New short‑term rental bill would let cities require business licenses and request listings be removed for illegal units

League staff presented a short‑term rental bill from Rep. Walter that League staff recommended supporting, describing it as a targeted step to help municipalities regulate rentals without a large policy shift.

The bill has four primary components: clarifying the statutory language that prevents listing sites from being the sole source of enforcement evidence; allowing municipalities to require listing platforms to include a local business license or registration on listings (optional for cities); permitting platforms to remove listings that are operating illegally in jurisdictions that restrict short‑term rentals or lack a required business license; and allowing listing data to be used for tax compliance to ensure transient lodging taxes are remitted.

Carson (League staff) said the removal and business‑registration tools only apply in jurisdictions that allow short‑term rentals in at least part of the city; they do not force cities to permit short‑term rentals citywide. Tana Toli (Park City) and lodging industry representatives said business license registration supports guest safety and helps legitimate property managers compete with unlicensed operators.

Carson noted the tax‑compliance provision will be most effective when the Utah State Tax Commission deploys better technology to allow site‑level remittance rather than bulk remittance; he said the commission has an RFP to improve enforcement of tourism taxes.

Why it matters: Municipalities said the changes provide practical enforcement and tax‑collection tools — a business‑license flag on listings and the ability to request removal of illegal listings — while giving cities flexibility to allow rentals in designated zones. League staff recommended a position of support and will follow up with tourism and property management stakeholders as the bill progresses.