The Town of Mammoth Lakes issued the following press release:
The Town of Mammoth Lakes is working with local partners to implement a program to monitor and enforce transient occupancy tax (TOT) payments and rental activity within the town.
TOT Provides Vital Community Services
According to Mayor Jo Bacon, “Everyone who visits our town, including our property owners, expect the highest level of service that the Town can provide. When the Transient Occupancy Taxes are not collected, those owners/renters are negatively impacting our ability to fund and supply services. Without adequate revenues, programs like our successful transit system, important road maintenance efforts, and extensive public safety initiatives will suffer. By not complying with the TOT ordinance, those owners unfairly push the burden of providing services to the rest of the community.”
As the single largest revenue source for the Town, TOT revenue provides vital services to our community that enhance our quality of life and maintain our status as a great place to live and work, including:
• Free transportation (usage and need are growing)
• Snow removal (we would not be able to get around town without it)
• Road maintenance (surfacing, routing, and safety)
• Public safety (police funding)
• Parks and pools maintenance (facilities cannot be maintained and upgraded without TOT)
• Trails (TOT helps create and maintain walking, hiking and biking trails within the town of Mammoth Lakes)
• Mammoth Lakes marketing (TOT helps Mammoth Lakes to be competitive with other travel markets and allows us to visit or live in Mammoth Lakes and enjoy the amenities we’ve come to expect)
• People visit Mammoth Lakes or move here full or part time because of its vast recreational opportunities and its beauty. However to maintain and create the infrastructure that makes Mammoth Lakes a place we continue to enjoy, we must have an income source and the largest source of income to the Town of Mammoth Lakes is TOT
“Transient Occupancy Tax (TOT) collection, compliance, and enforcement are critical components to the success of a resort town like Mammoth Lakes. TOT makes up about 60% of the Town’s annual budgeted revenue and pays for such vital community services as snow removal, road and parks maintenance, and marketing,” stated John Morris, Chairman of the Mammoth Lakes Lodging Association.
Unreported and illegal rental activity has cost the Town hundreds of thousands if not millions of dollars. Unreported or uncollected TOT affects local businesses in other ways. Owners who rent their units without collecting TOT drive down the rental rates for legitimate rental properties that do collect.
Town Council Takes Action
In order to continue to provide public services to our residents, businesses and guests, the Town Council has made TOT enforcement a high priority for the Community Development Department.
Mayor Pro Tem Lehman stated that, “Over the past 12 months Town Council and Town staff have made enormous strides to cut expenses in an effort to better balance our town’s budget. It’s now time to shift our focus to revenue generation and revenue collection. This is a component of our Town finances that has received too little attention until now.”
John Morris, Chairman of the Mammoth Lakes Lodging Association stated that, “Those homeowners who do not collect and remit TOT in accordance with the Town’s ordinance, or who are renting their properties illegally, are simply hurting all Mammoth residents, second homeowners and visitors by not paying these crucial tax dollars.”
Community Engagement
The Town and Mammoth Lakes Tourism have engaged both our lodging partners and the Chamber of Commerce to help formulate a program for TOT enforcement.
“Mammoth Lakes Tourism has been doing an amazing job of driving visitors to our community, but without a strong TOT collection program the benefits of a good visitor base are futile,” stated Mayor Pro Tem Lehman.
Brent Truax, President, Mammoth Lakes Chamber of Commerce stated, “To achieve outstanding customer service and promote business and community growth we need all businesses to be on the same playing field. The customer arriving to Mammoth who stays at a property bypassing the TOT protocol is missing the sense of place that makes Mammoth Lakes a special place to visit and have service interactions that make up our community and create a return visitor.”
The Community Development Department is supporting the TOT enforcement and education program. An anonymous hot line has been created and more information has been posted on the Town page which will be followed with an informational “Rental Enforcement Notice” that will be mailed next week to all property owners in the Town. Town staff will then start enforcement efforts. Depending on the situation, not collecting and remitting TOT could be a misdemeanor or even embezzlement which is a criminal charge.
Anonymous TOT Hotline
An anonymous hotline has been established to report any suspicious activity or rental advertisements. The Town will follow-up on any reports submitted. The Hot Line Number is (760) 934-8989 ext. 275 or email your information to: [email protected].
If you have questions about TOT enforcement please contact Pam Kobylarz at (760) 934-8989 ext. 275, or she may be reached via e-mail at [email protected].
