qathet Regional District (qRD) board will provide a letter of support for Sunshine Coast Tourism for the organization’s five-year municipal and regional tax (MRDT) renewal application and the proposed increase in taxation to three per cent from two per cent.
The MRDT is a tax charged on hotel and short-term accommodation, which is mostly used for tourism marketing and affordable housing initiatives.
At the July 9 regional board meeting, Electoral Area B director Mark Gisborne said he was unsure about how the MRDT is broken up, with a portion going to Sunshine Coast Tourism and a portion coming to qRD.
“I’m wondering if our staff could help me understand how it actually breaks down,” said Gisborne.
Manager of financial services Celinde Lillies said with the amount that comes to qRD annually, the regional district has been forwarding it to Sunshine Coast Tourism. She said it’s a different amount every year, based on online bookings. She said the funds are limited in uses, such as tourism promotion and affordable housing.
Gisborne said if the motion to increase the MRDT from two to three per cent passed, qRD’s allocation could increase by 50 per cent.
City of Powell River director Cindy Elliott asked if all or a portion of the MRDT collected from online reservations would come to the regional district .
Lillies said it’s the full percentage, from what she understands.
Electoral Area A director Jason Lennox said statistics provided by Sunshine Coast Tourism indicate $650,000 of MRDT was collected, to the end of the year in 2024, and $220,000 was allocated for affordable housing.
“That amount ($220,000) stands out to me as the amount that was transferred to us for housing,” said Lennox.
Lillies said the $650,000 was the portion Sunshine Coast Tourism was getting from hotel contributions. She said in 2025, the qRD allocation for affordable housing was about $105,000. The remainder would go to the Sunshine Coast Regional District.
Lennox said he had some concerns.
“When I read the report, short-term rentals have actually decreased lately,” said Lennox. “Looking at the historic
al trends, they are decreasing, in my area, at least. I have had some correspondence from constituents that have short-term rentals available and they are concerned about the amount they are paying for tax and what it is being used for.
“I appreciate that housing is important. My question is, if we were to vote for this, do we have any capability of discussing what the funds are used for? If we support this agreement, are we committed for five years for housing initiatives, and that is it?”
General manager of planning services Laura Roddan said the money is intended for affordable housing initiatives and there is some discretion. She said the province sets out how the funds are used but it is for affordable housing.
Electoral Area E director Andrew Fall said he supports the renewal, asking the province to renew the MRDT so that Sunshine Coast Tourism keeps getting money from the province.
“If we support the increase from two per cent to three per cent, it would translate to a 50 per cent increase in the amount of MRDT we get, under that restricted funding for affordable housing,” said Fall.
The board voted to provide a letter of support for Sunshine Coast Tourism’s five-year renewal of the MRDT, increasing to three per cent from two per cent, with Gisborne and Lennox opposed.
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