A. A local governing body may impose by ordinance a fee on the use of a room located within a qualified municipality. The fee may be referred to as the "sports and recreation facility fee". The amount of the sports and recreation facility fee shall not exceed two and four-tenths percent of the gross room charge for each day the room is occupied by a vendee. The sports and recreation facility fee shall be imposed for a period of not more than twenty years from the effective date of the ordinance imposing the sports and recreation facility fee.

B. An ordinance imposing the sports and recreation facility fee shall go into effect only after a referendum on the question of imposing the sports and recreation facility fee is held and a majority of the qualified electors voting on the question votes in favor of imposition of the sports and recreation facility fee.

C. The local governing body shall adopt a resolution calling for an election, to be held within seventy-five days of the date the ordinance is adopted, on the question of imposing the sports and recreation facility fee.

D. The question of imposing the sports and recreation facility fee may be submitted to the voters as a separate question at a general election or at a special election called for that purpose by the local governing body. If a special election is called, it shall be called, conducted and canvassed in substantially the same manner as provided by law for municipal elections. If a majority of the voters voting on the question approves the question to impose the sports and recreation facility fee, the ordinance shall become effective in accordance with applicable law. If the question of imposing the sports and recreation facility fee fails, the local governing body shall not again propose the imposition of the sports and recreation facility fee for a period of one year from the date of the election.

E. The question of imposing the sports and recreation facility fee shall include the uses for which the fee will be used.

F. A sports and recreation facility fee imposed pursuant to this section shall be reviewed by the local governing body annually.

G. A local governing body shall not decrease the sports and recreation facility fee while revenue bonds to which the revenue of the sports and recreation facility fee is pledged remain outstanding.

H. A local governing body shall dedicate the revenue from the sports and recreation facility fee at the time that the ordinance imposing the fee is enacted and limit the use of the revenue generated by the fee to the following:

(1) the design, construction, equipping, furnishing, landscaping and other costs associated with the development of a sports and recreation facility located within the qualified municipality;

(2) payments of principal, interest or prior redemption premiums due in connection with and any other charges pertaining to revenue bonds authorized by the Sports and Recreation Facility Financing Act, including payments into a sinking fund or reserve fund required by the revenue bond ordinance;

(3) costs of collecting and otherwise administering the sports and recreation facility fee; provided that the administrative costs shall not be paid if there are current payments due pursuant to Paragraph (2) of this subsection, and provided that no more than ten percent of the revenue collected in a fiscal year shall be used to pay administrative costs;

(4) operation costs of the sports and recreation facility designed, constructed, equipped, furnished, landscaped or otherwise developed with funding generated pursuant to the Sports and Recreation Facility Financing Act; and

(5) payments into a capital reserve fund established for the future payment for capital maintenance and improvements and equipment replacement costs of the sports and recreation facility located within the qualified municipality; provided that no payments shall be made pursuant to this paragraph if there are current payments due pursuant to Paragraph (2) of this subsection.

History: Laws 2008, ch. 76, § 4.

Emergency clauses. — Laws 2008, ch. 76, § 15 contained an emergency clause and was approved February 29, 2008.