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Legislature adopts Local Law C to clarify short-term rentals, adds $125 registration fee
Summary
Tompkins County adopted Local Law C of 2025 to modify the hotel room occupancy tax code, clarify short-term rental definitions, add a two-year $125 registration fee per unit, and formalize enforcement through operator attestation and local code enforcement; the law passed unanimously.
The Tompkins County Legislature voted unanimously to adopt Local Law C of 2025, which amends the county's hotel room occupancy tax framework to add definitions for short-term rentals, require registration and strengthen enforcement language. Legislator Greg Mezey moved the measure and Veronica (Pillar) seconded; the motion passed unanimously.
Staff from the planning department said the law includes a $125 registration fee per short-term rental unit, with registrations covering two years. Planning staff explained: "The law states that's $125 per unit. That's a 2 year registration. So, we would see that effectively over a 2 year span." The local change also aligns with a statewide sales-tax change that has already made short-term rentals subject to sales tax since March; planning staff noted the sales-tax change is separate from the local law but relevant to revenue projections in the county budget.
On enforcement, the county emphasized an operator self-attestation model: operators must self-identify and attest they meet safety requirements, and complaints or violations would be handled in coordination with local code-enforcement offices. County staff told legislators that follow-up and complaint-driven enforcement will be the primary means of addressing safety concerns rather than routine county inspections.
