Resort tax collections climb in August

In the second largest month for resort tax collections in Whitefish, numbers show August was up 10 percent over last year.

Collections from the 2 percent tax were $321,739, compared to $292,365 for the same month last year.

There was one significant delinquency collection in the August receipts of more than $3,000 for a vendor that was delinquent for July. That vendor paid both July and August by the September deadline, according to City Manager Chuck Stearns. However, even without that payment, August collections would have been up significantly, he noted.

Year-to-date, which includes two months, resort tax collections are up 6.2 percent or $36,743 over last year.

The resort tax is generally used as an indicator of how local businesses have fared in a particular month or year.

Collections are used for street reconstruction and property-tax rebates for city residents. Five percent is used for parks and the remaining 5 percent for administration.