Thank you for your attention to this very important subject that affects our quality of life and the health of our community.
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Mammoth Lakes….The DRAMA Capitol of California!!!
and that univolved 3rd party is the victim. So it’s not even a victimless crime TOML, MLPD and the Chief are failing to enforce.
Am I wrong?
For ever illegal hired in TOML that’s using a fraudulent Social Security number there is uninvolved 3rd party that suffers the consequence of someone using their Social Security number.
Thank you Town of Mammoth Lakes.
Last post on this issue for me. The following letter was sent to the TOML @ their “narc a neighbor hot line” at [email protected] Town of Mammoth Lakes policy makers and Council: If you want us Citizens to start reporting illegal renting of condos, then you need to start enforcing… Read more »
Careful, Steve – that big bad Bounty Hunter is going to label you a racist!
Save your bandwidth. They don’t listen. They already have it all figured out. Town Council meetings are only used to reveal to the public what has already been decided. It’s a Punch and Judy show.
Yes!
I suggest that we use the TOT rat line to report employers who do not follow State & Federal laws when hiring employees. .
The Hot Line Number is (760) 934-8989 ext. 275 or email your information to: [email protected].
There was a time in this country when all it took was a phone call to the I.N.S It’s a freakin’ shame that you’re considered a RACIST if all you want done is for some federal, or even local law enforcement agency to ENFORCE federal immigration law It ‘s not… Read more »
There you go again Big Rick. Trying to confuse them with the actual facts! (-:
Nice, Bounty Hunter – you cannot continue a debate because you have no valid argument so you choose to make fun of my age? (or by how long I have lived here)
You must be one of those new fangled people known as the “Five Minute Local”
Thanks for making my point. I could not have said it better.
I moved to Mammoth in 1977
Ken….I happen to work for less than $15.00 an hour……and not even full time……And I am able to pay my rent,pay my bills,keep groceries in the fridge,gas in the truck,plenty of good dog food for my Cocker Spaniol…AND able to afford a nice week-long vacation or two in the early… Read more »
It’s not one size fits all. And I’m glad you can make ends meet in Lone Pine and are happy with less than $30,000 a year.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/File:US_real_median_household_income_1967_-_2010.png
Ken…Don’t get me wrong…I would love to be making more money….and if I moved to a big city,doing the work I do now,would make more.But I’m in Lone Pine…and I think same goes for many in all these small little towns in the Sierras.I choose to live up here,which means… Read more »
…and by the way — YOU HAVE TO HAVE WORKED TO COLLECT UNEMPLOYMENT!!!
JEEZE — where do some people get their “wisdom”?
the toilets got cleaned and the food got served and the beds got made all before the massive influx of undocumented workers. Just be legal that is all anyone asks. There are plenty of white, brown, purple, green legal folks that would do any job to support their family, but… Read more »
People complain about the Town’s service level yet these same people complain about their “neighbors” being turned in for bringing people into Town and illegally renting to them, which puts a greater burden on the Town’s resources. How about everyone just obey the law and collect TOT. If you don’t… Read more »
Let’s also level the playing field for all businesses in Mammoth and enforce employement laws in regards to undocumented workers to the hilt instead of ignoring the fact that greedy, dishonest people get away with paying undocumented workers under the table burdening the entire state resources by not paying taxes.… Read more »
Yea right. The white folks are lining up in droves to make beds and clean toilets.
With the unemployment rate where it is, I know quite a few “white folks” who would like any job right now.
Not when they can make more money being a 99er on unemployment.
Key to survival for many,after losing a job,is to collect unemployment benifits,and at the same time work some jobs under the table.And a BIG reason the percent of unemployed has to be taken with a grain of salt.But ya know what?……Who can blame anyone for doing it? More power to… Read more »
If there’s an excuse for hiring undocumented workers that prompts TOML and law enforcement to ignore law breakers, then I’m sure we can find an excuse for not paying the TOT. BTW my home is available for rent through out the year at a reduced rate (I don’t pay the… Read more »
Bounty Hunter – nice racism to assume white people don’t make beds.
It’s also racist to assume only hispanics make beds.
Thanks for proving my point. Intelectual losers always play the race card. You are sooooooo predictable!
One of lifes little ironies, when someone speaks condescendingly of someones intelligence, then misspells intellectual. FYI, I don’t make my bed.
Oh, an illiterate INTELLECTUAL! You just proved OUR point!
Sorry: Intellectual
Grrrr and Rob are RACISTS!!!
