2018-09-20 Leeward Exh B (Bill 108 re Short-term Vacation Rentals)

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YEE: During public testimony, or public meetings, on this bill I testified many times that this would have to come with more resources to Planning that would have to enforce most of this, clearly shared the experiences from the other counties and the amount of staffing it took for them. Some of, and it is unique in terms of this bill providing some avenues for a fund within it to help with enforcement, which is not typically how the County likes to do things, so it does show the importance of providing some resource. But we would certainly need more than just what’s provided within this bill to enforce. JACKSON: Okay, continuing on with the registration process. The bill requires that owners of short-term vacation rentals notify the Director of ownership changes or when a short-term vacation rental ceases to operate for any reason. But these provisions are under the “Registration of all short-term vacation rentals” section, so it’s not clear if they apply to short-term vacation rentals permitted via a nonconforming use certificate. So, again, if the Commission were to adopt that recommendation to require registration of all short-term vacation rentals, then that would resolve the issue. Any short-term vacation rental that is not registered within the required deadlines is considered unpermitted and subject to penalties, until the rental becomes properly registered and compliant with the requirements of the bill. So, nonconforming use certificate process, this is another section that’s being proposed within the bill. It allows for owners of existing short-term vacation rentals located outside of a permitted zoning district to apply for a nonconforming use certificate to the Director within 180 days of the effective date of the ordinance. The owner must provide evidence to prove that the rental was in operation prior to the effective date of the ordinance. Evidence can include tax documents, such as State general excise tax filings, transient accommodation tax filings, and federal and state income tax returns. Based on the evidence submitted, the Director shall determine whether to issue a nonconforming use certificate. And then if one is issued, then the current certificate must be displayed on the premises so that it’s clearly visible to the public and to planning inspectors. UNGER: I have a question there. JACKSON: Yes. UNGER: And it affects a minority of property owners, but what about the property owner who has just sold his property on the mainland, bought a lot over here with the intention of developing a short-term vacation rental, or the developer who has developed a subdivision, has put in the CC&Rs that they intend to allow short-term vacation rentals? At some point that needs to be addressed as far as being able to then apply for a nonconforming use certificate based on this proposed use. JACKSON: So the way the bill is designed now, it has a definite date of 180 days from the effective date of the ordinance that if the short-term vacation rental is not established by that point, I’m sorry, the adoption of the ordinance is the cut-off date, so if the short-term vacation rental is not established by the time the ordinance is adopted, then they could not apply for a nonconforming use certificate. 8 EXHIBIT B