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Gainesville will conduct tax audit
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Gainesville officials are making sure they’re getting all the taxes they are owed — at least, all the alcoholic beverage and hotel/motel taxes.

The city will soon contract with a statewide municipal organization to make sure businesses and hotels in the city are paying the correct taxes on the services they provide.

The review will include two audits: one on revenues from taxes on the sale of mixed drinks and another on taxes on stays in hotels and motels.

Revenues from the hotel/motel tax go toward promoting tourism in the city. A separate tax on the sale of mixed drinks supports the general operation of the city government.

The City Council approved a resolution to spend money on the audits Tuesday, authorizing the use of contingency funds for a contract with the Georgia Municipal Association for the review.

The city’s Administrative Services Director Melody Marlowe said the city conducts such audits on a regular basis.

The cost of the two audits would be $23,500, but city officials expect the revenue they will receive as a result of the audit will exceed the cost.

The last time the city had such an audit conducted for hotel/motel taxes was 2001. As a result of the audit, city officials received a net profit of $26,759.32, according to numbers compiled by Marlowe.

An audit of alcoholic beverage tax six years later netted the city $28,289.89.