TBID FAQs

A Tourism Business Improvement District (TBID) is an assessment on businesses to provide a stable funding source in order to increase quality visitation to their destination and education efforts. The assessment can be passed on to customers and has proven to be especially critical in lifting visitation during historically slower times of the year by providing additional funding for destination marketing.

Yes. Currently, 114 successful TBIDs are in place throughout the state of California, and many more around the world. These districts are also called Tourism Marketing Districts (TMDs) and Tourism Improvement Districts (TIDs).

The Mammoth Lakes community has one industry – tourism. More than 73 percent of the Town of Mammoth Lakes’ general fund (operating budget) comes from Transient Occupancy Tax (TOT) and sales tax. With competition from other vacation destinations within California and beyond, Mammoth Lakes must employ a collaborative marketing effort that includes all stakeholders in order to give the town an opportunity to prosper. Efforts to focus on visitor education, stewardship, communication and need periods, including shoulder seasons, will help reduce the impact of slower periods of business for our community and residents.

An assessment on gross revenue will be collected from Mammoth Lakes’ tourism-related businesses. Funds generated by the assessment will be spent on programs and activities that directly benefit the businesses paying into the TBID. These services will be designed to educate visitors, increase visitation, generate more revenue for tourism-focused businesses, growing the TBID fund and allowing the town to prosper. (See the next question for details)

The TBID will include all lodging, restaurants, retail and Mammoth Mountain lift and ski school sales.

Tier 1: All Lodging and Ski Resort businesses as well as retail and restaurants doing at least $150,000 in annual gross revenue and more than 50% of those revenues coming from visitors (non-93546 zip code residents)

• 1.0% Lodging (Estimated $1.3M to $1.5M annually)
• 1.5% Retail (Estimated $1.1 to $1.3M annually)
• 1.5% Restaurant (Estimated $1M to $1.2M annually)
• 2.5% Ski resort lift tickets, ski school and golf courses (Estimate $1.3M to $1.5M annually)

Tier 2: A business with gross annual revenues between $50,000-$149,999 OR with more than 50 percent of its annual revenue derived from local customers (appeal required) will be assessed a once-annual $500 fee upon successful appeal.

Tier 3: A business with gross annual revenues of $49,999 and less (appeal is required) will be assessed a once-annual $50 fee upon successful appeal.

The estimated annual revenue collected by the TBID assessment will be approximately $6,668,250.

The renewed TBID will be in place for five (5) years from September 1, 2023 through August 31, 2028. The Mammoth Lakes TBID is being renewed under the Property and Business Improvement District Law of 1994. The TBID is reviewed annually and may be repealed if businesses representing more than 50 percent of the revenues generated by the assessment decide the TBID is not providing the expected benefits. When the 5-year term expires in 2028, the TBID may be renewed again for another 5-or 10-year cycle or discontinued.

While the current TBID and all procedures related to this cycle will continue to run through August 31, 2023. Businesses will collect the assessment from customers under the new guidelines beginning September 1, 2023.

To be considered for tiers 2 and 3 status, businesses must provide verifiable data showing either annual gross revenue falls under $150,000 OR or that the business has more than 50% of its revenue from Mammoth Lakes residents from the 93546 zip code area.

All appeals will be heard by an independent three-member appeal panel. To appeal a tier status, businesses must file an appeal form for reclassification or to maintain their previously appealed Tier status.

A steering committee comprised of lodging, retail, and restaurant owners/managers arrived at these assessment amounts after careful evaluation of the most effective methods to promote visitation to Mammoth Lakes, and what funds Mammoth Lakes Tourism would need to achieve these objectives.

The Mammoth Lakes Tourism organization will administer the TBID funds with oversite and direction by the nine-member Mammoth Lakes Tourism board of directors. The board is comprised of lodging (two board seats), retail and restaurant owners/managers as well as one representative from each; Town Council, Mammoth Mountain Ski Area and the Chamber of Commerce respectively and two at-large board members.

The funds will be spent as generally outlined in the Management District Plan and specifically detailed in the annual Marketing and Sales Plan. The majority of the funding will be spent on educating visitors, as well as marketing and sales efforts to attract destination visitors who stay longer and spend more money in town, and to bring people to Mammoth Lakes during historically slower times of the year (midweek winter, and spring and fall shoulder seasons) as well as to maintain destination air service through paying air service minimum revenue guarantees (subsidies).

Mammoth Mountain will continue to maintain its own marketing budgets as well as its focus on increasing quality destination visitation. Mammoth Mountain will also participate in all categories (lodging, restaurant, retail and ski lift tickets) of the TBID and are estimated to contribute between $2.5M and $3.0M of the total funds generated for TBID annually.

• Provides funding to continue to educate visitors on stewardship and how to treat our community and environment with respect
• Allow Mammoth Lakes to be competitive with other vacation destinations. More than 114 successful TBIDs have been formed in California vacation destinations, such as Los Angeles, Newport Beach, Napa Valley, Lake Tahoe, San Francisco and San Diego
• Create a secure source of tourism marketing funding
• Create tourism-related jobs in Mammoth Lakes
• Improve the economic development opportunities for Mammoth Lakes
• Increase overall direct visitor spending at assessed businesses in Mammoth Lakes
• Help reduce shoulder seasons by increasing off-peak visitation
• Increase Transient Occupancy Taxes (TOT) for the Town of Mammoth Lakes
• Increase sales tax revenues to the Town of Mammoth Lakes
• Drive Destination visitors who stay longer and spend more in our community