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include short term rental properties such as those listed on Airbnb and VRBO. This update modernizes the definition of a hotel in Logan County to reflect today’s lodging landscape and ensures that guests at all lodging providers, not just traditional hotels, contribute to local tourism promotion. Logan County has levied a lodging tax on transient guests staying in local hotels dating back to 1989. The newly approved amendment expands its scope from only applying to lodging establishments containing 5 more rooms (traditional hotels) to now include all lodging establishments, even those with fewer than five rooms. The 3 percent lodging tax is a pass-through consumer tax paid by lodging guests, not by property owners. Owners are simply responsible for collecting the lodging tax from guests and then remitting these funds to the County.
“This is not a new tax,” said Anna Louden, director of the Logan County Visitors Bureau. “The County is updating current legislation to include what has become even more popular, short-term rentals. These accommodations have grown tremendously in Logan County over the past 10 years. Visitors already anticipate a lodging tax as most have grown accustomed to paying this tax when staying in other destinations across Ohio, or anywhere across the country.” The amendment brings Logan County in line with many other Ohio counties and cities that already collect bed tax from short term rentals, including Franklin (Columbus), Hocking, Greene, Athens, Delaware, Hamilton counties, and the City of Urbana. Union County is currently in the process of adopting similar legislation. Russells Point Village Council has been collecting lodging tax from short term rentals since 2022 and has already seen meaningful benefits from the added revenue, helping support local tourism efforts and community improvements. Logan County Commissioner Mike Yoder stated, “We will no longer just be doing hotels or rooms that are greater than five, but we will be doing rooms like Airbnbs and all those things right down to one bedroom. If they are renting it out, there will be a bed tax associated with it.” The legislation was passed unanimously by all three commissioners. According to data from short-term rental research company AirDNA, Logan County had fewer than 10 short-term rentals actively marketed in 2014 versus over 300 in 2025. With short-term rental lodging options now far exceeding the available rooms provided by local hotels, this legislative update ensures our community is not penalized for our unique accommodations but rather allows all lodging options to support tourism initiatives. JD Harshfield, chair of the Logan County Visitors Bureau and general manager of Ohio Caverns, said, “The new countywide bed tax is such a welcomed addition to the county’s legislation. This pass-through tax will be collected from visitors to our county and will go directly to promoting even more tourism in our area. Looking at counties like Hocking and how they benefit from bed tax gives me great enthusiasm and excitement for this new cash flow coming directly to Logan County.” County lodging tax dollars will continue to be managed by the Logan County Visitors Bureau which is led by a geographically diverse board representing tourism interests from across the county. As part of the expanded lodging tax, the Commissioners approved a plan provided by the Visitors Bureau to use the current and new lodging tax revenue for tourism marketing, local tourism enhancements (such as signs and beautification), community events and sponsorships, and larger collaborative projects that improve the overall community. The plan prioritizes projects across the county, while making a clear commitment to reinvest a significant share of the new funds generated at Indian Lake back into the Indian Lake area through tourism related improvements and broader infrastructure projects. Rebekah Smith, vice chair of the Logan County Visitors Bureau, Russells Point Village Council member, and owner of Indian Lake Brewing Company, added: “We are deeply grateful to the Logan County Commissioners for their foresight in implementing a short-term rental bed tax. This initiative will generate vital funding to strengthen and expand tourism efforts across the region. In particular, Indian Lake will benefit greatly from this bed tax with targeted support to enhance visitor experiences and ensure that Indian Lake continues to be a beloved destination for generations to come.” Since 2001, Ohio law has permitted counties to apply lodging taxes to short term rentals under Ohio Revised Code Section 5739.09-094. Many counties across the state have modernized their tax codes in recent years to reflect this authority. According to the Ohio Legislative Service Commission, 32 of Ohio’s 88 counties now collect lodging tax from short term rentals. The amendment to Logan County’s lodging tax ordinance will take effect on January 1, 2026. The county is planning to work with Deckard Rentalscapes, a tax compliance platform that will allow short term rental owners to register their properties, remit payments online, and ensure proper tracking of all active rentals in Logan County. If you are a short-term rental property owner in Logan County, you will be receiving communication from county offices in the coming months with information on how to comply with the amended legislation and how the new process will work. If you have any questions regarding the updated amendment or how the process will work, feel free to reach out to Anna Louden, Logan County Visitors Bureau director with questions at [email protected]. Comments are closed.
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