Planning commission backs short-term rental ordinance changes, asks staff to refine reporting and penalty language

The Brookhaven Planning Commission voted to recommend that City Council adopt TA 25-04, a text amendment to chapter 27 of the municipal code that updates short-term rental rules and the responsibilities of third-party booking vendors.

Staff said management requested expanded language to clarify booking-service responsibilities and reporting. "Staff was requested by city management to update the short term rental ordinance with more language, and responsibilities for the third party vendors," the staff presenter said (Unidentified Speaker 4).

Commissioners focused on two issues in the draft: (1) a requirement that booking services prepare and submit a monthly report and (2) language saying the city may access reports or relevant records "in response to valid legal process." One commissioner summarized the report's required contents: "The report shall include the date of each stay, the number of guests, the cost for each day, including relevant taxes... The full legal name... the physical address, including any unit designation. The report shall be submitted on a monthly basis," (Unidentified Speaker 3).

Commissioners pressed staff on what "valid legal process" meant. Several participants clarified the city intended that if a booking service does not voluntarily provide records, the city would pursue legal remedies such as subpoena or other compulsory process to obtain them. "If they do not submit this report, then we will go through the legal process to obtain the report, and that would include the subpoena," one participant said (Unidentified Speaker 2). Staff confirmed the language came from model code language used elsewhere and that staff will seek further review from the city attorney before council consideration.

The draft also includes a civil penalty provision: if the booking service is not in compliance, it "shall be fined a thousand dollars per incident," a commissioner noted (Unidentified Speaker 3). Commissioners discussed whether the punitive measures should be targeted more heavily at booking services and less at individual hosts; staff noted the municipal code already allows enforcement up to $1,000 per day per violation through municipal court and that revocation of permits is a separate enforcement tool.

A motion to recommend TA 25-04 to the City Council carried with the condition that staff review subsection d (fine language) and subsection g (report access/valid legal process) and run proposed revisions by the city attorney; the motion was seconded. The commission recorded the motion and second and vocal assent; the transcript does not provide a complete roll-call tally.

Why it matters: The amendment would give the city more detailed information to verify tax remittance and identify noncompliant or illegally operating short-term rental units, and it clarifies enforcement options if booking services fail to provide required information.

Next steps: Staff said they will review the two subsections with the city attorney and incorporate any refinements as needed before City Council takes final action.