Tourism commission approves draft Explore Oro Valley budget; staff reports lodging-tax collections down about 20%

The Oro Valley Tourism Advisory Commission voted March 16 to approve the draft FY 2026'027 Explore Oro Valley budget, moving from plan development to implementation-focused spending that emphasizes marketing, digital assets and event support.

Tourism staff told the commission that one-time plan and website development expenses (roughly $170,000'$175,000) are largely complete and the new budget focuses on marketing and operational items such as Placer.ai visitation tracking and trade-show participation. "That was about 172 to 175,000" for website development, staff said when commissioners asked about prior-year versus current-year allocations.

On revenues, staff reported lodging-tax collections through January are below last year, noting reporting lags but saying "we are still down 20% year to date over last year." Commissioners pressed for line-item detail and for after-action reports that show how events translate into out-of-area visitation; staff said event after-action reports and partner-provided analytics will be used to track origin of visitors and to refine marketing.

The commission moved to approve the draft budget as presented; the motion was seconded and the chair announced passage after a roll-call-style exchange in which one commissioner opposed and another expressed hesitation. Staff noted the draft could change if Town Council requests amendments during the town's budget review process.

Next steps: staff will carry the commission's recommendation into the internal budget review process, provide requested after-action and visitation origin reports on major events, and return with any council-directed revisions during the town's budget-review timeline.