Weekly Regulatory Briefing (35)

🏡Top Stories This Week

• Monterey County, CA: The California Coastal Commission has certified Monterey County’s long-discussed short-term rental ordinance in a 6–2 vote, ending years of public debate over how to regulate rentals along the coast.
• Sparta Township, NJ: Sparta has secured a major legal win in its effort to restrict short-term rentals, as a New Jersey judge upheld the township’s ordinance banning rentals under 28 days.

🌍 Regional Highlights

• Maryland: Maryland Comptroller Brooke Lierman is stepping up enforcement on short-term rental operators by launching a new data-scraping initiative that pulls publicly available information from Airbnb and Vrbo to identify hosts who may be underreporting income.

📜 New Ordinances Approved

• Clayton, MO: City leaders in Clayton voted unanimously to permit short-term rentals for the first time, but only in carefully defined circumstances.
• Santa Cruz County, CA: Santa Cruz County supervisors vote unanimously to tighten short-term rental rules, capping non-hosted rentals at 270 across the county and requiring platforms like Airbnb and Vrbo to quickly remove unpermitted listings.

💬 Catch Up on Discussions

• Galveston, TX: Galveston’s Short-Term Rental Ad Hoc Committee emphasized the need for stronger accountability tools, pointing to shortcomings in the city’s current STR management software, Deckard.
• Adams County, CO: At its Aug. 13 study session, Adams County’s Board of Commissioners reviewed a wide-ranging package of regulatory changes, including mandatory business licensing, regulation of private social clubs, and new tools for short-term rental oversight.
• South Lake Tahoe, CA: South Lake Tahoe has officially begun enforcing its updated Vacation Home Rental ordinance, with permits issued in residential areas for the first time since Measure T cut back the program in 2021.
• Pullman, WA: Pullman’s new short-term rental rules are being enforced sooner than many hosts expected after a single complaint triggered a broad crackdown.
• Dallas, TX: The City of Dallas has once again been denied in its bid to enforce its broad short-term rental restrictions, as the Fifth District Court of Appeals this week refused to reconsider a panel’s earlier ruling that kept the city’s two-year-old ban on hold.
• New York, NY: Homeowners and community groups rallied in Jackson Heights this week in support of Intro 1107, a bill that would loosen New York City’s strict short-term rental rules.
• Watertown, MA: Watertown officials are reminding residents that short-term rentals remain prohibited under city zoning, following the council’s April 2024 rejection of a proposal that would have legalized STRs on a limited basis.
• Kodiak, AK: The Kodiak Island Borough Planning and Zoning Commission advanced work on overhauling short-term rental definitions, proposing a five-tier system to separate small, owner-occupied rentals from larger setups and bed-and-breakfasts.
• Long Beach, CA: Long Beach is tightening its grip on short-term rentals, rolling out new rules that cap the number of rental days, require annual inspections and registration, and enforce stricter penalties for repeat violations.
• Las Vegas, NV: Airbnb has joined a federal lawsuit challenging Clark County’s enforcement of its strict short-term rental rules, escalating tensions over fines that can reach $10,000 per day and even result in liens or property seizure for unpaid penalties.
• Laketown Township, MI: Laketown Township in Allegan County, Michigan, is keeping a six-month moratorium on new short-term rentals in place while officials study possible rules.
• Albany County, WY: Short-term rentals remain a thorny issue in Albany County, where planning commissioners spent meeting debating whether the Centennial area needs stricter oversight.
• Harris Township, PA: Harris Township supervisors are wrestling with how to regulate short-term rentals as a draft ordinance nears the planning commission stage.
• Atlanta, GA: Atlanta City Council votes 11–2 to stop issuing new short-term rental permits in the Home Park neighborhood near Georgia Tech. AA move aimed at easing housing pressures in an area where only a quarter of homes are owner-occupied.
• Palm Spring, CA: Palm Springs officials are working to close gaps in vacation rental enforcement, with staff telling the Administrative Appeals Board that disclosure requirements tied to real estate closings may not be consistently reaching new buyers.
• Londonderry, VT: Londonderry’s effort to rein in short-term rentals is facing backlash after residents passed a new ordinance in July that restricts how properties can be rented.
• New Orleans, LA: Big changes are hitting short-term rentals in New Orleans, where a new ordinance forces Airbnb to verify permits before listing homes, leading to the removal of thousands of illegal properties practically overnight.
• Hilton Head Island, SC: Hilton Head Island leaders are quietly weighing a possible moratorium on short-term rentals, with Town Council set to discuss the matter in closed executive session.
• Bertie County, NC: Bertie County’s new six percent occupancy tax for short-term rentals is drawing a mixed response ahead of its September 1 rollout.
• Irondequoit, NY: Irondequoit leaders continue debating short-term rental regulations after holding a public hearing this week on proposals that would cap permits and require 500 feet of distance between rentals.
• Shakopee, MN: Shakopee leaders are preparing for more short-term rental challenges as a Live Nation amphitheater brings up to 50 events a season starting next year.
• Ludlow, VT: The Ludlow Selectboard and Village Trustees spent most of their Aug. 12 joint hearing on a proposed short-term rental registry, where many operators pushed back against annual fees of $300 for hosted and $600 for unhosted units.
• Orangetown, NY: Orangetown has filed suit in Rockland County Supreme Court to permanently bar the owners of a Blauvelt home from hosting ticketed pool parties advertised on Swimply and EventBrite, saying the gatherings violate the town’s ban on short-term rentals and outdoor space rentals.
• Cayuga County, NY: Cayuga County’s proposed overhaul of its hotel tax law has sparked a showdown with the tourism office, which warns a 20% budget cut would derail cultural grants, publications, and long-term planning while costing the county millions in lost tourism revenue each year.
• National City, CA: National City councilmembers unanimously backed the first reading of an ordinance to regulate short-term rentals, setting the stage for caps, new fees, and stricter oversight.
• Lee's Summit, MO: Lee’s Summit officials are weighing whether to temporarily ease short-term rental restrictions as the city braces for an influx of visitors tied to upcoming events.
• Sedgwick County, KS: The Sedgwick County Board of Commissioners is exploring how to formally regulate short-term rentals, which remain illegal under current zoning despite a handful operating.
• Atascadero, CA: Atascadero is moving to tighten its short-term rental rules, with the Planning Commission unanimously recommending an ordinance that would cap the number of units, require primary residency for hosts, and add new permits with compliance checks.

