Page 1 of 2 LRC 2025-BR967-HB739
COMMONWEALTH OF KENTUCKY FISCAL NOTE STATEMENT
LEGISLATIVE RESEARCH COMMISSION
2025 REGULAR SESSION
MEASURE
2025 BR NUMBER 967 HOUSE BILL NUMBER 739
TITLE AN ACT relating to sales tax rebates for entertainment events.
SPONSOR Representative Susan Witten
FISCAL SUMMARY
STATE FISCAL IMPACT: YES NO UNCERTAIN
OTHER FISCAL STATEMENT (S) THAT MAY APPLY: ACTUARIAL ANALYSIS
LOCAL MANDATE CORRECTIONS IMPACT HEALTH BENEFIT MANDATE
APPROPRIATION UNIT(S) IMPACTED:
FUND(S) IMPACTED: GENERAL ROAD FEDERAL RESTRICTED
FISCAL ESTIMATES 2024-2025 2025-2026 ANNUAL IMPACT AT FULL
IMPLEMENTATION
REVENUES ($2,900,000) ($2,900,000)
EXPENDITURES
NET EFFECT ($2,900,000) ($2,900,000)
( ) indicates a decrease/negative
PURPOSE OF MEASURE: House Bill 739 provides a rebate of sales tax equal to 50% of the
Kentucky sales tax generated by the sale of admissions to a qualifying attraction held at a venue,
and the sales of tangible personal property and services related to the qualifying attraction,
including but not limited to the sale of food and beverage concessions, souvenirs, camping, and
parking. The rebate shall be allocated as 50% to the facility operator and 50% to the sponsoring
entity of the qualifying attraction. The bill further explains the process by which the entities may
obtain the rebate from the Department of Revenue.
A qualifying attraction means a series of entertainment events, which are live performances or
exhibitions of musical, theatrical, cultural, culinary, or other artistic presentations, lasting at least
three days, hosted by a sponsoring entity pursuant to an agreement that requires the event to
happen annually for at least five years, and has 100,000 admissions over the duration of each
series of events. The venue may be public property, a park that is open the public and owned by
a nonprofit organization, a property owned, operated, or controlled by a public university; or
privately owned property that can accommodate the events.
Page 2 of 2 LRC 2025-BR967-HB739
FISCAL EXPLANATION : In order to estimate potential foregone revenue, it is necessary to
know attendance and taxable expenditures for each qualifying attraction, as defined by HB 739.
The estimated attendance and taxable expenditures for the festivals Bourbon and Beyond and
Louder than Life are used to estimate HB 739.
According to Louisville Tourism and Convention Bureau, anticipated attendance in 2025 for
Bourbon and Beyond is 210,000 and Louder than Life is 160,000. Averaging ticket prices and
fees from the single-day and four-day general admissions for each event, average single day
ticket prices are assumed to be $134 and $152 for Bourbon and Beyond and Louder than Life,
respectively. According to a 2018 impact analysis by Commonwealth Economics, taxable
expenditures per attendee, including expenditures on food and beverages, merchandise, camping,
and other spending, was approximately $230 per event attended. Using the Consumer Price
Index to inflate this to 2025, it is estimated taxable expenditures per attendee will be
approximately $287 for each qualifying attraction. Adjusting for those who attend more than one
day of the event, it is estimated the total revenue subject to the sales tax for qualifying attractions
in 2025 will be approximately $96.7 million. Applying Kentucky’s six percent sales tax and the
50 percent rebate, per HB 739, it is estimated HB 739 will decrease General Fund collections by
approximately $2.9 million in FY 2026.
DATA SOURCE(S): LRC Staff, Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS), Commonwealth Economics
PREPARER: Katy Jenkins NOTE NUMBER: 154 REVIEW: JMR DATE: 3/7/2025