Who gets Hilton Head’s extra tourism taxes from 2020? Not the town or the chamber

Even though the coronavirus caused Hilton Head Island tourism to go “off a cliff” in the spring, the Accommodations Tax grant process had a surplus of money paid by tourists who visited the island this year.

But the Town of Hilton Head Island and the Hilton Head Island-Bluffton Chamber of Commerce won’t get to enjoy the extra.

In November, the Accommodations Tax Advisory Committee set its recommendations for allocating the tax money, including awarding more than $250,000 in surplus to the town and the chamber.

On Tuesday, the Town Council decided to yank the surplus funding from the town and chamber and put it in a reserve account to be used by organizations that apply later this fiscal year.

That knocks the A-TAX grant award for the town down from $1,126,994 to $1 million, and the grant award for the chamber down from $476,994 to $350,000 to market the island to tourists.

A-TAX is dubbed the “tourist tax” because it’s charged for any hotel room rental on the island, so the majority of the $4.37 million comes from visitors. Nine organizations, mostly events, didn’t apply for 2021 grants due to cancellations.

Under state law, 30% of all A-TAX revenue must go to the town’s Designated Marketing Organization, a contract Hilton Head leaders voted to award to the Hilton Head Island-Bluffton Chamber of Commerce again this year after two years of criticism over the chamber’s lack of accountability to the local governments that give it taxes.

Organizations must prove they serve and attract tourists to apply for an A-TAX grant.

Where the money will go

The committee voted to award full funding to these organizations, based on the applications’ requests:

• Art League of Hilton Head: $

  65,000
• Arts Center of Coastal Carolina: $325,000
• David M. Carmines Memorial Fund: $115,000
• Gullah Museum: $17,000
• Hilton Head Choral Society: $16,000
• Concours d’Elegance: $88,000
• Hilton Head Dance Theater: $19,000
• Hilton Head Island-Bluffton Chamber of Commerce: $350,000 (decreased by Council 12/16)
• Hilton Head Island Airport: $165,000
• Hilton Head Recreation Association (Oysterfest and Wingfest): $10,000
• Hilton Head Wine and Food Inc.: $88,000
• Hilton Head Island Symphony Orchestra - Operations: $270,000
• Lean Ensemble Theatre: $40,000
• Lowcountry Golf Course Owners Association: $50,000
• Lowcountry Gullah: $75,000
• Main Street Youth Theater: $25,000
• Mitchelville Preservation Project: $185,000
• Native Island Business and Community: $225,000
• Coastal Discovery Museum - Operations: $310,000
• Coastal Discovery Museum - Honey Horn Capital Projects: $350,000
• The First Tee of the Lowcountry: $25,000
• The Heritage Library: $110,000
• The Outside Foundation: $10,367
• The Sandbox Children’s Museum: $17,875
• Town of Hilton Head Island: $1,000,000 (decreased by Council 12/16)

Surplus in 2020

Since a handful of organizations did not apply this year, the committee was able to fully fund many more organizations’ requests than in years past. A-TAX allocation discussions are typically full of difficult choices, committee chair Dru Brown said in November.

With Tuesday’s council decision, over $380,000 will be kept in the A-TAX fund reserve for applicants to apply for later in the year.

Brown said this could be useful if a postponed event needs more money.

Last year, the chamber asked for $635,000 and received a $575,000 grant. The town asked for $1,427,664 and got $1,346,941, A-TAX records show.

Ward 5 representative Tom Lennox said taking around $126,000 from the town and chamber this year and putting it in reserves is a good move.

“I think there’s enough uncertainty about what’s going to happen in 2021 that to have $380K in that unreserved fund would serve us well,” he said.

Where the money won’t go

Two applications did not receive tax money.

Here’s who didn’t get any A-TAX funding for 2021 and the committee’s explanation:

• 12 Jewels of Life: The committee said the organization’s financial statements were not fully developed, and the group didn’t have any events planned in the upcoming year.

• Sea Turtle Patrol HHI: The committee said it supported the organization’s mission but that it did not necessarily attract tourists to the island.

According to A-TAX grant request records, the Sea Turtle Patrol did not apply for an A-TAX grant last year. 12 Jewels of Life did apply but did not receive any money last year.

Nine organizations didn’t apply for grants this year:

• Harbour Town Merchants Association
• Hilton Head Audubon Society

• Hilton Head Disc Golf

• Hilton Head Bridge Association

• Hilton Head St. Patrick’s Day Parade (canceled in 2020)

• Shelter Cove Harbour Company

• Skull Creek July 4th Celebration (canceled in 2020)

• The Boys and Girls Club of Hilton Head Island

• Coastal Discovery Museum - Lowcountry Fair (canceled in 2020)

How other grant applications fared

These organizations received less than they asked for:

• Hilton Head Island Land Trust: $28,684 (Asked for $30,000)

• Operation R&R: $2,000 (Asked for $15,000)

• World Affairs Council: $8,983 (Asked for $15,000)

This story was originally published December 17, 2020 at 4:00 AM.

Katherine Kokal

The Island Packet

843-560-9158

Katherine Kokal graduated from the University of Missouri School of Journalism and joined The Island Packet newsroom in 2018. Before moving to the Lowcountry, she worked as an interviewer and translator at a nonprofit in Barcelona and at two NPR member stations. At The Island Packet, Katherine covers Hilton Head Island’s government, environment, development, beaches and the all-important Loggerhead Sea Turtle. She has earned South Carolina Press Association Awards for in-depth reporting, government beat reporting, business beat reporting, growth and development reporting, food writing and for her use of social media.