In Islamorada, annual licensing fees total $1,325. If approved, the bill could prevent local governments from charging more than $50 (if anything) to process an individual application. Just one example: although many cities charge a fee of $1,000 or more to register a vacation rental, providing a significant stream of revenue, Senate Bill 512 could strike a blow to the funds. “There’s almost constantly a bill at the state each year that would eliminate what we’ve got, rather than change it or make it better,” said Marathon city manager George Garrett. Campaign contributions from the deep pockets of companies like AirBNB and VRBO regularly put municipalities on defense. “The legislature has made it clear that if the village attempts to modify it in any way, it will be null and void totally.”Ĭities aren’t just fighting a losing battle to take back control of their own ordinances. “We have to fight every session to keep (our code),” said Islamorada councilman David Webb. If we place a cap on it, we lose our grandfather status.” “We’re grandfathered since 1997 with an ordinance. “It’s not in the county’s power,” Shillinger said. Therefore, explained Monroe County attorney Bob Shillinger, counties and cities can’t pass laws to cap or further regulate vacation rental permits.
But there’s a catch: any changes made to an existing ordinance instantly remove the grandfathering.
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