TESTIMONY NEEDED: Support Bill 85, the only bill that sensibly enforces vacation rentals

Tomorrow (Wed. 12/5), Honolulu City Council will be hearing several bills re: vacation rentals and monster homes.

Both issues are closely connected and have negative impacts on affordable housing. Vacation rentals take away what little affordable housing is left in Hawaii, renting it out short-term to tourists instead. Monster homes are often used as illegal vacation rentals.

We strongly support Bill 85 because we need strong enforcement of vacation rentals before we can open up a permitting process. A necessary part of this is holding platforms like Airbnb accountable and making sure they’re transparent with their data on their hosts and listings. The other vacation rental bills fall short of this.

SUBMIT TESTIMONY to support BILL 85 and oppose the other vacation rental bills using our email form below.

Our ally, HI Good Neighbor, recommends supporting all of the bills re: monster homes (see below). They have an email form that you can use to submit testimony supporting Bill 85, as well as the monster home bills (visit our website for details). You can submit testimony supporting Bills 79 CD1, 84, 85, and 91 using their email form.

Re: vacation rentals:

  • Bill 85 – SUPPORT
    • Requires platforms like Airbnb to file regular reports that will help with enforcement
    • Allows neighbors to take civil action against a neighbor who is violating vacation rental rules
    • Allocates money and all fines to go toward enforcement
  • Bill 86 – OPPOSE
  • Bill 87 – OPPOSE
  • Bill 88 – OPPOSE
  • Bill 89 (aka Mayor’s omnibus bill) – OPPOSE
  • Bill 90 – OPPOSE

Re: monster homes: (recommendations from HI Good Neighbor)

  • Bill 79 CD1 – SUPPORT
    • Will change our zoning laws to greatly limit monster apartment homes
    • Limits FAR/size of house, bathrooms, “wet bars” converted to illegal kitchens
    • Limits impervious surfaces to minimize flooding and other environmental impacts
  • Bill 84 – SUPPORT
    • Seeks to require payment of outstanding fines before permit issued
  • Bill 91 – SUPPORT
    • Provides enforcement tool by making it a misdemeanor for lying to an inspector/city official

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