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The state tax on meals and rooms drops by half a percent from 9% to 8.5% on Friday as the new state budget goes into effect, but will it have a real impact for Seacoast restaurants and hotels?
Although this is a slight decrease, the reduction could have two possible effects, according to Mike Somers, president of the New Hampshire Lodging Restaurant Association. One could be the perception of the state as having low taxes.
“The state has taken a position that it will cut taxes with low or no tax. Hopefully people will see us as a lower tax alternative than some of our neighbors,” Somers said. at Seacoast Current. “But as to whether or not someone will rent a hotel room for more than half a percent, I don’t know, it’s going to have a dramatic effect.”
Massachusetts with its “Tax Massachusetts†image has a 6.25% meal tax and 5.7% “room occupancy excise taxâ€. Maine’s meal tax is 8% and its lodging tax 9%.
Reduced New Hampshire taxes may not be a factor for a normal night out, but could help when planning a large function.
“Taxes end up being a big part of the overall bill,†Somers said. “If you have a family reunion and whole branches of the family come in, maybe now it starts to become a little more of a consideration.”
Staffing remains a struggle for the hospitality industry
Somers said the situation remains the same for staffing as demand continues to increase for hospitality services.
“A lot of people are still outside and still taking advantage of restaurants, hotels, etc. We like leaf sights, but from a workers’ point of view, we always struggle to fill positions to handle the amount of. demand that exists, â€Somers said. .
And what about the fast approaching ski season? Resorts are starting to prepare, but Somers believes they will also face the same staffing issues.
“It’s not unique to the hospitality industry. It affects healthcare, manufacturing and IT etc. I think everyone has a challenge right now,†Somers said.
State tax on meals and rooms also applies to car rentals.
Contact reporter Dan Alexander at [email protected] or via Twitter @DanAlexanderNJ
The coast remembers September 11 twenty years later
A ceremony at the Thunder Over NH Air Show in Pease marked the 20th anniversary of the terrorist attacks on the World Trade Center, the Pentagon and a crashed plane in Schwenksville, Pennsylvania. Ceremonies were also organized by the Portsmouth Police Department and Dover Fire & Rescue.
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