A Mississippi House version of a bill reauthorizing Greenwood’s 1 percent tourism tax mandates annual donations of several thousand dollars to an American Legion post and a production company.
The bill, submitted by state Rep. Willie Perkins, requires that the Greenwood Convention and Visitors Bureau donate at least $2,000 per year to Thompson-Clemons American Legion Post 200 and $5,000 to R&M Productions “for the promotion of tourism.”
Representatives from both organizations testified during a December subcommittee hearing about concerns with the equity of grants awarded by the CVB.
A 1 percent lodging and dining tax within city limits garners about $400,000 annually that the bureau uses to promote Greenwood as a tourist destination. The tax is set to expire Sept. 30 unless reauthorized by the Legislature. The Greenwood City Council has requested that the state renew the tax.
Because it is a revenue bill, the legislation must clear both chambers by March 28, five days before the session ends. If the session is extended, then the deadline will also be extended.
Two versions have been entered — one in the Senate by Sen. Lydia Chassaniol and one by Perkins in the House.
The bills are similar with a few differences.
Both would add members to the CVB board from Mississippi Valley State University, the Greenwood Hotel/Motel Association and the Greenwood Restaurant Association, upping the total membership to 14.
The Senate bill would extend the tax for four more years while the House would do it for three.
The bills vary, however, based on several issues Perkins brought up at the December Local and Private subcommittee hearing held at Mississippi Valley State University.
The House version requires the bureau to advertise for any consulting services and says it “should consider minority participation in the awarding of any consulting contracts.”
Perkins said during the hearing that predominantly white North Greenwood has no problem accessing grant funds while predominantly black South Greenwood has trouble obtaining monies.
Perkins has also taken issue with the bureau’s use of Hammons and Associates, a Greenwood advertising agency.
The CVB spent $61,829 in 2010 with Hammons, more than the $50,000 threshold normally required for seeking bids, but is not required by law to advertise for bidders because it is considered professional services work.
The House version also forbids the CVB to use any money to repair the Russell Building. The city of Greenwood is attempting to implement a separate 1 percent tax on hotel rooms that would pay in part to renovate the historic but dilapidated Fulton Street building.
Then there’s the issue of the mandatory funding of the two private organizations.
American Legion Post 200, which is based in Greenwood and predominantly black, holds an annual New Year’s Eve party that has received CVB support, although members testified during the December hearing about difficulty obtaining funds.
R&M Productions is affiliated with Greenwood’s WGNL radio station and its owner, Ruben Hughes. Hughes once ran a for-profit blues show at the Leflore County Civic Center until a dispute led to him pulling the show and the creation of a nonprofit organization that now puts on a Civic Center blues show and receives CVB funding.
The mandatory annual donations wouldn’t prevent the CVB from awarding additional grants to the organizations.
Senate version of CVB bill (SB 3117)House version of CVB bill (HB 1569)
