Senate committee advances short-term rental bill amid split between property-rights and local-control advocates

The Senate Local Government and Taxation Committee voted to advance Senate Bill 1162 to the fourteenth order for possible amendment after a multi-hour hearing that drew local officials, resort-city administrators, law-enforcement representatives, rental managers and property-rights advocates.

Senator Brian Lenny, R., District 13, described SB 1162 as a property-rights measure intended to curb "local overreach" and unclear regulations affecting short-term rentals since 2017. "We've seen cities basically imposing things like mandatory home remodeling, new egress installs, sprinkler systems, excessive licensing fees," Lenny said, framing the bill as a clarification of existing law.

Representative Jordan Redmond, the bill sponsor in the House, said the measure would clarify that short-term rentals are a residential use for zoning purposes and would: preserve local tourism-tax revenue, allow (but not require) licensing and fees, adopt a three-strikes enforcement approach for…