North Carolina Supreme Court Upholds Currituck County’s Use of Occupancy Tax for Safety

The North Carolina Supreme Court reversed the Court of Appeals and remanded for entry of summary judgment in favor of Currituck County, holding that the county properly used occupancy tax revenues to fund public safety services. Property owners and a civic association challenged the county’s expenditures, arguing that public safety costs were not “tourism-related” under the governing statute. The court determined that the statute granted the county discretionary authority to identify tourism-related expenditures and found the county reasonably concluded that funding public safety services supports tourism by maintaining a safe, family-friendly environment attractive to visitors. The ruling confirms local governments’ ...