VAR Monitoring Proposed Short Term Rental Legislation

The VAR Government Affairs teams has been monitoring three draft bills that aim to better regulate Vermont’s short term rental industry. The bills are currently under consideration by the Vermont legislature and are not yet law.

Short term rental operators are currently regulated by the Department of Taxes who received this authority in 2016.    They are required to remit rooms and meals tax to the state and to certify that they meet health and safety codes.  The claim that short term rentals are “unregulated” is not accurate. 

The Vermont Legislature has historically been interested in creating a “rental registry” to identify both long and short-term rental properties in the state.  This will be a key component to any bill developed during this legislative session.

Much of a rental registry bill was contemplated in the previous legislative session but did not make it through the House and Senate to become law.  However, this language has become the basis for two new bills, H.256 in the House and S.79 in the Senate.  Both bills have similar language requiring long and short-term rental operators to register with the state Agency of Housing and Community Development.  In addition, both bills would move inspection and enforcement to the Division of Fire and Safety.

VAR has attended hearings in the House and Senate and can report that both committees considering these respective bills expect the Senate version to move forward.  Once the work in the Senate is completed, the bill will be considered by the House.  If both bodies agree with the final proposed language then the bill can be sent to the governor for signature and enactment into law with an effective date of January 1, 2022.

There is another short-term rental bill that has been introduced in the House that has caused significant concern for the short-term rental community.  H.200 would require short term rental operators to occupy a property for 270 days per year to be allowed to rent that property on a short-term basis.  This bill would effectively remove all non-homestead properties from the short-term rental marketplace. 

This bill was introduced in the House Committee on General, Housing and Military Affairs however no further action has taken place on this bill at this point in time.  It is our expectation that the Senate bill S.79 is the bill that will more forward.  At the same time, we are in the first year of a biennium legislative cycle and any bill introduced can be taken up through the end of the 2022 legislative session. 

The VAR Government Affairs Committee has debated all of these bills and has approved a position to oppose to H.200 and to be generally supportive of S.79.  VAR is prepared to testify on any of the bills discussed and will continue to monitor the legislature and keep our membership informed.

For information, contact:
Peter Tucker
VAR Director of Advocacy and Public Affairs
peter@vermontrealtors.com