HOLMES BEACH – Another bill in the Florida House of Representatives is proposed to undo local vacation rental regulations, pushing control to the state.
House Bill 105 is designed to preempt local restrictions on vacation rentals pertaining to sanitation standards, inspections, duration or frequency of rentals and any prohibitions of vacation rentals.
All local vacation rental ordinances that were in place on or before June 1, 2011 are exempt from the restrictions of the bill concerning the prohibition of vacation rentals and regulations regarding the frequency and duration of rentals.
In Holmes Beach, city leaders are concerned about the bill because it would effectively do away with the city’s vacation rental certificate ordinance and regulations, which were passed in 2016. Local governments would be able to require the owners and operators of vacation rentals to maintain the name of a designated contact and information for someone responsible for each unit.
Inspections related to enforcement of the Florida Fire Code would not be impacted, such as those planned by officials at West Manatee Fire Rescue to begin this fall to address potential life safety issues. Inspections of units related to the enforcement of the Florida Building Code would also be exempt.
City Attorney Erica Augello said the city’s lobbyist is working diligently to oppose the passage of the bill, which is currently in the state Regulatory Reform and Economic Development Subcommittee in the House. The House bill has also been referred to the Local Administration, Federal Affairs and Special Districts Subcommittee.
If the new bill passes in committees, it would need to make it through a vote on the Florida House floor before going to the Senate to go through the same approval process to reach Gov. Ron DeSantis’s desk for final approval before it becomes law. The bill states it would take effect on July 1. As of press time for The Sun, no vote had been recorded for the bill.
