Bill Protecting Short-Term Rentals, Airbnb Advances To Full Senate

A Senate committee advanced legislation that stops local governments from banning short-term rentals, such as Airbnb.

Some local communities regulate or prohibit short-term rentals; others are exploring ways to do so. But the proposed legislation would bar them from that, while establishing guidelines for short-term rentals. Those guidelines include a ban on renting more than 30 days in a row and 180 days total in a year.

Steve Shur is president of the Travel Technology Association, representing sites like Airbnb. He says people increasingly want to travel using short-term rentals.

“And if Indiana wants to be able to benefit from the travel and tourism economy, they need to be able to accommodate short-term rentals,” Shur says.

But Shannon Minnaar says the decision should be left to local governments. She’s from Carmel, which recently tried to prohibit short-term rentals.

“These people don’t live here. They don’t care about the special-needs kids at the top of the street. They speed in; they speed out. You know, people like that just don’t care about the fabric of our neighborhood,” Minnaar says.

The committee advanced the bill 7-2, sending it to the Senate floor.