§20–434.    IN EFFECT

    A municipality that imposes a hotel rental tax may:

        (1)    provide for the administration and collection of the tax;

        (2)    provide for additional exemptions from the tax; and

        (3)    impose penalties for failure to collect, report, or pay the tax.

§20–434.    ** TAKES EFFECT JULY 1, 2027 PER CHAPTER 638 OF 2025 **

    (a)    Except as provided in subsection (b) of this section, a municipality that imposes a hotel rental tax may:

        (1)    provide for the administration and collection of the tax; and

        (2)    impose penalties for failure to collect, report, or pay the tax.

    (b)    The Comptroller shall:

        (1)    collect the municipal hotel rental tax from accommodations intermediaries in the same manner as the county hotel rental tax under this subtitle; and

        (2)    distribute to a municipality, before the last day of the next month, the hotel tax revenue that is collected on behalf of the municipality from an accommodations intermediary during the preceding month.

    (c)    To defray the cost of collecting and distributing the hotel rental tax under this part, the Comptroller may distribute to an administrative cost account an amount not to exceed 1.5% of the hotel rental tax revenue collected each month on behalf of a municipality from an accommodations intermediary.

    (d)    (1)    Subject to subsection (e) of this section, Title 11 and Title 13, Subtitle 3 of the Tax – General Article and this title shall prevail to the extent of any conflict with any local law, ordinance, or resolution relating to a municipal hotel rental tax.

        (2)    Any local law, ordinance, or resolution that is preempted under paragraph (1) of this subsection is not repealed but shall be administered in conformity with State law.

    (e)    Beginning January 1, 2028, Title 11 and Title 13, Subtitle 3 of the Tax – General Article and this title shall prevail to the extent of any conflict with an agreement between a municipality and an accommodations intermediary.

    (f)    The Comptroller shall grant a waiver from the filing of a hotel rental tax return if an accommodations provider that provides accommodations exclusively through an accommodations intermediary:

        (1)    attests on an annual basis that booking transactions are facilitated by the accommodations intermediary; and

        (2)    requests a waiver from filing the hotel rental tax returns required under this subtitle.

    (g)    An accommodations provider is liable for hotel rental taxes on any booking transaction not facilitated by an accommodations intermediary.