How to help local residents earn a buck
The interior of Rosanne Washington's studio apartment is pictured in Sea Cliff Monday, May 9, 2016. Washington uses Airbnb to rent out the studio, which is attached to her house. Credit: Barry Sloan
Regarding “Nassau IDA OKs incentives for hotel” [News, Oct. 24], a municipality that identifies a need for short-term lodging for travelers has two options:
1) Allow residents to host travelers in their homes, generating much-needed income for local families and businesses.
2) Give millions of taxpayer dollars to multinational corporations that siphon money away from the community.
For most New Yorkers, that’s a pretty easy choice, but not, apparently, for some officials on Long Island.
In July, the Town Board in Hempstead banned short-term rentals in unincorporated areas, despite the fact that local households rely on platforms like Airbnb to make ends meet.
Meanwhile, the Nassau County Industrial Development Agency is once again forgiving millions of dollars in tax payments by big companies — this time, Marriott — to build hotels in Garden City and Jericho.
Instead, elected officials and economic development directors in New York should promote responsible home sharing in their communities and support legislation in Albany, bill No. A-7520, that would allow platforms like Airbnb to collect and remit sales and hotel taxes directly to state and local governments.
That bill alone would generate $100 million a year, we estimate, with potentially millions more from collection of county-level taxes.
Josh Meltzer, Manhattan
Editor’s note: The writer is the head of New York public policy for Airbnb.
