HB4801 - Hotel Occupancy Tax Expenditures for Demolition and Property Improvement
Summary
West Virginia Governor signed HB4801 into law, permitting municipalities and county commissions to use hotel occupancy tax revenue for demolition of unsafe and unsanitary structures, and for planning the reuse or improvement of government-owned property. The bill passed the House 89-1 and the Senate 34-0 before receiving gubernatorial approval.
What changed
HB4801 adds demolition of unsafe structures and property improvement planning to the list of permissible expenditures from hotel occupancy tax revenue collected by West Virginia municipalities and county commissions. This expands local governments' discretion over how tourism-derived tax funds may be used, enabling blight remediation and urban redevelopment activities.
For affected parties, the bill primarily benefits local government entities seeking to address abandoned or hazardous properties using existing revenue streams rather than requiring new appropriations. Hotel tax payers and hospitality businesses are indirectly affected as local governments may prioritize property improvement projects funded by these revenues. No new compliance obligations are imposed on private businesses.
What to do next
- Monitor for local municipal ordinances implementing expanded hotel tax expenditure authority
Source document (simplified)
ChangeBridge / West Virginia / HB4801 Signed by Governor HB4801 House Bill Signed by Governor 2026-03-14
Defining Permissible expenditures for municipalities and counties
The purpose of this bill is to add the demolition of unsafe and unsanitary structures and planning for reuse or improvement of property owned by municipalities and county commissions as permissible expenditures of revenue from the hotel occupancy tax.
Bill Details
State West Virginia
Session 2026 Regular Session
Chamber House
Official Source www.wvlegislature.gov/BillStatus/Billshi...
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Sponsors
Elliott Pritt (Rep - R) Bill Flanigan (Rep - R) Michael Hornby (Rep - R)
Action History
2026-04-01 H Approved by Governor 4/1/2026 2026-03-14 H Approved by Governor 4/1/2026 - House Journal 2026-03-14 S Approved by Governor 4/1/2026 - Senate Journal 2026-03-14 S To Governor 3/25/2026 - Senate Journal 2026-03-25 H To Governor 3/25/2026 2026-03-13 H House received Senate message 2026-03-12 S Completed legislative action 2026-03-12 S Communicated to House 2026-03-12 S Passed Senate (Roll No. 492) 2026-03-12 S Read 3rd time 2026-03-12 S On 3rd reading 2026-03-11 S Read 2nd time 2026-03-11 S On 2nd reading 2026-03-10 S Read 1st time 2026-03-10 S Immediate consideration 2026-03-10 S Reported do pass 2026-02-16 S To Government Organization 2026-02-16 S To Government Organization 2026-02-16 S Introduced in Senate 2026-02-13 H Communicated to Senate 2026-02-13 H Passed House (Roll No. 90) 2026-02-13 H Read 3rd time 2026-02-12 H Postponed on 3rd reading, Special Calendar, until 2/13/26 2026-02-12 H Read 3rd time 2026-02-12 H On 3rd reading, Special Calendar 2026-02-11 H Read 2nd time 2026-02-11 H On 2nd reading, Special Calendar 2026-02-10 H Read 1st time 2026-02-10 H On 1st reading, Special Calendar 2026-02-09 H Do pass 2026-02-05 H Markup Discussion 2026-02-04 H To House Judiciary 2026-02-03 H Markup Discussion 2026-02-03 H To House Legal Services 2026-01-26 H To House Judiciary 2026-01-26 H Introduced in House 2026-01-26 H To Judiciary 2026-01-26 H Filed for introduction
Votes
2026-02-13 Passed House (Roll No. 90) Yea: 89 Nay: 1 2026-03-12 Passed Senate (Roll No. 492) Yea: 34 Nay: 0
Committee Referrals
2026-01-26 H Judiciary 2026-02-03 H Legal Services 2026-02-04 H Judiciary 2026-02-16 S Government Organization
Bill Text Versions
0000-00-00 Introduced 0000-00-00 Engrossed 0000-00-00 Enrolled
Subjects
Counties Municipalities Legislative data powered by LegiScan (CC BY 4.0)
Named provisions
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