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DeSantis vetoes short-term vacation rental bill • Florida Phoenix [1]

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Date: 2024-06-27  

Gov. Ron DeSantis has vetoed a contentious proposal (SB 280) that would have given the state more control over regulation of short-term vacation rentals like Airbnb and Vrbo.

In his veto message, the governor noted some of the objections raised by the many critics who called on him to reject the measure since the Legislature passed it in early March.

“Beyond creating new bureaucratic red tape that locals must comply with, CS/SB 280 prevents local governments from enforcing existing ordinances or passing any new local measure which would exclusively apply to vacation rentals,” DeSantis wrote.

“Under this bill, any such measure would apply to all residential properties. The effect of this provision will prevent virtually all local regulation of vacation rentals even though the vacation rental markets are far from uniform across all the various regions of the state.”

Florida lawmakers passed legislation in 2011 prohibiting local governments from enacting any restrictions on vacation rentals but, after severe pushback, they amended the law in 2014 to allow cities and counties to regulate problems like noise, trash, and parking, but continued to prevent them from regulating the duration or frequency of short-term rentals.

This year’s bill, sponsored by Pinellas County Republican Nick DiCeglie, passed 23-16 in the Senate but only narrowly in the House, 60-51, one of the closest margins of any measure introduced in that chamber this legislative session.

It would have established statewide maximum overnight occupancy limits, limited the number of inspections at each property, and allowed local governments to charge a “reasonable fee” from a vacation-rental owner to register the property. Violations could bring fines up to $500.

Curiously, the House added a floor amendment that said counties could keep their own local rental ordinances if introduced before 2016 — which was believed to be a carve-out only for Flagler County.

Local government officials throughout the state had been lobbying the governor to veto the measure. Anna Maria Island Mayor Dan Murphy told the Anna Maria Islander last week that he’d heard from the governor’s staff that DeSantis was leaning towards vetoing the bill.

“The governor’s staff, first of all, feels that it is bad policy. In particular, the raw nerve and primary objection seems to be the carve out for Flagler County,” he said.

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[1] Url: https://floridaphoenix.com/2024/06/27/desantis-vetoes-short-term-vacation-rental-bill/

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