City OKs Settlement Over Tax Payments

The City Council has agreed to accept $13,000 to settle a lawsuit it brought against a company that officials said failed to make appropriate bed-tax payments to the city.

Under the agreement approved Wednesday by the Camarillo council and Channel Islands Inc., which formerly operated the Country Inn hotel, the city will drop its lawsuit in exchange for the payment. “What we sued them for was not only what we felt they owed us, but penalties and interest,” City Manager Bill Little said. “What we settled for was basically what they owed us.”

Attorneys for Channel Islands Inc. could not be reached for comment.

Little said the firm collected 9% bed taxes for each room it rented, but included in the cost of the rooms a supposedly complimentary breakfast. When the company forwarded its bed-tax payments to the city, it failed to include tax on the money it had received for the breakfasts, Little said. “We only found out about it after an audit,” he said.