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County plans to keep local short‑term rental occupancy tax processes while adopting software to detect noncompliant listings
Summary
Finance director outlined state changes requiring platforms to collect sales tax and options for local occupancy tax collection; county will maintain its registry approach and implement new software to find noncompliant short‑term rental listings.
Chautauqua County’s finance director briefed the Audit & Control Committee on Dec. 11 about recent state legislation that requires third‑party short‑term rental platforms to collect sales tax and provides counties with options for how local occupancy taxes are collected.
Katie Crowe told the committee the state now requires platforms such as Airbnb and VRBO to collect sales tax remitted to the state and creates two main paths for local occupancy tax: opt into the state’s registry/collection mechanism (which imposes reporting and re‑registration rules) or continue local registries and enforcement. Crowe said the county is a “covered jurisdiction” because it already has a local registry and voluntary collection agreements with some platforms and recommended maintaining the status quo rather than formally opting into the state system.
Crowe said the county is implementing new registry software (expected mid‑to‑late January) that harvests platform advertisements, uses GIS matching to locate addresses, and flags listings that are likely not registered with the county. The software will generate notices and allow staff to pursue registration or enforcement (including certified letters and, if necessary, liens). She said the tool covers multiple platforms and will improve the county’s ability to detect noncompliance. Committee members raised questions about properties rented off‑platform, re‑registration intervals, administrative fees and the county’s ability to collect back taxes; Crowe said back collection of state sales tax is handled by the state but the county will continue to enforce occupancy‑tax compliance and pursue remedies under local law.
Crowe said occupancy tax revenues fund tourism and lake/watershed projects (staff cited roughly $2 million per year in occupancy tax revenues countywide). No legislative action was requested at the meeting; Crowe said she expects to return early next year with suggested local law amendments to streamline administration and registration rules.
