Mayor Adds Last-Minute Twist

After a year of public hearings and debate, Berkeley Mayor Tom Bates is proposing to change the Short Term Rentals law which Berkeley City Council passed on May 31. Every law in Berkeley must be voted on twice, and in between vote one and vote two, Berkeley leaders are appearing to waiver.

Berkeley City Council votes Thursday, July 7th at a special 5:30pm meeting.

Bates has introduced a proposed contract with Airbnb to collect tax for Berkeley if Berkeley does not compel Airbnb to share any data that might allow our city to enforce the law and protect our housing supply. This contract comes at the same time that Oakland has cut a similar deal, but while San Francisco is increasing fines and being sued by the corporate platform.

The new law is already a compromise which allows residents to rent their homes, or rooms in their homes, while continuing the (as yet unenforced) ban on rentals of empty homes. The reason that rentals of less than 14 days have been against the law in Berkeley is because such rentals allow an owner to get around tenant protections and rent control.

It is important that Berkeley Tenants who have not written to Council since May 31 send them a letter asking that they approve the second reading of the law which has gone through a long public process already. It is important that everyone read this ridiculous contract with Airbnb and let the Mayor know that he can’t give away our hard-won tenants rights as one of his last acts in office!

WE CANNOT ALLOW HOUSING TO BE CONVERTED TO HOTEL ROOMS

WE MUST REQUIRE LICENSE NUMBERS ON ADVERTISING

BERKELEY SHOULD NEVER SIGN A CONTRACT WITH AUDIT RESTRICTIONS

Proposed Berkeley Contract With Airbnb http://www.eastbayexpress.com/SevenDays/archives/2016/06/29/will-berkeley-cut-a-deal-with-airbnb-or-vote-to-regulate-short-term-rentals

The Contract Offer:
– Stays over 29 days in duration will not be subject to tax
– Berkeley waives all taxes not paid before contract date
– The Department of Finance will not directly or indirectly audit any Host
– Airbnb will not provide personally identifiable information regarding its Hosts
– Berkeley can audit Airbnb no more frequently than every four years
2016 STRs air bnb contract

NY TIMES: SF and NYC Crack Down on Illegal Hotels
“Airbnb sued San Francisco over a unanimous decision on June 7 by the city’s Board of Supervisors to fine the company $1,000 a day for every unregistered host on its service. If Airbnb does not comply, it could face misdemeanor charges. The suit follows a bipartisan move by New York lawmakers who voted this month to heavily fine anyone who uses Airbnb to rent a whole apartment for fewer than 30 days, a practice that has been illegal in the state since 2010.”
http://mobile.nytimes.com/2016/06/29/technology/airbnb-sues-san-francisco-over-a-law-it-had-helped-pass.html?referer=https://www.google.com/

Airbnb Sues San Francisco
The largest corporation making money off illegal hotels is suing the City of SF over their new policy of fining the hosting platform for listing illegal rentals.
http://fortune.com/2016/06/27/airbnb-san-francisco-lawsuit/

SF WANTED Posters for Illegal Hotel Operators
http://www.nbcbayarea.com/news/local/Wanted-Flyers-Across-Chinatown-Accuse-12-San-Francisco-Residents-of-Airbnbing-Our-Community-384774561.html

LA City Attorney Files Suit Over Illegal Hotels
“Given that shortage of affordable housing, illegally converting rental units to hotels or short-rentals has got to stop,” City Atty. Mike Feuer said at a news conference Monday. “My office is going to intervene to preserve rent-stabilized units and restore those units when we allege they’ve been unlawfully taken off the market.”
http://www.latimes.com/local/california/la-me-ln-landlords-illegal-rentals-20160620-snap-story.html