I win.
BH – who the Hell do you think did all the maid work in the 50’s, 60’s, 70’s and into the 80’s? We also tended bar, served food, cooked – sometimes all in one day, in order to live here….long before any Hispanics showed up – AND we were happy… Read more »
Yeah right. I remember when I walked to school in the snow and it was uphill both ways. Blah Blah Blah Did you just discover home computers and cell phones? They have been around for a while. Try to be current. Actually I would like to buy your Lava Lamp.… Read more »
That is a fact!
When I was young and un-educated, I cleaned toilets, bused tables, chopped lettuce, served ice-cream, drove trucks, cleaned toilets, washed dishes, sanded surfboards and any other crappy job I could get just so I wouldn’t have to eat out of garbage cans. Oh and did I mention I”M WHITE. The… Read more »
Ken…In case you haven’t noticed,things have changed a LOT since the 70’s and 80’s……and even since the 90’s.In my town,I know young people,un-educated that will not work for less than $12.00 an hour…..and ,in most cases,if they do happen to find a job paying that kind of wage,if it’s hard… Read more »
Wayne Deja said: “I know young people,un-educated that will not work for less than $12.00 an hour….” It turns out that a living wage is closer to $15.00 an hour these days. Doesn’t sound too dumb to me to refuse to work for Rent’a’Slave wages. So you say it’s a… Read more »
I used to when I was in my early twenties. The $ was great! I only left and learned a trade when the illegals came here and drove the wages way down. They are making less doing maid work now than I was twenty two years ago! Only the facts… Read more »
Maybe we need to replace the city council and hire one that can run the town not one that runs it into the ground. they need to be held accountable.What a childish idea to taddle tale on your neighbors.
I also agree with fining all those business owners who have undocumented workers! However, it would need to be a sneak attack since once one hears…everyone who aren’t documented don’t show up for work!
i have turned many absentee homeowners names into the town who rent illegally and not a damn thing ever happened. In the words of the woman at the finance office who told me “unless we see money being exchanged, there isnt a damn thing we can do.”
desperate times leaves to desperate measures
our town gobernment is
out of control
pssst
i heard Rusty was renting out his place next weekend.
This would have been a good time to do some of that ‘education’ their talking about. When is TOT required? Just a basic outline would be nice to see.
Oh yes, let’s maximize TOT so we can waive development impact fees to build more housing no one needs. Instead, why don’t we stop wasting town money on projects that are not viable and are a net negative return on investment for taxpayers? Maybe if we stop overreaching, then we… Read more »
[Everyone who visits our town, including our property owners, expect the highest level of service that the Town can provide] I only expect to see a lot of illegal aliens being employed illegally by local business’s that charge higher then average prices for products and services. I also see TOML… Read more »
“illegal aliens”
IN mammoth NO WAY
Tons of Illegal Aliens in Mammoth! We just ran E verify on one that was applying for a job with us, and his SSC was a fake or stolen. E Verify had been on the agenda at the town and actually people were interested in it, however, they have quietly… Read more »
“An anonymous hotline has been established”
cool , narc on ur neighbor
am i just limited to the tax thing or can i call in because i don’t like the size of their vehicle ?
The best way to enforce TOT is to privitize the enforcement. Simply put a 50% bounty of all fees collected from violators, when the private party sets up a successful sting. This is easily done through the internet and forwarded phone calls. A smart kid could work his way through… Read more »
Yeah,good idea…….Set it up to where you have a town full of so-called “internet bounty hunters”turning on their neighbors and friends trying to make a quick easy buck…and something that could never hold up in court.Word of advise to whoever would get caught up in one of these so-called “stings”……deny,deny,deny.
When you rat out your neighbor you deserve what ever happens next.
Pretty sad TOML is attempting to turn neighbor against neighbor to make a buck.
Not only should you deny, deny, deny, call them liars while you’re at it.
Hey,Bounty hunter…..Before you go off trying to solicite college students to “work their way”through school,other than the old-fashion way,you might want to check on the existing laws when it comes to using the internet,and especially using phone conversations,which I assume would have to be taped to try to entrap these… Read more »
Anonymous TOT Hotline. “the Town Council has made TOT enforcement a high priority for the Community Development Department.” Ha. Ha. Ha……. Again…..what a great source of comic relief. Here is an anonymous tip for the Community Development Department….. Your town council is running your community into the ground (not news,… Read more »