the applications and the list to produce a final recommendation which will be forwarded to each participating jurisdiction’s legislative authority for final action.

Scoring sheets which determine the overall ranking of applications are included in this packet for your reference and information. Applications which do not receive an average minimum score of at least 50 points or who do not follow the submission instructions will not be eligible for funding.

Application Deadline: Friday, September 22, 2023 4:00 p.m