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CASPER, Wyo. — Natrona County Parks and Recreation Department Assistant Director Michael Brown told Oil City Tuesday that the county commission has decided not to implement a $5 reservation fee on camping sites in the county for the time being.
“At this point, we are not going to implement a $5 reservation fee. That will be reviewed at a later date, as we review the potential new reservation system,” Brown said.
Per state statute, the county will still collect a 7% lodging tax on overnight camping, as well as a 5% sales tax on overnight camping and shelter and dock rentals. A 3% credit card convenience fee and 30-cent minimal credit card charge will also be collected, Brown said.
The commission approved the $5 fee at a work session in February to cover an operational fee charged to the county by the third-party online reservation system, Astra, which the county is considering switching services to. The fee is per-transaction, meaning it would only be charged once regardless of the number of nights booked.
Brown said Tuesday that the county will be launching reservations on Wednesday under the current CivicRec system. The new system, Astra, “may not be implemented this season,” Brown said. “If Astra falls through, we probably won’t ever implement [the fee]. … If we get Astra up and running, we are going to have to charge that fee because that’s part of their system.”
With the taxes taking effect, the cost (via cash-in-envelope) for one night at a first-come, first-serve site will be rounded up from a $10 base rate to a total of $12.
Okie Beach, all of Casper Mountain, and other campsites that are currently under the online reservation system will rise to $11.80 for the first night.
Full hook-up sites at Alcova will be $40.55 for the first night. Subsequent nights are $10 per night plus the 12% in-state and local taxes.
Wyoming statute (39-15-10) defines “lodging service” as “the provision of sleeping accommodations to transient guests and shall include the providing of sites for the placement of tents, campers, trailers, mobile homes or other mobile sleeping accommodations for transient guests..”
More information is available here.
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