{"data":{"id":"us-ky/krs-148.855","jurisdiction":"us-ky","citation":"KRS 148.855","heading":"Evaluation standards -- Tourism attraction project applications -- Lodging","body":"facility project applications -- Consulting services -- Optional interagency\nreview -- Cabinet recommendations.\n(1) The cabinet shall promulgate administrative regulat ions in accordance with KRS\nChapter 13A to establish standards for the making of applications for incentives and\nthe recommendation of eligible companies and their tourism development projects\nto the authority.\n(2) The cabinet shall consult with the author ity when establishing standards to ensure\nthat standards established pursuant to subsection (1) of this section and KRS\n148.857(1) do not conflict.\n(3) (a) The application for incentives shall be filed with the cabinet and shall include:\n1. The name of the applicant;\n2. Marketing plans for the tourism development project that target\nindividuals who are not residents of the Commonwealth;\n3. A description and location of the tourism development project;\n4. Capital and other anticipated expenditures for the to urism development\nproject that indicate that the total cost of the project shall exceed the\nminimum required costs as provided in KRS 148.853, and the\nanticipated sources of funding therefor;\n5. The anticipated employment and wages to be paid at the touris m\ndevelopment project;\n6. Business plans which indicate the average number of days in a year in\nwhich the tourism development project will be in operation and open to\nthe public;\n7. The anticipated revenues and expenses generated by the tourism\ndevelopment project;\n8. If the tourism development project is an entertainment destination center\nproject, the application shall include the public infrastructure purpose;\nand\n9. Any other information as required by the cabinet.\n(b) Based upon a review of these materials, if the cabinet deter mines that the\neligible company and the proposed tourism development project appears to\nmeet the requirements established by KRS 148.853, and that the proposed\ntourism development project may reasonably satisfy the criteria for final\napproval in subsection  (4) of this section, the secretary of the cabinet may\nsubmit a written request to the authority for a preliminary approval of the\neligible company and the tourism development project.\n(4) The authority may review the request submitted by the secretary, in cluding all\nrelevant materials, and may, based upon that review, grant preliminary approval to\nan eligible company. Upon a preliminary approval by the authority, the cabinet\nshall engage the services of a competent consulting firm to analyze the data made\navailable by the eligible company and to collect and analyze additional information\nnecessary to determine that, in the independent judgment of the consultant, the\nproposed tourism development project:\n(a) Will attract, in all years following the third yea r of operation, at least twenty -\nfive percent (25%) of its visitors from among persons who are not residents of\nthe Commonwealth, except for a theme restaurant destination attraction\nproject, which shall attract, in all years following the third year of ope ration, a\nminimum of fifty percent (50%) of its visitors from among persons who are\nnot residents of the Commonwealth;\n(b) Will have costs in excess of the minimum amount required by KRS 148.853;\n(c) 1. Will have a net positive fiscal impact on the Commonw ealth\nconsidering, among other factors, the extent to which the proposed\ntourism development project will compete directly with existing tourism\nattractions or previously approved tourism development projects in the\nCommonwealth and the amount by which inc reased tax revenues from\nthe tourism development project will exceed the incentives given to the\napproved company at the maximum level of recovery of approved costs\nas provided in KRS 148.853; or\n2. If the independent consultant determines that the propose d tourism\ndevelopment project cannot produce a net positive fiscal impact to the\nCommonwealth at the maximum level of recovery of approved costs as\nprovided in KRS 148.853, the independent consultant shall determine\nthe level of recovery, if any, at which the proposed tourism development\nproject can meet those standards;\n(d) Will produce sufficient revenues and public demand to be operating and open\nto the public for a minimum of one hundred (100) days per year, except for a\ntheme restaurant destination att raction, which shall be operating and open to\nthe public for a minimum of three hundred (300) days per year;\n(e) Will not adversely affect existing employment in the Commonwealth;\n(f) Meets all other requirements of KRS 148.851 and 148.853; and\n(g) For a lodging facility project defined in KRS 148.851(15)(b):\n1. Will have an occupancy study conducted by an independent consultant\nto determine the percentage of rooms occupied by other lodging\nfacilities:\na. With comparable accommodations as described in KRS\n148.851(15)(b)3.; and\nb. Within a fifty (50) mile radius of the proposed lodging facility\nproject;\nfor the most recent calendar year for data collected; and\n2. Will have a net positive impact statement that will exclude from\nconsideration any impact relate d to state -funded infrastructure that was\napproved prior to the application of the eligible company.\n(5) The independent consultant, in determining the amount of net positive fiscal impact\nto the Commonwealth for a new proposed tourism development project that is an\nexpansion of an existing tourism development project shall not consider positive\nfiscal impacts from the following sources:\n(a) Increased operations at the previously approved tourism development project\nthat is being expanded by the proposed tourism development project;\n(b) Increased operations at any other tourism development project approved for\nincentives provided under KRS 148.853; or\n(c) Increased operations at any project approved for tax increment financing that\nincludes state revenues ap proved pursuant to Subchapter 30 of KRS Chapter\n154.\n(6) (a) The independent consultant shall consult with the authority, the Office of the\nState Budget Director and the Finance and Administration Cabinet in the\ndevelopment of a report on the proposed tourism development project.\n(b) The Office of the State Budget Director and the Finance and Administration\nCabinet shall agree as to the methodology to be used and assumptions to be\nmade by the independent consultant in preparing its report.\n(c) On the basis of the independent consultant 's report and prior to any final\napproval of a project by the authority, the Office of the State Budget Director\nand the Finance and Administration Cabinet shall certify to the authority\nwhether there is a projected net positive fiscal impact to the Common wealth\nand the expected amount of incremental state revenues from the tourism\ndevelopment project. A final approval shall not be granted if it is determined\nthat there is no projected net positive fiscal impact to the Commonwealth.\n(7) The eligible company  shall pay for the cost of the consultant's report and shall\ncooperate with the consultant and provide all of the data that the consultant deems\nnecessary to make its determination under subsection (4) of this section.\n(8) In lieu of the independent consul tant analysis required in subsection (4) of this\nsection, if the eligible company is exempt from income tax under Section 501(c)(3)\nof the Internal Revenue Code and the estimated approved costs are less than ten\nmillion dollars ($10,000,000), the cabinet s hall have the option of performing an\ninteragency review to analyze the data made available by the eligible company and\nto collect and analyze additional information necessary to determine that the\nproposed tourism development project meets the requirement s set forth in\nsubsection (4)(a) of this section. The cabinet shall comply with the same consulting\nand reporting requirements as an independent consultant.\n(9) After a review of relevant materials, the consultant's report, and completion of other\ninquiries, the secretary shall, by written notification to the authority, provide a\nrecommendation to the authority regarding final approval of the tourism\ndevelopment project.","path":["KRS Chapter 148"],"source_url":"https://apps.legislature.ky.gov/law/statutes/statute.aspx?id=56343","current_through":"Includes enactments through the 2026 Regular Session","vintage":"09/05/2026","retrieved_at":"2026-09-05T20:50:41Z","sha256":"d32bf1bc6a191e8436a0a20c53413d70c28837c70ba4aabf32ee38ca9a76a7b0","source_id":"us-ky","stale":false,"prev":"us-ky/krs-148.854","next":"us-ky/krs-148.857"},"notice":"GroundRules: Original legal text. Not legal advice."}