Bothell, WA Hotels & Lodging: Transient Occupancy Tax (2026)

Bothell Municipal Code Chapter 3.25, Excise Tax on Lodging, sets the City of Bothell's version of a hotel occupancy tax. Section 3.25.010 levies a special excise tax of one percent in the King County portion and two percent in the Snohomish County portion of Bothell on the sale of or charge made for furnishing lodging that is subject to tax under Chapter 82.08 RCW. The levy was to start at the earliest possible date after January 1, 1999, once the Department of Revenue's legal requirements for collection were satisfied.

The code ties the tax to the state retail sales tax base. Lodging furnished by a hotel, rooming house, tourist court, motel, or trailer camp is covered, along with the granting of any similar license to use real property, as distinguished from renting or leasing real property. Occupancy of real property for a continuous period of one month or more is presumed to be a rental or lease of real property and not a mere license to use it, which is the line between taxable lodging and an ordinary tenancy. Section 3.25.020 adopts the definitions of selling price, seller, buyer, consumer and the rest from RCW 82.08.010, so those terms mean what the state statute says.

Section 3.25.030 makes the tax additional to any license fee or other tax imposed under any law or other city ordinance, with one adjustment: the first two percent of the tax is deducted from the amount of tax the seller would otherwise be required to collect and pay to the Department of Revenue under Chapter 82.08 RCW. Section 3.25.040 sends every dollar collected into a special fund in the city treasury, to be used solely for tourist promotion, acquiring or operating tourism-related facilities, or other uses authorized in Chapter 67.28 RCW.

Under section 3.25.050, the Department of Revenue is the city's agent for collection and administration. RCW 82.08.050 through 82.08.070 and Chapter 82.32 RCW govern administration, the Department's rules for Chapter 82.08 RCW are adopted by reference, and the Department prescribes the forms and reporting procedures. Chapter 3.25 does not use the term short-term rental, so its reach is defined by the lodging language quoted above.