CITY OF SPOKANE VALLEY, WA - 2021 Lodging Tax Grant Application
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CITY OF SPOKANE VALLEY, WA
2021 Lodging Tax Grant Application
General:
The Spokane Valley Lodging Tax Advisory Committee (LTAC) was established by the Spokane
Valley City Council in accordance with state law to advise and recommend to the Council how
excise taxes on lodging collected in Spokane Valley should be allocated in order to best increase
tourism in the City.
Purpose:
The purpose of this Request for Grant offered by the City of Spokane Valley is to solicit proposals
from those agencies and groups which encourage tourism in Spokane Valley. The source of
funds is a two percent tax (RCW 67.28.180) on all charges for furnishing lodging at hotels, motels,
and similar establishments (including bed and breakfasts and RV parks) for a continuous period
of less than one month. This tax is taken as a credit against the 6.5 percent state sales tax, so
that the total tax that a patron pays in sales tax and hotel-motel tax combined is equal to what the
retail sales tax would otherwise be in the jurisdiction.
Project Description:
State law allows the use of lodging tax revenues for the following categories:
Tourism marketing
The marketing and operations of special events and festivals
The operation and capital expenditures of tourism related facilities owned or operated by
a municipality or public facility district
The operation (but not capital expenditures) of tourism related facilities owned or
operated by non-profit organizations
The expected outcome of such activity is to increase economic activity in the City of Spokane
Valley during 2021 through a variety of activities, such as overnight lodging of tourists ("heads in
beds"), restaurant sales, and retail activity.
Specific questions are included in the attached application to assist in delineating those matters
which are of concern to the LTAC and which will be part of the selection criteria. The application
will develop and outline one project which meets these requirements and provides an economic
benefit to the City of Spokane Valley. The specific amount of the applicant's proposal is open, to
be defined by the applicant.
Applicants may submit proposals for more than one project but each proposal must be contained
in a separate application thereby allowing for clear understanding of each project.
City of Spokane Valley Request for 2021 Grant Page 1 of 8Schedule of Grant Application Events:
Following is the proposed schedule for the Grant Application Process (Note: specific dates may
be adjusted by the City to meet unexpected circumstances):
Notice placed in newspaper and grant package available August 28, 2020
Application must be received by City no later than 4:00pm October 2, 2020
Application materials will be sent to the Committee October 9, 2020
Lodging Tax Advisory Committee (LTAC) meets, hears
presentations and makes award recommendation that will October 15, 2020
be forwarded to the City Council
Administrative Report to City Council regarding LTAC
recommendation November 24, 2020
City Council motion consideration for 2021 awards December 8, 2020
Contracts between City and grant recipients to be completed January 2021
Date by which grant awarded programs must be completed December 31, 2021
Post event reporting due to the City March 1, 2022
Project Management:
The City of Spokane Valley Finance Department will issue contracts for approved projects,
reimburse expenses, and monitor contract compliance. Applicants will be reimbursed for
documented project costs, as outlined in the application, up to the amount awarded.
Selection Process:
Each application will be reviewed by the LTAC for eligible activities, the effectiveness of its
proposed project in meeting the expected outcomes, need, and funding requirements. Upon
completion of its review of the written application, all of the applicants are expected to make an
oral presentation to the LTAC in order for it to more fully understand the proposed project. The
LTAC will create a list of candidates and recommended amounts for City Council approval. The
LTAC recommendations will not be subject to review or challenge by the applicants. The City
Council may only approve candidates and the recommended amounts from the list provided by
the LTAC. Council may choose to make awards to all, some, or none of the recommended
candidates in the amounts recommended by the LTAC. Staff will then consult with applicants of
approved projects to develop contracts. After the applicants and the City have signed the
contracts, staff will notify applicants to proceed.
It is very important that applicants are aware that upon being awarded a grant:
1. The grantee must sign a contract with the City.
2. All contracts are reimbursement based; i.e., the grantee must expend funds on approved
items and then seek reimbursement under terms of the governing contract. Grantee will
not be reimbursed if information requested by the City (prior or current year) has not been
provided. Approved items are those that were outlined by the applicant in the application
and oral presentation. Proof of prior payment by the grantee is required in order to
reimburse project expenses.
3. The Finance Department will confirm that applicants submitted a report on 2020
activities, if City lodging tax was used.
4. Grant award amounts are contingent upon the City collecting adequate tax revenues. If
the City were to collect fewer tax revenues than anticipated, award amounts may have to
be reduced to fit within City budget restraints.
Only after these steps are complete is a project grantee authorized to begin incurring costs.
City of Spokane Valley Request for 2021 Grant Page 2 of 8Other Information:
Insurance: As part of its contract for performance, the City requires contractors to maintain liability
insurance in the amount of $1,000,000 and name the City as an additional insured on its liability
insurance policy. Proof of such insurance must be submitted with the contract, or before funds
are released.
Contract: The City will utilize a standard contract for City-funded lodging tax grant activities.
