Franklin County saw a 25 percent drop in tourist tax collections in May compared to the year before

 Franklin County saw a 25 percent drop in tourist tax collections in May compared to the year before, which is actually good news since the lodging industry was only open 12 days during the entire month due to the COVID shutdown.

May collection revenues totaled nearly 124 thousand dollars in 2020.

In 2019, May revenues totaled just over 166 thousand dollars.

TDC Executive director John Solomon told the county commission last week that “This is a much better collection outlook than we originally expected considering the enormity of the

pandemic.”

Solomon said Franklin County’s vacation rental outlook is actually trending better than Northwest Florida in terms of paid occupancy.

From January through December, Franklin County's occupancy numbers and future paid occupancy numbers are trending 25% higher than Northwest Florida and Florida as a whole.

Solomon attributes the positive trend to the area’s rural characteristics and targeted messaging. Pointing out that we are a nature-based tourism destination conducive to social distancing and the marketing team has been diligent in crafting a message of visiting safely and responsibly during this COVID pandemic.

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