The supervisors voted 5-0 on Tuesday to examine on 4/22 placing a measure on the November ballot to increase the county’s hotel bed tax rate from 10 percent to 12 or 12.5 percent. Most other cities in the county employ a 12 percent rate. The increase could lead to about $1.5 million in extra revenue — most from hotels in Montecito — which would require a simple majority approval from voters for general uses and a two-thirds approval for a specific purpose, such as to help fund Measure M if it passes in June.
