Municipal officials, townships and tourism groups urge senators to preserve local control in hearing on Senate Bill 104

At a hearing on Senate Bill 104 before the Senate Local Government Committee, a wide range of local officials — including municipal managers, mayors, township trustees, and representatives of tourism organizations — testified overwhelmingly in opposition to the measure, saying it would unduly limit local zoning authority and tools used to manage neighborhood impacts from short-term rentals (STRs).

Opponents said the bill would preempt municipal home-rule authority and leave residents and local governments with fewer options to address noise, safety, neighborhood character and housing-stock loss. Several witnesses told senators they supported two elements in the bill — a registration requirement and a platform-based collection of lodging taxes — but said the bill’s broader preemption provisions would “handcuff” local governments.

Bevin Schneck, Director of Public Affairs at the Ohio Municipal League, said the league’s opposition rests on protecting the “Municipal Home Rule Authority found in Article 18 of the Ohio constitution.” Schneck told the committee that “this legislation would prevent municipal officials from creating necessary regulations and block them from being able to decide…