On November 3, Collier County voters will decide whether visitors pay more to stay on Florida’s Paradise Coast. A ballot referendum asks residents to raise the tourist development tax, commonly called the bed tax, from 5 percent to 6 percent on hotel stays and short term rentals of six months or less, according to the referendum tracker published by NaplesBusinessNews.com, which notes the measure needs a simple majority and would take effect January 1, 2027.
Anyone booking a Marco Island or Naples stay for 2027 should watch this vote, because approval would add about 1 percentage point to every lodging bill, and our guide to things to do in Marco Island can help weigh whether the destination still earns the trip.
- Vote date: November 3, 2026 general election; a simple majority of more than 50 percent is required to pass.
- What changes: Tourist development tax rises from 5 percent to 6 percent on lodging stays of six months or less, starting January 1, 2027.
- Traveler cost: About $10 million a year in added revenue, paid by visitors; roughly $3 extra on a $300 nightly bill, before the 7 percent sales tax.
- Stated purpose: Finish the county owned Paradise Coast Sports Complex, with the balance directed to tourism promotion, beach renourishment and tourist related infrastructure.
Sixth Penny Would Add $3 to a $300 Night
The tax applies to qualifying short term lodging stays of six months or less at hotels, vacation rentals and other accommodations across Collier County, including Naples, Marco Island and the unincorporated areas. Gulfshore Business reports the county says the lodging tax currently generates about $48 million to $50 million a year, a record $48.6 million in fiscal 2024, and estimates the sixth penny would bring in roughly $10 million more annually.
For travelers the math is plain arithmetic: one extra point on the lodging tax equals $3 on a $300 nightly rate, with Collier’s 7 percent sales tax applied on top. The increase would stay in place until county commissioners change the ordinance, so it is a permanent expansion of the tourism fund rather than a levy that expires when the sports complex is finished. Florida grants counties that collect more than $30 million a year in tourist taxes, a threshold called High Tourism Impact status, the right to levy a sixth cent with voter approval, and Collier crossed that line decisively.
Sports Complex Completion Tops the Spending List
The 145 acre Paradise Coast Sports Complex sits off Collier Boulevard near Interstate 75 in East Naples. Its first phase opened between 2017 and 2020 at a cost of about $114 million, financed largely through tourist tax backed bonds, and it now holds 19 synthetic turf rectangular fields, a stadium, an indoor facility and event space. Since 2025 it has been home to FC Naples of USL League One, whose first season crowds the county cites as evidence of demand.
What the complex lacks is baseball and softball diamonds, and that gap is the expansion. Commissioners approved a Phase 4 plan in October 2025 for 11 additional multipurpose fields, with a Hunden Partners feasibility study pricing the fields at $50 million to $90 million depending on scope. A larger indoor fieldhouse, designed to double as a hurricane shelter, is the other major unfunded piece, and the county’s working figure for completion is $40 million to $50 million, with officials acknowledging the remaining phases would take several years even with funding in hand.
The politics are not one sided. Commission Chair Burt Saunders, who also chairs the Tourist Development Council, has called finishing the complex a priority of his final term, while Commissioner Bill McDaniel has pressed for full build out and operating cost figures before committing, and the Clerk of Courts has flagged that bonding the new revenue would add debt service to a county already carrying a large deferred maintenance backlog. Anyone flying in to judge the area in person can compare airport options in our guide to the closest airport to Marco Island.
Twelve Other Florida Counties Already Charge 6 Percent
Supporters note Collier is the only major coastal tourism county in Southwest Florida still at 5 percent, and that twelve other counties already collect 6 percent, including Lee, Sarasota, Pinellas, Palm Beach and Miami-Dade. Lee County’s 6 percent rate has not visibly dented its bookings, proponents argue, and youth and amateur sports tourism fills hotel rooms in the summer trough, when the destination most needs visitors.
Skeptics answer that the penny raises far more than the project needs. NaplesBusinessNews.com modeled the revenue against the stated uses and found the sixth cent would produce about $116 million over its first decade against a $40 million to $50 million completion cost, leaving the sports complex consuming well under two thirds of the money even under high cost assumptions. That surplus is by design, since the ballot language directs the balance to promotion, beaches and infrastructure, but it means voters are deciding a permanent fund expansion, not just a fields project. The Tourist Development Council itself split 5 to 4 in May over the fiscal 2027 marketing budget, a preview of the allocation fight a larger fund would invite.
Chamber Endorses Measure as Public Meetings Draw Small Crowds
With Election Day about a month away, the county’s neutral information campaign has struggled to reach voters. Commissioners approved up to $150,000 from the general fund in December 2025 for a website, video, social media, printed materials and public meetings, and $99,912 of that is budgeted to a Jacobs Engineering contract to build the materials and staff the sessions, according to Gulfshore Business. As of September 18, seven meetings had been held around the county, with attendance ranging from zero to fewer than ten people at any session.
County Communications Director John Mullins told Gulfshore Business that social media responses show some residents remain confused about who pays, mistaking the bed tax for a property tax, and stressed the meetings exist to provide accurate, fair and impartial information. By state law the county cannot advocate for or against the outcome, though commissioners may express individual views. Business groups face no such limit: the Greater Naples Chamber, with more than 1,000 members representing more than 50,000 employees, has formally endorsed the increase, with CEO Kristina Park saying extra marketing and a finished complex could lift the weak shoulder seasons so hospitality workers earn year round income. Voters will also weigh Amendment 3, a statewide homestead exemption question needing 60 percent, on the same ballot.
| If you… | What to do |
|---|---|
| Are booking a Collier County stay for 2027 | Budget one extra point of bed tax on lodging of six months or less, about $3 per $300 night before sales tax, if voters approve. |
| Are staying before January 1, 2027 | Nothing changes; the current 5 percent rate applies to 2026 arrivals regardless of the vote. |
| Vote in Collier County | Decide by November 3; the county information site and remaining public meetings carry the neutral details. |
| Travel on a tight lodging budget | Compare total rates across the region, since twelve other Florida counties already charge 6 percent. |
November 3, 2026 is the decision gate. Book refundable 2027 rates until the vote settles the tax question.
January 1, 2027 is the collection gate. Confirmed reservations spanning that date should show which rate the property applies.
Shoulder season 2027 is the value gate. If the measure passes, watch whether summer and early fall deals absorb the extra point.
Will my 2027 Marco Island hotel cost more?
Only if voters approve the referendum on November 3. A yes raises the bed tax to 6 percent from January 1, 2027, adding about $3 to a $300 night.
Who pays the Collier tourist tax?
Visitors paying for lodging stays of six months or less, including hotels and vacation rentals. It is not a property tax on residents or second home owners.
What would the extra money build?
Completion of the Paradise Coast Sports Complex comes first, estimated at $40 million to $50 million, with the balance funding tourism promotion, beach renourishment and related infrastructure.
Where can I follow the outcome?
The NaplesBusinessNews.com tracker at naplesbusinessnews.com plans updates after the November 3 vote and again when collections begin, while Gulfshore Business coverage at gulfshorebusiness.com tracks the public information campaign.
