Kingston’s Common Council approved a 3% occupancy tax on hotel, motel and short-term rental stays in an 8-1 vote. Ward 5’s Teryl Mickens was the sole opponent. The measure is expected to generate $400,000 next year, as the city faces a rising budget.
The council had initially weighed a 5% tax before scaling it back to 3%, according to the Daily Freeman. Lodging operators in the city had opposed the tax outright, though the specifics of their objections were not detailed. The new revenue is projected to bring in $400,000 next year, money that supporters say is badly needed as Kingston grapples with a city budget that's climbing fast.
Budget Pressure Drove the Push
Mayor Steve Noble’s proposed 2027 budget totals $69.4 million, an increase of $6,031,683, or 9.5%, over this year’s budget. It also includes a proposed 6.9% tax increase, according to the Daily Freeman. The budget figures formed part of the council’s discussion of how much of the city’s costs should fall on visitors rather than residents.
Council member Michael Tierney estimated the tax would add about $7.77 per night for guests. He argued that visitor payments would shift some of the financial burden away from year-round residents, who otherwise could face the projected revenue shortfall.
Michele Hirsch said the additional $400,000 could reduce pressure for further property-tax increases while residents struggle to remain in their homes. She also stressed that guests, not lodging operators, pay the occupancy tax.
A Request to Slow Down
Don Tallerman questioned whether the council had enough local information to assess the proposal. He asked members to return it to committee to examine Kingston-specific figures rather than rely on countywide data, the Daily Freeman reported.
Amberly Campbell, Ulster County’s assistant deputy county executive, presented countywide figures: the county’s occupancy tax brought in $9,389,198 in 2025, compared with $3,884,036 in 2023. Ulster County’s rate was 2% through 2023 and rose to 4% in February 2024, according to the Daily Freeman’s earlier reporting.
Budget Figures and Where County Tax Revenue Goes
Kingston’s own budget records list real-property-tax revenue of $21,496,726 in the 2026 recommended budget, compared with $19,562,582 in the 2025 budget as modified, according to the City of Kingston’s 2026 Recommended Budget. These are budgeted revenue figures, distinct from the proposed 2027 tax-levy increase. The county’s occupancy-tax revenue has separate planned uses: Ulster County policy directs 25% to public transportation, 25% to housing initiatives and 10% to tourism, beginning with the County Executive Recommended 2025 budget, according to Ulster County Legislature Resolution No. 167. Those allocations apply to county revenue, not Kingston’s new city tax.
How Kingston Compares to Its Neighbors
Rates in nearby municipalities vary. Newburgh charges 5%, Catskill and Coxsackie each charge 4%, and Poughkeepsie’s rate is 3%, matching Kingston’s new rate, according to an earlier Daily Freeman report on the council’s deliberations.
The council has set Kingston’s rate at 3%, but the city-specific effect on lodging businesses remains unclear. Tallerman’s request for local data underscored that the countywide revenue figures do not by themselves show how the new tax will affect Kingston.
