Richland, WA Hotels & Lodging: Transient Occupancy Tax (2026)
Key Facts
- Excise tax rate
- 4 percent of lodging charge
- Collector
- Washington State Department of Revenue
- Exempt stays
- 30+ consecutive nights treated as a lease
- Effective date
- April 1, 1974
- Revenue use
- hotel/motel tax fund, tourism promotion only
- Related assessment
- $3/night for 40+ unit lodging businesses
Summary
Richland imposes a 4 percent special excise tax on lodging charged by hotels, motels, rooming houses, tourist courts and trailer camps under Municipal Code Section 5.35.010, collected by the Washington State Department of Revenue on the city's behalf. Stays of one month or longer are presumed a real property lease and fall outside the tax.
§ 5.35.010. Imposition of special excise tax. For the purposes set forth in Chapter 67.28 RCW and pursuant to and in accordance therewith, there is imposed and levied a special excise tax of four percent on the sale of or charge made for the furnishing of lodging by a hotel, rooming house, tourist court, motel, trailer camp, and the granting of any similar license to use real property, as distinguished from the renting or leasing of real property; provided, that it shall be presumed that the occupancy of real property for a continuous period of one month or more constitutes rental or lease of real property and not a mere license to use or to enjoy the same. ... ... § 5.35.040. Establishment of special fund – Purpose. There is created a special fund in the city of Richland to be known as the hotel/motel tax fund. All taxes levied and collected under the provisions of this chapter shall be credited to the hotel/motel tax fund.
Full Breakdown
Section 5.35.010 levies a 4 percent special excise tax on the sale of lodging by a hotel, rooming house, tourist court, motel or trailer camp, distinguishing a short-term license to occupy from a rental or lease of real property; occupancy for a continuous period of one month or more is presumed to be a lease and is not taxed under this chapter. Section 5.35.020 borrows the state's definitions of "selling price," "seller," "buyer" and "consumer" from RCW 82.08.010. Section 5.35.030 designates the Washington State Department of Revenue as Richland's collection agent, applying the state's own administrative rules under RCW 82.08.050, 82.08.060 and Chapter 82.32 RCW to the city tax.
Revenue collected flows into a dedicated hotel/motel tax fund created by Section 5.35.040 and may be spent only for tourism promotion purposes under RCW 67.28.1815 until the city council appropriates it. The tax has been in effect since April 1, 1974, under Section 5.35.070. Separately, Section 5.36.010 layers a special lodging assessment onto larger lodging businesses in the Richland tourism promotion area: Classification A businesses, those with 40 or more lodging units, are assessed $3 per night of stay, while Classification B businesses such as RV parks, dormitories and guest ranches pay no per-night charge under Section 5.36.020. That assessment funds regional tourism marketing and event promotion under Section 5.36.030 and terminates if the tourism promotion area is disestablished under Section 5.36.040.
Violations & Fines
Section 5.35.050 makes any violation of the lodging tax chapter a civil infraction subject to the penalty in Section 10.02.050(E), escalating to a misdemeanor under Section 1.30.010 if the same operator commits a similar violation a third time at the same location. Because the Washington Department of Revenue administers collection, a lodging business that fails to remit the tax also faces the state's own collection and audit remedies under Chapter 82.32 RCW.
Frequently Asked Questions
What is Richland's hotel lodging tax rate?
Does a month-long stay owe Richland's lodging tax?
Where does Richland's hotel tax revenue go?
Do large Richland hotels pay anything beyond the lodging tax?
Sources & Official References
Other rules in Richland
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