Tourism

Room Nights to Real Impact

By Muriel Nuttall 21 September 2026 · 2 min read

Poolside at the Summit Inn in Summer with Pool chairs and Inn in the background — The Historic Summit Inn and Hotel

Imagine someone comes to Fayette County for a weekend. They stay in a hotel, eat at local restaurants, visit attractions, maybe hike a trail or attend a festival. When they pay their hotel bill, there is an extra charge added called a hotel occupancy tax.

In Fayette County, that hotel tax is 5 percent of the room cost.

Here is how it works in simple terms:

If a visitor stays somewhere that costs $100 for the night, an extra $5 is added as hotel tax. The hotel collects that $5 and sends it to Fayette County.

Now here is where it gets interesting.

Out of that 5 percent collected, 4 percent of the total tax stays with the County as an administrative fee for collecting and processing the tax. The remaining funds do not stay with the County. By state law, they must go to our designated Destination Marketing Organization, Go Laurel Highlands.

Go Laurel Highlands is responsible for using those dollars to promote tourism and support the visitor economy in Fayette County.

Once the money is received, it is divided into five equal parts.

Hotel lobby with stone pillars, couches, fireplace, and ceiling lights — Inside the Hilton Garden Inn Lobby, Uniontown

First: The 3:5 Portion

Three-fifths of the total funds are grouped together. That portion is then split in half.

50 percent of that 3/5 portion goes directly to Go Laurel Highlands for regional marketing efforts. This includes advertising, visitor guides, digital promotion, and campaigns that encourage people to visit Fayette County and the Laurel Highlands.

The other 50 percent of that 3/5 portion goes into the Fayette County Hotel Tax Grant Program. These grant funds are available to both nonprofit and for-profit tourism-related businesses and organizations. The goal is to support projects, events, and attractions that bring visitors here.

Second: The 2:5 Portion

The remaining two-fifths of the funds go into what is commonly called the Fayette County 2% program.

This program provides grant assistance to tourism-related entities, fire departments, municipalities, and nonprofit organizations. These grants can help pay for infrastructure improvements, equipment, marketing, signage, public safety needs, and other projects that support visitors and strengthen communities.

In other words, part of the hotel tax helps promote Fayette County, and part of it helps improve the places and services visitors use while they are here.

Accountability and Oversight

All of the funds managed through Go Laurel Highlands are carefully tracked and accounted for. The organization is subject to annual audits, ensuring transparency and responsible stewardship of the dollars collected.

Comfort Inn Hotel Room Connellsville showing made bed — Hotel Rom on the GAP Trail in the Connellsville Comfort Inn

Why This Matters

The key thing to remember is this: local residents are not the ones paying this tax. Visitors are.

When someone stays overnight in Fayette County, they help fund the marketing, events, improvements, and infrastructure that make our community stronger. That supports restaurants, shops, attractions, first responders, and local jobs.

Simply put, hotel tax allows visitors to invest in the places they come to enjoy.

It is a system designed to grow tourism, support local organizations, and reinvest outside dollars back into Fayette County.