Texas City, TX Hotels & Lodging: Transient Occupancy Tax (2026)
Key Facts
- Tax rate
- 7% of the consideration paid by the occupant
- Minimum room cost
- Rooms costing $2 or more each day
- Who collects
- Every person owning, operating, managing or controlling a hotel
- Filing deadline
- Last day of the month after each calendar quarter
- Late penalty
- 5%, plus another 5% after 30 days, minimum $1
- Interest
- 9% per annum starting 60 days after the due date
- Audit notice
- 30 days' written notice to the hotel
Summary
Texas City, Texas imposes a hotel occupancy tax equal to 7% of the consideration paid by the occupant for any hotel room that costs $2 or more each day and is ordinarily used for sleeping. Hotel operators collect the tax for the City and file quarterly reports with the Director of Finance.
(B) Levy and collection. A tax equivalent to 7% of the consideration paid by the occupant is imposed on each person who, under a lease, concession, permit, right of access, license, contract or agreement, pays for the use or possession or for the right to the use or possession of a room that is in a hotel, that costs $2 or more each day and that is ordinarily used for sleeping. ... (D) Collection. Every person owning, operating, managing or controlling any hotel shall collect the tax imposed by this section for the city. ( ... E) Reports. (1) Every person required in division (B) to collect a hotel occupancy tax shall file a report with the Director of Finance for the city showing the amount paid for all rooms during each calendar quarter, the amount of tax collected and any other information the city may reasonably require. Reports shall be filed and the full amount of taxes due shall be paid by the last day of the month following the end of each calendar quarter.
Full Breakdown
Section 36.48 of the Texas City Code of Ordinances, adopted by the City Commission, sets the local hotel occupancy tax. Subsection (A) borrows its vocabulary from the state: words and terms defined in Tex. Tax Code § 351.001 carry those same definitions when the subchapter uses them, so the meaning of "hotel" and "occupant" follows that statute rather than a separate local definition. The section itself does not mention short-term rentals by name, so whether a particular rental is a taxable hotel turns on that incorporated definition.
The rate is 7% of the consideration paid by the occupant. It applies to each person who, under a lease, concession, permit, right of access, license, contract or agreement, pays for the use or possession of a room in a hotel, where the room costs $2 or more each day and is ordinarily used for sleeping. Under subsection (D), every person owning, operating, managing or controlling a hotel must collect the tax for the City.
Reporting runs on a calendar-quarter cycle. Under subsection (E)(1), the collector files a report with the Director of Finance showing the amount paid for all rooms during the quarter, the tax collected and any other information the City reasonably requires. The report and the full tax due are both owed by the last day of the month following the end of each calendar quarter.
The City can audit a hotel that fails to file a report, after giving 30 days' written notice, and can hire a third party to run the audit. It can also sue delinquent hotels. A late charge of 15% of the total tax owed can be assessed once the tax has been delinquent for at least one complete municipal fiscal quarter.
Subsection (C) restricts what the City does with the money: revenue from the hotel occupancy tax can be used only as allowed by the Texas Tax Code.
Violations & Fines
Under subsection (F), a collector who files late or pays late forfeits 5% of the amount due as a penalty, and after the first 30 days forfeits an additional 5% of the tax, with a minimum penalty of $1. Delinquent taxes draw interest at 9% per annum beginning 60 days from the due date. Under § 36.99(B), failing to collect, report or pay, or filing a false report, is a misdemeanor punished under § 10.99.
Frequently Asked Questions
What is the hotel occupancy tax rate in Texas City, Texas?
When must Texas City hotels file the occupancy tax report?
What happens if a hotel pays the Texas City occupancy tax late?
Can Texas City audit a hotel's occupancy tax records?
How can Texas City spend hotel occupancy tax revenue?
Sources & Official References
Other rules in Texas City
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