Payment: Normally, payment is provided once per month or quarter as a reimbursement of
expenses, upon receipt of the City provided reimbursement request cover sheet with an invoice
including appropriate attached backup for the expenses that were incurred, including proof of prior
payment.
Equal Opportunity: No individual shall be excluded from participation in, denied the benefit of,
subjected to discrimination under, or denied employment in the administration of or in connection
with this Agreement in violation of local, state or federal law.
Reporting Requirements: As required by RCW 67.28, as amended by Engrossed Substitute
House Bill 1253 in 2013, grantees are required to report the following post-event/activity
information to the City of Spokane Valley:
Total amount spent on the event.
The amount of lodging tax funds expended.
The number of participants who attended the event/activity in each of the following
categories:
o Staying overnight in paid accommodations away from their place of residence or
business.
o Staying overnight in unpaid accommodations (e.g., with friends and family) and traveling
50 miles or more one way from their place of residence or business.
o Staying for the day only and traveling more than 50 miles or more one way from their
place of residence or business.
o Attending but not included in one of the three categories above.
The estimated number of participants in any of the above categories that attended from out-
of-state (includes other countries).
A description of methods used to determine attendance and distinguish among the visitor
categories at the event/activity (methods include a head count, car count, survey, or other
with explanation).
The report will be provided to City Council and the public and will be furnished to the Joint
Legislative Audit and Review Committee (JLARC) and the LTAC. The JLARC will provide
biennial reports to the Washington State Legislature.
Additional Information: Additional information which may be required by a change/interpretation
in state law may also be required from the applicant.
Proposal Submittal:
Please deliver 17 unbound, 3-hole-punched copies of the proposal response and any
additional attachments and presentation materials to: Please contact the front desk at 720-5000, or
Sarah Farr for specific instructions on delivery as City Hall is currently closed to the public.
Sarah Farr
City of Spokane Valley
10210 E Sprague Ave
Spokane Valley, WA 99206
City of Spokane Valley Request for 2021 Grant Page 3 of 8CITY OF SPOKANE VALLEY
APPLICATION FOR
LODGING TAX FUND MONIES
INSTRUCTIONS:
All sections must be answered in their entirety for this application to be considered complete.
Additional pages that are attached to the application must be labeled with the section number
and section title.
I. PROJECT APPLICATION DEADLINE: October 2, 2020 before 4:00 p.m.
Project Title: __________________________________________________________________
Type of Project: ________________________________ _
Will there be an admission charge for this activity? Yes No If so, how much?______________
Applicant: ____________________________________________________________________
Phone: ________________________E-mail ________________________________________
Address: ____________________________________________________________________
City: _________________________________ State_____________ Zip __________________
Applicants are: Non-profit __________ Public/Municipal Agency __________
Must be a non-profit 501(c)(3) or 501(c)(6) or a public agency to be considered for funding.
Contact Person (if different than applicant): _________________________________________
Phone: _______________________ E-mail _________________________________________
Address _____________________________________________________________________
City ________________________________ State__________________ Zip ______________
Amount requested: ________________________ Applicant’s match: ___________________
Total project budget: ___________________________________________________________
Is this a new or continuing activity? ________________
City of Spokane Valley Request for 2021 Grant Page 4 of 8II. HISTORY
Briefly describe your organization/business. What is its primary function and mission statement?
III. PROJECT SUMMARY
Provide a concise summary of your request and what it will accomplish. If your request is part
of a larger project, you may briefly describe the over-all project. However, please focus the bulk
of your answer on the specific element for which you are requesting funding.
IV. SCOPE OF WORK
Fully describe the project. In addition, give a brief history of the event or organization. Expand
on your Project Summary to address such issues as:
a. What it is you wish to do?
b. How and why the community will benefit?
c. What are the beginning and ending dates of your project?
d. Is it a seasonal activity appropriate to its location?
e. If an outdoor activity, are there any weather-related constraints?
f. What measures will you apply to evaluate its success?
If you are requesting funds for a specific portion of a larger project, please so state but focus
your response on the element for which you are requesting grant assistance. You may use
additional pages as necessary. Attachments to this section should be labeled “IV. Scope
of Work.”
V. IMPACT ON TOURISM
“Tourism,” as defined in RCW 67.28.080(5), means economic activity resulting from tourists,
which may include sales of overnight lodging, meals, tours, gifts, or souvenirs. A practical
measure of tourism is the number of visitors that are attracted to the area. Provide an estimated
or “projected” number of visitors who are expected to be attracted by the proposal in the
following categories:
Projected (expected to participate)
Total Overall Attendance
Attendees who traveled 50 miles or more to attend
Total
Of total, attendees who traveled from another state or country
Attendees who stayed overnight
Paid Accommodations
Unpaid Accommodations
Paid Lodging Nights*
*one lodging night = one or more persons occupying one room for one night
Provide a description of the methods used in making the above estimations as well as a
description of the methods that will be used to determine actual attendance and distinguish among
the visitor categories (methods include a head count, car count, survey, or other with explanation).
Attachments to this section should be labeled “V. Impact on Tourism.”
