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Evergreen Ledger

SSB 6061

In Committee

Senate

Tourism assessment

Establishing a tourism self-supported assessment program to fund statewide tourism promotion.

This status may be delayed. See Action History below for the latest updates.

How does a bill become law?
  1. Introduced: The bill is filed and assigned a number.
  2. Committee: A subject-matter committee holds hearings, takes public testimony, and decides whether to advance the bill.
  3. Floor Vote: The full chamber (House or Senate) debates and votes on the bill.
  4. Opposite Chamber: The bill repeats the committee and floor vote process in the other chamber.
  5. Governor: The Governor reviews the bill and decides whether to sign or veto it.
  6. Signed: The bill has been signed into law.
Introduced: January 27, 2026
Last Action: March 10, 2026
Status: S Rules X
Companion Bill:
View Bill Text (HTML) (opens in new tab)View Bill Text (PDF) (opens in new tab)

AI Analysis

This analysis was generated by AI and may contain errors. It is not legal advice. Always refer to the official bill text for authoritative information.
People & CommunitiesBalancedCorporate & Wealthy Interests

This bill creates a self-funded tourism assessment program to finance statewide tourism promotion, where businesses in tourism sectors pay annual fees based on revenue, with oversight by a board of industry representatives and voter approval via referendum. It establishes a dedicated fund, confidentiality protections, and new governance structures to manage the program independently of legislative appropriations.

  • Establishes a new tourism assessment program to fund statewide tourism marketing, governed by a self-supported assessment model where businesses fund the program through annual fees based on gross revenue.
  • Creates a 'ratepayer oversight board' made up of tourism business representatives to approve budgets, monitor program effectiveness, and ensure funds are used only for tourism promotion.
  • Requires a referendum among affected tourism businesses before assessments can begin; each business gets a weighted vote based on its projected assessment, and sector-specific approval is required for each sector’s assessment rate.
  • Creates a dedicated 'tourism assessment account' to hold assessment funds, which are not considered state revenue and cannot be redirected by the legislature.
  • Makes financial and commercial information submitted for the assessment program confidential and exempt from public records requests, except for aggregated, non-identifiable summaries.

Who is affected

  • Tourism businesses — Businesses in tourism sectors (lodging, travel services, attractions, recreation, and beverage producers) that earn a significant portion of revenue from tourism will be required to pay an annual assessment fee based on their gross revenue, unless they opt out or are below revenue thresholds set by the program.
  • Washington Tourism Marketing Authority — The Washington Tourism Marketing Authority will gain new responsibility for designing, implementing, and overseeing the tourism assessment program, including collecting assessments and working with the ratepayer oversight board.
  • Ratepayer Oversight Board members — The ratepayer oversight board—composed of tourism business representatives—will oversee how assessment funds are spent, approve annual budgets, and report on program performance.
  • State agencies (e.g., Department of Commerce) — State agencies like the Department of Commerce will provide administrative support to the tourism marketing authority and help manage the new assessment program.
Effective: July 1, 2026Fiscal impact: The bill creates a self-funded tourism assessment program; assessment collections go into a dedicated account used exclusively for tourism promotion and program administration, and are not subject to legislative appropriation. There is no direct cost to the state general fund.Sunset: June 1, 2027
Model: Intel/Qwen3-Coder-Next-int4-AutoRoundGenerated: Mar 19, 2026 at 9:36 PM

Pro/Con Analysis

Potential Benefits (5)

  • The bill creates a self-funded, industry-governed tourism promotion program that could increase visitor spending and support jobs across tourism-dependent sectors (lodging, attractions, recreation, food/beverage), especially in rural and small communities that rely heavily on tourism. The dedicated funding mechanism aims to stabilize and expand marketing efforts currently fragmented across agencies.

    Business & EmploymentPeopleRef: Sec. 1(1)(d)

  • The bill explicitly includes public interest goals such as responsible and sustainable visitation to public and tribal lands, and education of travelers about conservation. This could reduce strain on public lands, emergency services, and infrastructure by promoting stewardship and dispersing visitation more evenly across destinations.

