AN ACT to modify carteret county's authority to levy an additional one percent room occupancy and tourism development tax and to modify the distribution of the proceeds of the tax.

The General Assembly of North Carolina enacts:

SECTION 1.  Section 2 of S.L. 2007‑112, as amended by Section 40 of S.L. 2007‑484, reads as rewritten:
"SECTION 2. Occupancy Tax. – (a) Authorization and Scope. – The Carteret County Board of Commissioners may levy a room occupancy and tourism development tax of five percent (5%) of the gross receipts derived from the rental of any room, lodging, or similar accommodation furnished by any hotel, motel, inn, tourist camp, condominium, cottage, campground, rental agency, or other similar place within the county that is subject to sales tax imposed by the State under G.S. 105‑164.4(a)(3). This tax is in addition to any State or local sales tax. This tax does not apply to accommodations furnished by nonprofit charitable, educational, or religious organizations when furnished in furtherance of their nonprofit purpose.					
"SECTION 2.(b) Additional Occupancy Tax. – In addition to the room occupancy and tourism development tax authorized by subsection (a) of Section 2 of this act, the Carteret County Board of Commissioners may levy an additional room occupancy and tourism development tax of one percent (1%) of the gross receipts derived from the rental of accommodations taxable under subsection (a) of Section 2 of this act. Carteret County may not levy a tax under this subsection unless it also levies a tax under subsection (a) of this section.
			"		"		"SECTION 2.(e) Administration. – A tax levied under this act must be levied, administered, collected, and repealed as provided in G.S. 153A‑155. The penalties provided in G.S. 153A‑155 apply to a tax levied under this act. The Carteret County Tax Collector must establish procedures to periodically audit the businesses subject to the tax levied under this act in order to ensure compliance with this act.
"SECTION 2.(f) Definitions. – The following definitions apply in this act:
(1)	Beach nourishment. – The placement of sand, from other sand sources, on a beach or dune by mechanical means and other associated activities that are in conformity with the North Carolina Coastal Management Program along the shorelines of the Atlantic Ocean of North Carolina and connecting inlets for the purpose of widening the beach to benefit public recreational use and mitigating damage and erosion from storms to inland property. The term includes expenditures for the following:
a.	Costs directly associated with qualifying for projects either contracted through the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers or otherwise permitted by all appropriate federal and State agencies;
b.	The nonfederal share of the cost required to construct these projects;
c.	The costs associated with providing enhanced public beach access; and
d.	The costs of associated nonhardening activities such as the planting of vegetation, the building of dunes, and the placement of sand fences.
(2)	Net proceeds. – Gross proceeds less the cost to the county of administering and collecting the tax, as determined by the finance officer, not to exceed three percent (3%) of the first five hundred thousand dollars ($500,000) of gross proceeds collected each year and one percent (1%) of the remaining gross receipts collected each year.
(3)	Promote travel and tourism. – To advertise or market an area or activity, publish and distribute pamphlets and other materials, conduct market research, or engage in similar promotional activities that attract tourists or business travelers to the area; the term includes administrative expenses incurred in engaging in these activities.
(4)	Tourism‑related expenditures. – Expenditures that, in the judgment of the Tourism Development Authority, are designed to increase the use of lodging facilities, meeting facilities, or convention facilities in a county or to attract tourists or business travelers to the county. The term includes tourism‑related capital expenditures.
"		"			
"SECTION 2.(i)  Use and Distribution of Tax Revenue. – The net proceeds of the occupancy taxes levied under Section 2 of this act are distributed as follows:
(1)	Travel and tourism promotion. – Carteret County must, on a quarterly basis, remit fifty percent (50%) to the Carteret County Tourism Development Authority to be used to promote travel and tourism.
(2)	Beach nourishment. – Carteret County must use the remaining fifty percent (50%) only for beach nourishment on Bogue Banks. The county may not accumulate a balance of tax proceeds for beach nourishment in excess of thirty million dollars ($30,000,000)."
SECTION 2.  This act is effective when it becomes law.
In the General Assembly read three times and ratified this the 27th day of June, 2013.

	s/	 Daniel J. Forest
	 President of the Senate

	s/	 Thom Tillis
	 Speaker of the House of Representatives