2020 -- H 7776

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     STATE OF RHODE ISLAND

IN GENERAL ASSEMBLY

JANUARY SESSION, A.D. 2020

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A N   A C T

RELATING TO STATE AFFAIRS AND GOVERNMENT -- TOURISM AND

DEVELOPMENT

     

     Introduced By: Representatives Carson, Vella-Wilkinson, and Ruggiero

     Date Introduced: February 26, 2020

     Referred To: House Corporations

     It is enacted by the General Assembly as follows:

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     SECTION 1. Section 42-63.1-14 of the General Laws in Chapter 42-63.1 entitled "Tourism

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and Development" is hereby amended to read as follows:

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     42-63.1-14. Offering residential units through a hosting platform.

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     (a) For any residential unit rental property offered for tourist or transient use on a hosting

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platform that collects and remits applicable sales and hotel taxes in compliance with § 44-18-

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7.3(b)(4)(i), §§ 44-18-18, and § 44-18-36.1, cities, towns or municipalities shall not prohibit the

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owner of such residential unit from offering the unit for tourist or transient use through such hosting

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platform, or prohibit such hosting platform from providing a person or entity the means to rent, pay

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for or otherwise reserve a residential unit for tourist or transient use. A hosting platform shall

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comply with the requirement imposed upon room resellers in § 44-18-7.3(b)(4)(i) and § 44-18-36.1

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in order for the prohibition of this section to apply. The division of taxation shall at the request of

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a city, town, or municipality confirm whether a hosting platform is registered in compliance with

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§ 44-18-7.3(b)(4)(i).

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     (b) Any third-party hosting platform that conducts business in Rhode Island and lists any

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short-term rental Rhode Island property on their website for rent shall only list those properties that

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are registered with the department of business regulation. The registration shall provide the

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information necessary to identify the property pursuant to subsection (d) of this section. For

 

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purposes of this section, the term "short-term rental" means a person, firm, or corporation's

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utilization, for transient lodging accommodations, not to exceed thirty (30) nights at a time.

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     (c) The department of business regulation shall contact all hosting platforms who list

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property in Rhode Island on their website for rent and who submit hotel taxes to the division of

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taxation and the city of Newport and shall provide notice of the registration requirement, pursuant

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to this section, instructing the hosting platforms to notify their listed properties to register with the

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department of business regulation by December 31, 2020 or be subject to fines pursuant to § 42-

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63.1-14.1.

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     (d) The state registration pursuant to this section shall include:

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     (1) The name and primary residential address of the owner of the property;

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     (2) The principal place of business of the owner, or if outside the state, the agent for service

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of process or property manager for the owner;

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     (3) The phone number of the owner of the property and/or property manager;

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     (4) The email address of the property owner and/or property manager;

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     (5) The address of the rental property;

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     (6) The number of rooms for rent at the property;

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     (7) Whether the registrant rents or owns; and

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     (8) Intended use (entire space, private room or shared space).

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     (e) The assigned registration number shall consist of numeric and alpha characters, the

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alpha characters shall correspond to the city/town where the property is located and shall be uniform

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for the remaining properties in said city/town.

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     (f) The department of business regulation shall notify all hosting platforms to contact all

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listed properties by December 31, 2020, to ensure compliance with this section and if the listed

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properties are not duly registered after six (6) months, the hosting platform shall remove the

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property listing from its website.

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     (g) The department of business regulation shall promulgate rules and regulations to

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correspond with this section and may charge a registration fee to third-party hosting platforms

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registering with the department pursuant to this section.

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     (h) The department of business regulation shall create an online database to store all

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registered short-term rental units, and each unit shall have an online identification number in said

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database to correspond with subsection (e) of this section.

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     SECTION 2. Chapter 42-63.1 of the General Laws entitled "Tourism and Development" is

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hereby amended by adding thereto the following section:

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     42-63.1-14.1. Properties listed on hosting platform websites.

 

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     (a) Notwithstanding the provisions of § 42-63.1-14(a), a hosting platform shall not conduct

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business with a short-term rental unit if that unit has not registered with the department of business

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regulation. Any future property that is added to the hosting platform website for rent must first be

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registered with the department of business regulation before it appears on any website for rent.

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     (b) If a hosting platform lists an unregistered unit on its hosting platform website a fine to

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each unregistered property as follows:

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     (1) Two hundred fifty dollars ($250) for the first thirty (30) days of non-compliance;

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     (2) Five hundred dollars ($500) for between thirty-one (31) and sixty (60) days of non-

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compliance; and

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     (3) One thousand dollars ($1,000) for more than sixty (60) days of non-compliance.

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     SECTION 3. This act shall take effect upon passage.

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EXPLANATION

BY THE LEGISLATIVE COUNCIL

OF

A N   A C T

RELATING TO STATE AFFAIRS AND GOVERNMENT -- TOURISM AND

DEVELOPMENT

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     This act would require a third-party hosting platform to register each short-term rental unit

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listed for rent in the state with the department of business regulation. If a short-term rental is not

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registered a third-party hosting platform would not be able to conduct business in the state using

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such property(s). If a hosting platform lists an unregistered unit a fine would be imposed.

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Additionally, this act would require the department of business regulation to create a database to

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store all registered short-term rental units.

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     This act would take effect upon passage.

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