    Public SafetyPeopleRef: Sec. 1(1)(c)(iii)

  • By aiming to expand tourism-driven economic opportunities in both urban and rural regions, the bill could help reduce regional disparities and support small businesses and tribal enterprises that are often excluded from broader economic growth. The emphasis on partnerships may strengthen local supply chains.

    Business & EmploymentPeopleRef: Sec. 1(1)(c)(iv)

  • The requirement for sector-specific voter approval and weighted referendum participation gives tourism businesses direct control over program design and funding—potentially increasing accountability and responsiveness compared to top-down legislative appropriation, though this is offset by weighted voting.

    Local GovernmentLean peopleRef: Sec. 4(1), Sec. 6(1)(c)

  • The dedicated tourism assessment account ensures that collected funds are used exclusively for tourism promotion and administration, reducing risk of diversion to unrelated state priorities and providing predictability for long-term marketing planning—benefiting businesses that depend on consistent destination branding.

    Business & EmploymentLean peopleRef: Sec. 7
Potential Concerns (5)

  • The bill creates a broad confidentiality exemption for financial and commercial information submitted by tourism businesses, making it exempt from public records disclosure (RCW 42.56.270(35)). This reduces transparency and public accountability for a program that will collect fees from businesses and operate with significant autonomy, limiting oversight by journalists, researchers, and the public.

    Rights & LibertiesRef: Sec. 9(1)

  • By designating assessment funds as non-state revenue that cannot be redirected by the legislature, the bill removes a new funding stream from legislative control, potentially constraining future fiscal flexibility for the state and local governments that rely on shared revenue sources. While not directly defunding services, it sets a precedent for insulating industry fees from broader budgetary needs.

    Local GovernmentRef: Sec. 7

  • The sector-based voting structure in referenda means that a business’s vote only counts in its highest-revenue sector, even if it operates across multiple tourism sectors. This distorts democratic participation and may overrepresent large, single-sector businesses while marginalizing diversified or smaller operators who straddle sectors.

    Business & EmploymentRef: Sec. 6(1)(d)

  • The bill allows the ratepayer oversight board to set revenue thresholds for assessment liability, but does not require those thresholds to be set at levels that ensure broad participation or prevent significant revenue leakage. If thresholds are set too high, many small tourism businesses may be excluded, diluting the funding base and increasing per-business assessments on those who do pay.

    Business & EmploymentRef: Sec. 5(1)(e)

  • The weighted voting system—where each business’s vote is proportional to its projected assessment—gives larger businesses disproportionately more influence over program design and budget approval, even though smaller businesses may be more vulnerable to assessment-induced cost increases.

    Business & EmploymentRef: Sec. 6(1)(b)

Who Is Most Affected

Large tourism businesses (e.g., hotel chains, resort operators)Positive Impact

Large, multi-location lodging chains, resorts, and convention centers—especially those with high gross revenue and single-sector focus—will likely benefit most from increased destination marketing, and will have outsized influence over program governance due to weighted voting and sector classification rules.

Small and micro tourism businessesMixed Impact

Small, locally owned tourism businesses (e.g., bed & breakfasts, guided tour operators, small attractions) may benefit from increased visitation but face disproportionate cost burdens relative to revenue, and have less influence over program design due to weighted voting and sector thresholds.

Destination marketing organizationsMixed Impact

Destination marketing organizations (DMOs) and regional tourism councils will gain a new funding partner and expanded authority under the Washington Tourism Marketing Authority, but may face competition or realignment as the new program centralizes marketing strategy.

Tribal tourism businessesMixed Impact

Tribal tourism enterprises (e.g., casinos, cultural centers, lodges on tribal lands) are included in the definition of tourism businesses and may benefit from increased marketing, but the bill does not guarantee tribal representation on the oversight board or equitable access to funds.

State and local governmentsMixed Impact

State and local governments may benefit indirectly from increased tourism tax revenue and reduced strain on public lands, but lose discretion over a new funding stream and face reduced transparency due to confidentiality provisions.