short-term rentals

Property owners who provide short-term rentals and advertise on sites including Airbnb and Vrbo would need to register and pay a one time fee of $150 dollars under the new ordinance.

Lawmakers regulated short-term rentals in 2018, but left taxing issues alone until this year. And a bill to tax those rentals stalled until its language was put into the new two-year state budget.

Some short-term rental sites - including Airbnb - already collect taxes on behalf of their users. But others don't - and the owners of the properties would be responsible for paying Indiana sales and innkeeper taxes.

There seems to be broad agreement among stakeholders that short-term rentals should pay sales and innkeeper's taxes, like hotels. But there isn't agreement about how they should be collected.

The bill says local governments can require permits for short-term rentals, and allows local units to revoke those licenses after repeated complaints.

Rep. Matt Lehman (R-Berne) says he wants to clear up vagueness in his legislation regulating short-term rentals.

Disagreements over how to regulate the burgeoning short-term rental industry seem likely to be solved this year. But how to tax rentals may wait until 2019.

No one spoke in opposition during Tuesday's House committee hearing.

A study committee's recommendations don't include specific legislative language and likely don't change debate on the issue.

State lawmakers Wednesday heard a lot of support and a few fears about the local impacts of short-term housing rentals through platforms such as Airbnb.