Quicklinks

Tourism & Economic Development
211 Jackson Street | Bastrop, Texas 78602 | Phone: (512) 581-4011 | Fax: (512) 581-7178

Adena Lewis, Director
Voice: (512) 581-4011
Adena.Lewis@co.bastrop.tx.us

Hours of Operation

Monday through Friday, 8:00a.m. - 5:00p.m.

Bastrop County offers a business-friendly culture, great infrastructure, a community college, a talented workforce and dedicated partners – all in a beautiful setting.
 
Our friendly nature makes Bastrop County ideal for tourists and the businesses that serve them.
 
Our Texas Film Friendly hospitality, three historic downtowns, diverse landscapes and waterways, and proximity to major metropolitan areas and the Austin Bergstrom International Airport, also make this a great place for film productions.
 
The county offers a wide variety of lodging facilities, hometown hospitality, beautiful recreation areas including Bastrop and Buescher State Parks, McKinney Roughs Nature Park, the Colorado River, and Lake Bastrop, and incredible entertainment venues.

Economic Development Corporations

 www.facebook.com/bastropcountyedo

County Partnerships

Hotel Occupancy Tax

Short Term Lodging Tax in Bastrop County

 

Hotel Occupancy Tax, commonly known as HOT, are collected by the short term rental (STR) property from guests who are renting a bed/space for less than 30 days consecutively. The tax is paid on the room rate including other fees such as cleaning fees, pet fees, etc. In the Tax Code, the State of Texas determines the items that are taxable and the remittance schedule.

 

The lodging property collects these taxes from their guests and remits them accordingly. Please note that online services such as Airbnb and Homeaway collect taxes for the State (6%), but do not collect local taxes. The property owner is responsible for full collection of taxes and their remittance.

 

Short-term rental properties, named as “hotels” for tax purposes, include but are not limited to hotel, motel, bed & breakfast, vacation rental lodging such as AirBnB, inn, rooming house, manufactured home, residency inn, condominium, cabin, cottage, guest house, a room in your house, and glamping tent.

 

Not all counties in Texas have a Hotel Occupancy Tax, but Bastrop County is one of the counties which does. 

 

TAX RATE

The rate of the tax is based on the property location within the County.

 

If the lodging property is outside a city limit and out of their extraterritorial jurisdiction (ETJ):

  • To the State of Texas     6%
  • To Bastrop County         7%

If the lodging property is inside a city limits or in their ETJ:

  • To the State of Texas     6%
  • To Bastrop County    0.75%
  • To the City                     7%

 

Hotels and motels are to pay monthly, while smaller venues may pay quarterly, based on revenues.

 

If you PAY ONLINE or have ZERO OVERNIGHT STAYS, you are still required to send in your Report of Hotel Occupancy Tax form. 

 

There are two forms available for each tax rate, one to print and fill out by hand, and one that is fillable. Forms may now be emailed to HOT@co.bastrop.tx.us.  All form submission and payment options are listed on the Report of Hotel Occupancy Tax forms.

 

For the Bastrop County" Report of Hotel Occupancy Tax form and instructions, and online payment option, Click HERE for the Treasurer's page.

 

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NEW HOTEL OCCUPANCY TAX SUBMISSION

 

BEGINNING OCTOBER 2, 2023, all Bastrop County Lodging Properties will submit their Hotel Occupancy Tax online via Localgov.  A letter will be mailed out in September with more information, and more will be posted here.

 

All lodging property owners, managers, accountants, and tax preparers are invited to the following training to use Localgov’s online system.

 

TRAINING ON LOCALGOV - SAVE THE DATE!

September 20, 2023 at 2:00 p.m.
Bastrop County Courthouse Annex
Commissioner’s Conference Room, Lower Level
804 Pecan St, Bastrop TX 78602

 
A zoom link will be added closer to the date for those who are unable to attend in person.

 

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If you have questions about your short term rental tax obligations, your tax rate, or how to comply with Bastrop County's Hotel Occupancy Tax, contact Fran Hunter 512-581-4074 or email.

 

More Information

 

Lodging Partnerships

We also work with our lodging partners in promoting our county and providing an inviting atmosphere for visitors. We provide helpful tourism information for your guests, and provide resources and contacts to help you be more successful in your endeavor. To learn more about our free resources and lodging partnership, contact Fran Hunter at 512-581-4074 or email.

Tourism
We work to attract tourists by promoting our county's many attractions, lodging, restaurants, and retail properties in the area and in our towns.
 
We invite you to explore Bastrop County and "Enjoy our friendly Nature!"
 

   Instagram (bastrop_county)

#explorebastropcounty

Filming in Bastrop County Texas

Our communities, our businesses and our people welcome film projects in our varied terrain, river and lakes, parks, roadways and historic towns.

 

Bastrop County is the "Film Hospitality Capital of Texas," and all of our cities and the county are certified as "Film Friendly" by the Texas Film Commission.

 

FOR FILMING IN BASTROP COUNTY, on county property such as the historic County Courthouse, County roadways or locations outside of the three cities, please return the required paperwork below to  adena.lewis@co.bastrop.tx.us :


 

FOR FILMING INSIDE CITY LIMITS of our three incorporated towns, please click on the links below for more information. 

 

 

PERMISSION TO SHOOT AT A LOCATION

We can also help you find your permissions contacts for filming in our county. Below is one County map but there are many more jurisdictions, such as as school districts, etc., in our County.

Commissioner Precincts - Interactive MAP

 

TEXAS FILM COMMISSION

All projects should be registered at no cost with the Texas Film Commission. There might be incentives available.  Register your project.

 

LOCAL RESOURCES & LODGING

And we ask that you use local resources found at the following links:

 

 

Contact us. We're glad to assist!