A BILL TO BE ENTITLED
AN ACT to amend the purposes for which occupancy tax proceeds remitted to the durham convention and visitors bureau may be used.
The General Assembly of North Carolina enacts:
SECTION 1.  Section 9(c) of S.L. 2001‑480, as amended by S.L. 2002‑36, reads as rewritten:
"SECTION 9.(c)  Use of Proceeds From Additional Two Percent (2%) Tax. – Durham County shall, on a monthly basis, remit the net proceeds of the tax levied under Section 6(b) of this act to the Durham Convention and Visitors Bureau as set out in Section 10 of this act.
The Bureau may use the funds remitted to it under this subsection only to promote travel, tourism, and conventions in Durham County, for tourism‑related expenditures, and to retire debt incurred to finance tourism‑related expenditures."
SECTION 2.  Section 9(e) of S.L. 2001‑480, as amended by S.L. 2002‑36 and S.L. 2005‑233, reads as rewritten:
"SECTION 9.(e)  Use of Proceeds From Additional One Percent (1%) Tax After First 24 Months. – The net proceeds of the tax collected under Section 6(c) of this act after the first 24 months that the tax is levied shall be remitted monthly to the Durham Convention and Visitors Bureau as set out in Section 10 of this act. The Bureau shall use and distribute these net proceeds in the following priority order:
(1)	To the City of Durham, the first one million four hundred thousand dollars ($1,400,000) collected annually to finance the debt service associated with the construction of the Performing Arts Theater and for the design and engineering costs associated with the construction of the Theater. But no more than two million seven hundred fifty‑two thousand dollars ($2,752,000) of those proceeds may be used for design and engineering costs associated with the construction of the Theater. Until those funds are distributed to the City of Durham for that purpose, they shall be held by the Durham Convention and Visitors Bureau in a capital reserve fund as provided by Part 2 of Article 3 of Chapter 159 of the General Statutes except they may be expended as provided by the last sentence of Section 7(a) of this act if the tax is repealed as provided by Section 7(a) of this act. Any interest earned by that fund shall be credited to the fund.
(2)	Thirty‑two years after the levy of the tax authorized under Section 6(c) of this act, instead of the allocation under subdivision (1) of this subsection, the first one million four hundred thousand dollars ($1,400,000) collected annually shall be used by the Bureau to promote travel and tourism or for tourism related expenditures.
(3)	To Durham County, the next five hundred thousand dollars ($500,000) collected annually to be used for improvements to the Museum of Life and Science. This may include the financing of debt service. Any of these funds that are not needed for this purpose shall be returned to the Bureau and used to promote travel and tourism.
(4)	The Bureau shall use any net proceeds in excess of that provided by subdivisions (1), (2), and (3) of this subsection to promote travel, tourism, and conventions in Durham County, for tourism‑related expenditures, and to retire debt incurred to finance tourism‑related expenditures.
As used in this subsection, "annually" means the 12‑month period beginning after the first 24 months that the tax authorized under Section 6(c) of this act is levied."
SECTION 3.  This act is effective when it becomes law.