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IN THE COURT OF APPEALS OF TENNESSEE AT KNOXVILLE
December 9, 2002 Session DENISE ASHWORTH, ET AL. v. GREENE COUNTY, TENNESSEE, ET AL.
Appeal from the Chancery Court for Greene County No. 97000074 Thomas R. Frierson, II, Chancellor FILED FEBRUARY 10, 2003 No. E2002-00500-COA-R3-CV

Denise Ashworth, the proprietress of a bed and breakfast in Greene County, filed a declaratory judgment action challenging the constitutionality of a hotel/motel privilege tax authorized by private act of the General Assembly ("the Act") and approved by the Greene County Commission. Among other relief, she seeks the return of approximately $3,000 in taxes collected by her from patrons and paid by her under protest to Greene County. While her suit was pending, the trial court permitted an individual who had stayed one night at a local motel to intervene in this case. The gravamen of his complaint was the same as that of Ashworth's. The trial court granted the defendants1 summary judgment as to Ashworth's claim, finding that she was not the taxpayer under the Act and, consequently, did not have standing to pursue her claim. As to the intervenor's claim, the trial court held that the Act was unconstitutional and ordered that he be refunded the sum of $1.61, the amount of the tax that he had paid under protest, plus interest. Only Ashworth appeals. She contends that the traditional concept of standing should be broadened to permit her to pursue her claim. We affirm the judgment of the trial court. Tenn. R. App. P. 3 Appeal as of Right; Judgment of the Chancery Court Affirmed; Case Remanded CHARLES D. SUSANO, JR., J., delivered the opinion of the court, in which in which HOUSTON M. GODDARD , P.J., and D. MICHAEL SWINEY, J., joined. K. Kidwell King, Jr., Greeneville, Tennessee, for the appellants, Denise Ashworth doing business as Hilltop House Bed & Breakfast. Roger A. Woolsey, Greeneville, Tennessee for the appellee, Greene County, Tennessee. Ronald S. Range, Jr. and Jennifer P. Keller, Johnson City, Tennessee, for the appellee, Greene County Partnership, Inc.
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The defendants are Greene C ounty, G reene County Partnership, Inc., and the Attorney Genera l of the State of Tennessee. T he Attorney G enera l is not a party to this ap peal.

OPINION I. The defendants acknowledge that the Statement of Facts as set forth in Ashworth's brief are accurate. For this reason, we adopt those facts in toto: The private act authorizing Greene County, Tennessee, to levy a privilege tax on the occupancy of rooms, lodging, and similar accommodations (a hotel/motel tax) was signed into law on March 24, 1986, by Governor Alexander as Private Chapter 127 of the Private Acts of 1986. Private Chapter 127 was approved by the Greene County Commission on April 21, 1986, and the county began collecting the tax. The Private Act contained the following material provisions . . . : SECTION 2. The legislative body of Greene County is authorized to levy a privilege tax upon the privilege of occupancy in any hotel of each transient in an amount not to exceed two percent (2%) of the consideration charged by the operator. Such tax is a privilege tax upon the transient occupying such room and is to be collected as provided by this Act. SECTION 3. Such [tax] shall be added by each and every operator to each invoice prepared by the operator for the occupancy of his hotel, such invoice to be given directly or transmitted to the transient and shall be collected by such operator from the transient and remitted to the county. When a person has maintained occupancy for ninety (90) continuous days, he shall receive from the operator a refund or credit for the tax previously collected from or charged to him, and the operator shall receive credit for the amount of such tax if previously paid or reported to the county. SECTION 4. The tax hereby levied shall be remitted by all operators who lease, rent or charge for any hotel room within the county to the county clerk, such tax to be remitted to such officer not later than the 20th -2-

day of each month for the preceding month. The operator is hereby required to collect the tax from the transient at the time of the presentation of the invoice for such occupancy whether prior to occupancy or after occupancy as may be the custom of the operator, and if credit is granted by the operator to the transient; then the obligations to the county entitled to such tax shall be that of the operator. SECTION 8. The county clerk in administering and enforcing the provisions of this Act shall have as additional powers, those powers and duties with respect to collecting taxes as provided in Title 67 of Tennessee Code Annotated or otherwise provided by law for the county clerks. Upon any claim of illegal assessment and collection, the taxpayer shall have the remedy provided in the Tennessee Code Annotated, Section 67-1-912, it being the intent of this act that the provisions of law which apply to the recovery of taxes illegally assessed and collected shall apply to the tax collected under the authority of this Act; provided, the county clerk shall possess those powers and duties as provided in Tennessee Code Annotated, Section 67-1-707(a) and (b) with respect to adjustment and settlement with taxpayers of all the errors of taxes collected by him under the authority of this act and to direct the refunding of same. Notice of any tax paid under protest shall be given the county clerk, and suit for recovery shall be brought against such county clerk. SECTION 9. The proceeds from this tax levied herein shall be retained by the county government in the county general fund and distributed to the Greeneville - Greene County Area Chamber of Commerce at the discretion of the county legislative body for exclusive use for the direct promotion of tourism and tourism-related activities in Greene County. [(Emphasis added).]

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On March 17, 1997, the Greene County legislative body approved an amendment to its hotel/motel tax by which it increased from two percent (2%) to three percent (3%) the consideration charged by the operator and the allocation provisions of Section 9 were changed to require distribution of county tax funds to the [Greene County Partnership, Inc.] without an appropriation of the tax revenues as required by T.C.A.

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