Another controversial proposal was raised at the City Council session this Saturday, when the councilors approved the analysis of an initiative that seeks to apply a new tax called the Environmental Sanitation Right that would be paid by guests of hotels, houses and condominiums for rent, and, after approval by the Congress of Jalisco, add it to the Income Law project of the Municipality of Puerto Vallarta for the Fiscal Year 2025.
The proposal was referred to the municipal commissions of Public Finance, Environment, Tourist Services and Visitor Services.
The document to be analyzed proposes establishing a new municipal contribution in the Income Law under the heading of rights, which will consist of a fee to be paid by visiting individuals who use the lodging service as compensation for the environmental sanitation services provided by the municipality, which is proposed to be a fee equal to the amount equivalent to 70 percent of the Unit of Measurement and Update (which this year is 108 pesos) per night of lodging, that is, about 75 pesos per day.
The text presented refers to the fact that in contrast to the multiple benefits that tourism brings to our municipality, the truth is that it also brings with it other consequences that are not so encouraging for the people of Vallarta, such as environmental pollution.
This negative consequence is palpable in the large amount of liquid, solid and gaseous waste that is dumped daily into the environment by buildings used for lodging or temporary lodging, which are produced to a large extent both directly and indirectly by the guests who stay in these buildings when attending to their most basic needs.
Thus, given the high number of visitors, environmental pollution is exacerbated, making it necessary for the municipality to take extraordinary actions to counteract this damage, which will undoubtedly be achieved through environmental sanitation.
The above is in line with the new guidelines that states are adopting worldwide, relating to sustainable development, which implies the adoption of environmental public policies aimed at respecting the environment and reversing the damage caused to it.
Finally, it states that providers of accommodation services and individuals or legal entities involved in the provision of accommodation services are jointly responsible for the payment of the environmental sanitation fee, regardless of the way in which they are carried out, including those carried out with the intervention of various technological platforms that provide these accommodation services within the territory of the municipality.
Source: tribunadelabahia
