PHOTO VIA ORANGE COUNTY CONVENTION CENTER FACEBOOK PAGE
Orange County is sitting on $133.7 million in unspent tourist tax revenue, and its citizen advisory task force is now accepting applications from organizations seeking a piece of it. The deadline is July 16, and the minimum ask is $20 million.
The reserve comes from Orange County’s 6% Tourist Development Tax, collected on hotel stays and short-term rentals. Of the $133.7 million, $78.2 million is already committed, with $42.5 million going to capital project grants, $20.5 million toward a bid for the 2029 or 2030 NBA All-Star Week, and $15.2 million toward a bid to host the 2028 International Olympic Qualifier Series. That leaves roughly $55.5 million unallocated and available for new projects.
Mayor Jerry Demings reconvened the TDT Citizen Advisory Task Force in late June to weigh new uses for the unallocated reserve. Former Orange County Mayor Linda Chapin and Lift Orlando President Eddy Moratin will co-chair the panel. Georgia State University’s Center for State and Local Finance has been contracted to conduct independent economic impact analyses on applicants selected to present to the task force.
The task force holds its first public meeting July 21 in the Board of County Commissioners chambers, with additional meetings July 28, July 29, and Aug. 5. Recommendations are expected to reach the Tourism Development Council and the Board of County Commissioners by late August.
State law limits TDT spending primarily to tourism promotion, convention centers, sports and entertainment venues, and cultural facilities. Applications must be submitted by 5 p.m. July 16. The application form is available through the Orange County government website.
For context on how these funds have been deployed in the past: the last time Orange County convened a citizen task force to address a TDT surplus, in 2023, the county approved $560 million to expand the convention center, $90 million for a UCF sports tower, $69.4 million over five years for arts and cultural funding, and $10 million to the Orlando Science Center. On the annual side, roughly 30% of TDT collections — about $99 million in 2024 — flows to Visit Orlando for tourism marketing, with another $27.5 million going to contract payments for the Kia Center, Dr. Phillips Center, and Camping World Stadium. Orange County collected a record $384.6 million in tourist tax revenue in fiscal year 2025.
