If the state legislature approves, part of Moore County's tourism tax could soon be applied to the airport.

The board of commissioners on Tuesday voted to ask state Rep. Jamie Boles to introduce a local bill enabling the county to apply a portion of the 3 percent room occupancy tax toward the county's match for federal airport grants.

The proposal does not call for an increase in the tax.

"I have talked to Rep. Boles, and he is not in favor of any increase in the tax rate," Board Chairman Nick Picerno said.

Room tax collections are presently used solely to support tourism promotion through the county's Convention and Visitors Bureau.

The commissioners want to avoid using property tax money to support airport improvements. Their reasoning for wanting to use funds from the room tax is that the airport is a strong tourism factor for the county.

Picerno said he had talked to Boles about using less than 1 percent of the tax to reimburse the county's general fund budget when the county must appropriate matching funds to draw down grants from the Federal Aviation Administration.

The FAA awards grants for safety improvements at public airports but requires a 5 percent match from the local government and a 5 percent match from the state.

"The goal is to take care of our FAA match without using taxpayer money," Picerno said.

Unfortunately, Picerno added, the change would take some money away from tourism promotion and operations. But he said that loss would be balanced by meeting a specific need.

Commissioner Craig Kennedy countered that the loss could be turned into an asset for the Convention and Visitors Bureau if business picks up at the airport.

He said that the airport brings a heavy influx into the county for tourism purposes, and this affects the size of room tax collections. Kennedy said this would be especially true if airport improvements can be used to attract passenger service back to the airport.

The three commissioners debated whether they should wait to take the vote until the other two board members could be present. However, Commissioner Larry Caddell said all five members had reached consensus on the issue at a previous meeting and he saw no need to delay a vote.

Vice Chairman Jimmy Melton and Tim Lea, a former chairman, were absent because of illness.

Caddell made the motion to ask Boles to introduce the local bill, Kennedy made the second, and approval was unanimous.

Earlier in the meeting, the commissioners heard a presentation on the county's tourism product development plan by the Convention and Visitors Bureau Feasibility Committee. Caleb Miles, president and CEO of the bureau, led the presentation.

The plan outlines ideas to increase tourism by encouraging capital improvements and boosting marketing tools.

Ideas for increasing tax revenue were advanced along with information that Moore County's 3 percent tax is among the lowest rates for top tourism counties.

Swain is the only other county among the top 15 counties with a 3 percent tax rate. The rate is 6 percent in Wake, Guilford, Forsyth, Durham, New Hanover, Cumberland, Watauga and Craven counties. It is 5 percent in Dare, Brunswick, Cabarrus, Carteret, Nash and Catawba counties.

Mecklenburg, with 8 percent, has the highest rate, but it sunsets with completion of the NASCAR Hall of Fame. Buncombe County, with a 4 percent rate, is proposing an increase.

Under the latest state law, a tourism tax cannot be higher than 6 percent.

The tourism delegation did not directly request an increase in the tax but did suggest that the commissioners consider meeting with mayors and other municipal officials to discuss their tourism needs.

The Moore County Airport, which is owned by the county, is self-sufficient in the sense that operational funding is not part of the county's general fund budget. The airport generates income through sales of aviation fuel, hangar rental fees, pilot instruction and other services.

Revenue has dropped dramatically in recent years because of the economic downturn and the loss of passenger service.

In the meantime, the airport authority faces heavy capital improvement costs to upgrade facilities in time for the back-to-back U.S. Open tournaments coming here in 2014.

Contact Florence Gilkeson at florence@thepilot.com.