In Los Alamitos, Measure G proposes to increase the city’s transient occupancy tax, or TOT, from 8% to 12%.
Often dubbed a hotel tax, it is a tax paid on overnight stays by guests at hotels, motels, and short-term rentals in Los Alamitos.
The City Council put Measure G on the ballot.
Currently, the TOT generates roughly $600,000 annually, and the proposed increase would collect an estimated $300,000 more each year, officials said. Revenue goes to the city’s general fund for use at the council’s discretion and can include support for police services, neighborhood patrols, park maintenance, youth and senior programs, along with street and pothole repairs.
Supporters say the tax would be paid by visitors, not local residents, though there is no specific language that would exclude residents from paying the TOT if they book lodging in the city.
At its current 8% rate, Los Alamitos has a lower TOT compared to Orange County cities such as Anaheim, Garden Grove, and Fullerton, where hotel tax rates range from 10% to 15%. If approved, the rate would fall in line with neighboring municipalities.
Supporters argue that the 2028 Olympics in Los Angeles will bring an increase in tourism to the city, with some events scheduled to take place in Orange County. They argue that visitors will bring “increased traffic and demand on Los Alamitos’ city services,” but that without Measure G, the cost of providing those services to visitors “disproportionately falls on our local taxpayers.”
Mayor Tanya Doby and Mayor Pro Tem Jordan Nefulda signed onto the argument in support of the measure, saying the tax provides a reliable source of local funding to support community services that “cannot be taken by the state.”
There was no ballot argument submitted against the measure.
Measure G requires a simple majority of voters in support to pass.