Collier Voters to Consider Six-Cent Tourist Tax

Collier County Commissioners plan to fund the completion of Paradise Coast Sports Complex using an additional one-cent tax on short-term rentals that will go before Collier County voters in 2026. Meanwhile, taxpayers are still awaiting a commitment from the Commission to repay approximately $25 million taken from Conservation Collier and used for other expenses in 2024.  

Commission Chairman Burt Saunders was the lead proponent of the proposal for an increase in the tourist tax on rentals that are shorter than six months to increase from five percent to six percent in order to fund the completion of the Paradise Coast Sports Complex. The completion will add 11 softball and baseball fields, among other improvements to the property on Collier Boulevard near Great Wolf Lodge.  

Teams report a shortage of available ballfields in the summer months in part due to that being the time for grass fields and soil to recover from steady play during the cooler season.  

“We have what I believe to be a real gem of a park. It’s just not finished,” Saunders said. 

Commissioner Bill McDaniel was in support but had several concerns, including that the cost of the project had nearly doubled to as much as $160 million; operations and maintenance costs at build out weren’t yet clear; and the most attractive part of the project for countywide use and beyond was the 80,000 square-foot category-five hurricane proof field house that was initially to be part of the first phase of the project and instead is now three to five years away into the plans, he said. 

Still, the Commission gave unanimous, 5-0 approval of the plan options as presented Tuesday and of a referendum to go to voters to increase the tourism tax by another cent. Hotel stays are the primary source of the tourist tax.  

Ultimately, the voters will decide in this referendum on their ballots in November 2026.  

The Commission will still review detailed improvements to be made to the Paradise Coast Sports Complex in the future.  

The tax would remain in effect, if approved by voters, until the County changed the ordinance.  

District One Commissioner Rick LoCastro said he was concerned about voters understanding what they were voting on and noted that Collier County cannot spend any money to persuade their vote.  

Conservation Collier and Other Uses of the Tourist Tax 

Commissioners also noted that there are other projects that are not yet funded by ad valorem property taxes and are needed. McDaniel noted bridges, roads, and landfill capacity issues, among others, that remain in need of the Commission’s review.  

Residents have requested that the County Commission return money taken from Conservation Collier, a program that purchases and maintains conservation land. Voters had approved to be taxed specifically on the purchase and maintenance of conservation lands. However, the Commission had voted in 2023 to use money accrued within Conservation Collier for other general fund expenses in 2024, saying that’s how they could keep taxes from increasing.  

Despite strong opposition, Commissioners also cut the millage rate for Conservation Collier from 0.25 to 0.2242 mils, reducing its budget further by more than $3.5 million.  

Voters have continually approved the renewal of the program, which allowed for a tax levy of 0.25 mills. 

Brad Cornell, policy director for Audubon Western Everglades and Audubon Florida, requested the Commission return the Conservation Collier millage rate to the .25 mills that voters have approved. Cornell has continually requested the Commission to return the funds taken as well. The Commission has yet to put the matter on an agenda or return the funds. Although the Commission had approved taking as much as $50 million or more from Conservation Collier, it was only approximately $25 million that was spent and could be returned, McDaniels has said. 

County Property Tax Rate and 2026 Budget 

The Commission is considering a millage neutral tax rate of 3.2449, which is equivalent to approximately $3.25 per $1,000 of assessed property value. This rate allows for a budget with a three percent increase in general fund operating expenses and a five percent increase in capital expenses.  

There is an approximate eight percent tax base increase this year.  

Residents will receive their truth in millage (TRIM) notices in mid-August from the Collier County Property Appraiser's office. Taxable values have increased by nearly 50 percent in the past five years, county officials reported.  

If the Conservation Collier tax rate is restored to the voter-approved .25 percent, the cost would be about 2.5 cents more per $1,000 of property tax value. The Commission did not respond to that request as of Tuesday. 

Upcoming County Budget and Tax Meetings 

The next two budget and tax rate meetings are scheduled 5:05 PM Thursday, September 5 and the final budget and tax rate adoption on 5:05 PM Thursday September 18 at the Collier County Government Complex, 3299 Tamiami Trail East, in Naples.