🌱 Let’s Explore: Emerging Trends

The debate over short-term rentals is entering a new phase, with tighter regulations, legal showdowns, and community pushback setting the tone for the months ahead.

🏠 A Shift Toward Stricter Oversight: Local governments are tightening their grip on short-term rentals with new rules appearing across multiple states. Santa Cruz County is capping non-hosted rentals, Long Beach is requiring inspections and annual registration, and Atascadero is moving toward residency requirements for hosts. South Lake Tahoe has restarted permitting in residential areas and Pullman launched enforcement after a single complaint.

🏫 Legal Battles and State Crackdowns: Legal and state-level actions are reshaping the short-term rental landscape. Sparta Township in New Jersey won a court ruling that upheld its ban on rentals under 28 days, while Dallas continues to struggle with legal challenges that block its restrictions. In Maryland, the comptroller is using data scraping to identify operators who underreport income. At the same time, Airbnb is fighting Clark County’s heavy fines in federal court.

🌳 Communities Search for Middle Ground: Communities are split between welcoming tourism dollars and protecting neighborhood character. Clayton and National City have cautiously allowed short-term rentals under strict conditions, while Hilton Head Island leaders are considering a moratorium and Londonderry residents are already pushing back against newly passed restrictions. In New Orleans, permit verification rules forced Airbnb to remove thousands of illegal listings overnight, reflecting how far cities are willing to go.

📅 Future Meetings and Public Hearings/Comments:

• Townsend, TN: Townsend is considering a 3% lodging tax on hotels, motels, and cabin rentals to fund local tourism projects, with estimates showing it could bring in around $500,000 each year. The second reading and public hearing are scheduled for September 16.
• Laketown Township, MI: A township committee is reviewing how to regulate rentals moving forward, and the planning commission may propose rule changes at upcoming meetings on September 3 and October 1.

🖱️ Click of the Week: See What Everyone’s Reading

Tensions are rising in Harris Township as supervisors draft new short-term rental regulations aimed at preserving neighborhood character, including a 120-day rental cap and parking restrictions. Dozens of STR owners say the plan unfairly targets them and have begun exploring legal options, prompting township leaders to delay a final decision.

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