City of Spokane Valley Request for 2021 Grant Page 5 of 8Applicants may find more information on the Joint Legislative Audit and Review
Committee’s guidelines under “Data Collection- How to report lodging tax expenditures” at
http://leg.wa.gov/jlarc/Pages/default.aspx .
Information requested in this section is required to be included at the time the application
is submitted per RCW 67.28, as amended by Engrossed Substitute House Bill 1253 in 2013.
If estimates are not given for all items listed in this section, then the application will be
considered incomplete and will not be advanced to the Lodging Tax Advisory Committee
for funding consideration.
VI. SPOKANE VALLEY CITY COUNCIL GOALS AND PRIORITIES THAT SHOULD BE
ADDRESSED IN YOUR APPLICATION
The Spokane Valley City Council will make the final award of lodging tax revenues to candidates
based upon the recommendations of the LTAC. The City Council has established goals and
priorities for using lodging tax revenues to benefit tourism within Spokane Valley. In addition to
the evaluation criteria outlined in the other sections of this application, the LTAC desires to
understand how the applicant’s proposal and project would meet the City Council goals and
priorities. Please explain how the proposal meets City Council goals and priorities, listed below.
Attachments to this section should be labeled “VII. Consideration of City Council Goals
and Priorities”
Council Goals and Priorities for Use of the Initial 2% Lodging Tax
In August 2013 Council for the first time adopted goals and priorities that it encouraged the LTAC
to consider when making award recommendations. Based upon subsequent discussions between
Council and Staff in the years of 2014 through 2020, these have evolved as follows:
1. Council desires to direct awards toward funding new and innovative projects, activities,
events or festivals that will distinguish Spokane Valley as a tourism destination and result in
increases to Spokane Valley tourism. As part of this goal, Council will use lodging taxes for
the purposes allowed in State law, which include:
a. Tourism marketing
b. The marketing and operations of special events and festivals
c. The operation and capital expenditures of tourism related facilities owned or operated by
a municipality or public facility district
d. The operation (but not capital expenditures) of tourism related facilities owned or
operated by non-profit organizations.
2. Council will emphasize the utilization of funds for capital expenditures to develop tourism
destination facilities or venues within the City of Spokane Valley as a means of drawing
additional visitors to the City (recognizing that this option is limited to facilities owned by a
municipality or public facility district). Council would like to move in the direction of allocating
a majority of lodging taxes toward this purpose.
3. Council recognizes that lodging nights are an important measure of a successful event or
marketing program and will place higher consideration on events or programs with a
demonstrable history of increasing overnight stays. Council may also take into consideration
to a lesser degree the economic impact of all major components of our tourism-based
economy including shopping, dining and overnight visits.
4. Council will take into consideration revenues derived from lodging sources within Spokane
Valley received by applicants from other municipal entities and agencies such as the
Spokane County Tourism Promotion Authority and Spokane Public Facilities District.
5. An award to any particular applicant cannot be greater than the dollar amount requested in
that applicant’s application.
City of Spokane Valley Request for 2021 Grant Page 6 of 8VII. PROJECT BUDGET
Please detail the budget for your project. In addition to completing the chart below, you must also
submit your general operating budget, or fund-level budget for public agencies.
PROJECT BUDGET SHEET
GRANT
AMOUNT
CATEGORY REQUESTED MATCH* TOTAL
To be filled out by Public/Municipal Agencies:
1. Municipality tourism marketing $ $ $
2. Municipality event and festivals $ $ $
3. Municipality facilities (operations and
capital) $ $ $
To be filled out by Non-Profit Agencies:
1. Non-municipal entities promoting and
advertising tourism $ $ $
2. Non-municipal entities for marketing
and operating events and festivals $ $ $
3. Non-municipal entities for operations
of tourism-related facilities owned by
non-profit organizations $ $ $
TOTALS $ $ $
*While matching funds are not required, the amount of additional funds an organization brings to an event
is a good measure of that organization’s commitment to success and the broad-base support for the project.
City of Spokane Valley Request for 2021 Grant Page 7 of 8VIII. ATTACHMENTS
Please provide the following information as attachments.
1. Copy of state certificate of non-profit incorporation and/or copy of federal determination of
501(c)(3) or 501(c)(6) exempt status.
2. Copies of most recent approved and proposed budgets of the overall organization. For public
agencies, copies of budgets should be at the fund-level.
3. Copy of meeting minutes showing official approval of project and authorization of application
or a signed resolution of the board of directors authorizing the application.
4. List of members of the organization’s board of directors and principal staff.
6. List co-sponsors, if any, by title and type.
CERTIFICATION
The applicant here certifies and affirms:
1. That it will abide by all relevant local, state, and federal laws and regulations. Without limiting
the foregoing, no individual shall be excluded from participation in, denied the benefit of, subjected
to discrimination under, or denied employment in the administration of or in connection with this
Agreement in violation of local, state, or federal law.
2. That it has read and understands the information contained in this Grant application and will
comply with all provisions thereof.
Certified By: (signature)
(print or type name)
Title:
Date:
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