Hamburger tax

The Hamburger tax is the common name for hotel and restaurant tax collections made by the City of Little Rock on behalf of the Little Rock Advertising and Promotion Commission. The tax was inaugurated in 1970 to promote tourism. The tax rate was initially set at one cent per dollar of sales, and increased to two cents in 1979.

In November 1997 the Little Rock Board of Directors floated the idea of a hamburger tax increase to fund the purchase of 26 acres of land for the Clinton Presidential Center. The plan, with an estimated windfall of $15 million, called for a one-cent increase in taxes on prepared foods and hotel stays in Little Rock. Protests by on-air radio personalities and local citizens persuaded the directors to abandon the hamburger tax plan on December 3, 1997. The city settled instead on the issuance of park revenue bonds to pay for the site.

References

• Leonard Kniffel, "Little Rock Nixes Burger Tax to Fund Clinton Library," American Libraries, 29.2 (February 1998): 17-18.