Union County commissioners to discuss tourism funding June 3

Union County residents were set to see commissioners weigh whether transient room tax dollars should keep supporting tourism promotion, event grants and visitor amenities, or be steered more tightly toward other county priorities.

At the center of the discussion was a county funding stream already tied to tourism. Union County was accepting applications for community events in fiscal year 2026-27, a program meant to increase economic growth and tourism within the county. The money comes from county-collected transient room tax funds, and the county said applications opened May 1 and were due May 31. The Union County Administrative Office administers the program, the Transient Tax Advisory Committee makes funding recommendations, and the Board of Commissioners gives final approval.

That makes the June 3 conversation more than a routine agenda item. The basic question for commissioners is how much public money should go toward drawing visitors, and which strategy best serves the county’s long-term interests. Broader marketing could spread the benefit across the county through more lodging stays, restaurant traffic and shop sales. Narrower support for specific events or attractions could deliver a clearer payoff in one place, but leave other communities waiting for help.

The chamber side of the county’s tourism system shows how that money has already been used. Union County Chamber of Commerce materials say TRT grants are meant to increase the quantity and quality of overnight stays in Union County lodging establishments. The chamber’s 2025 application said awards could reach $10,000, and its 2026 application said awards are typically announced by May 30, 2026. That puts events, attractions and local projects in places such as La Grande, Union and Joseph in competition for the same limited pot of visitor dollars.

Recent state tourism spending also offers a concrete example of what those dollars can produce. On June 30, 2025, Travel Oregon announced $6.2 million in competitive tourism grants statewide, including money for the Joseph Branch Trail Consortium in northeastern Oregon. That grant supported a 1.08-mile accessible trail segment and related visitor amenities, showing how tourism funding can translate into built infrastructure, not just advertising.

For Union County, the June 3 discussion was ultimately about priorities: whether transient-room-tax revenue should be used to widen the county’s visitor appeal, or reserved for a narrower list of projects that commissioners believe will produce the strongest return for residents.