Bill Text: CA AB3284 | 2019-2020 | Regular Session | Amended

California Assembly Bill 3284 (Prior Session Legislation)

Bill Title: Short-term rentals: business licenses: transient occupancy taxes.

Spectrum: Partisan Bill (Democrat 1-0)

Status: (Introduced - Dead) 2020-05-05 - Re-referred to Com. on L. GOV. [AB3284 Detail]

Download: California-2019-AB3284-Amended.html

Amended IN Assembly May 04, 2020

CALIFORNIA LEGISLATURE— 2019–2020 REGULAR SESSION

Assembly Bill

No. 3284

Introduced by Assembly Member Bauer-Kahan

February 21, 2020

An act to amend ~~Section 25242 of~~ Sections 16000 and 16100 of, and to add Sections 22598 and 22599 to, the Business and Professions Code, and to add Section 7283.2 to the Revenue and Taxation Code, relating to ~~alcoholic beverages.~~ short-term rentals.

LEGISLATIVE COUNSEL'S DIGEST

AB 3284, as amended, Bauer-Kahan. ~~Sonoma County wine.~~ Short-term rentals: business licenses: transient occupancy taxes.

(1) Existing law, subject to certain limitations, authorizes the legislative body of a city or the board of supervisors of a county to license any kind of business not prohibited by law transacted and carried on with the limits of the city’s or county’s jurisdiction and fix rates of a license fee, as provided. Existing law requires a hosting platform, as defined, to provide a specified notice to an offeror listing a residence for short-term rental on a hosting platform.
This bill would specify that the legislative body of a city or the board of supervisors of a county may, under the above-described authority, license and fix rates of a license fee for short-term rentals, as defined. If a city or county licenses short-term rentals under these provisions, the bill would require that the city or county post specified information on its internet website with respect to each licensee. The bill would require an offeror who lists a residence for short-term rental on a hosting platform, and who was required to obtain a license by a licensing county or city, to include the license number on that listing. The bill would impose on an offeror who violates this requirement a fine of up to $1,000, as determined by the licensing county or city, for each day that the residence is listed on a hosting platform without including the license number. The bill would require a hosting platform to provide, upon request of a licensing county or city, location information for each listing that is within the jurisdiction of the licensing county or city for the purpose of confirming the license number of listings within the jurisdiction of a licensing county or city.
The bill would also expressly authorize the legislative body of a city or the board of supervisors of a county to enact an ordinance or resolution that regulates a hosting platform in specified ways, including prohibiting the listing of short-term rentals that do not have a valid license from the city or county. The bill would specify that this authorization does not prohibit the legislative body of a city or the board of supervisors of a county from enacting any other regulation of a hosting platform that is consistent with its police power and not otherwise prohibited by law.
(2) Existing law authorizes the legislative body of a city or county to levy a tax on the privilege of occupying a room or other living space in a hotel, inn, tourist home or house, motel, or other lodging unless the occupancy is for a period of more than 30 days, as provided. Under existing law, a charter city, pursuant to its constitutional authority over municipal affairs, may levy local taxes to raise revenues for local purposes, subject to restrictions imposed by that city’s charter or preemption in matters of statewide concern.
This bill would require, on and after July 1, 2021, an operator of a hosting platform engaged in business in this state to collect any transient occupancy tax of a city, including a charter city, that is levied on the occupancy of a residential unit offered and reserved through the hosting platform.
This bill would require the operator to remit any transient occupancy taxes collected to the city in a form and manner as may be determined by the legislative body of the city and to include specified information with that remittance. This bill would provide that any transient occupancy tax collected by an operator constitutes a debt owed by the operator to the city that levied the transient occupancy tax.
The bill would include findings that changes proposed by this bill address a matter of statewide concern rather than a municipal affair and, therefore, apply to all cities, including charter cities.
Existing law, the Alcoholic Beverage Control Act, which is administered by the Department of Alcoholic Beverage Control, regulates the application for, and issuance and suspension of, alcoholic beverage licenses. The act prescribes restrictions on the packaging, labeling, and advertising of wine in connection with wine that qualifies under federal regulations for an appellation of origin, including, but not limited to, an appellation of origin that is either Sonoma County or a viticultural area lying entirely within Sonoma County, as specified.
~~This bill would make nonsubstantive changes to these provisions.~~

Vote: MAJORITY Appropriation: NO Fiscal Committee: NO Local Program: NO

The people of the State of California do enact as follows:

SECTION 1.

Section 16000 of the Business and Professions Code is amended to read:

16000.

(a) The legislative body of an incorporated city may, in the exercise of its police power, and for the purpose of regulation, as herein provided, and not otherwise, license any kind of business not prohibited by law transacted and carried on within the limits of its jurisdiction, including all shows, ~~exhibitions and~~ exhibitions, lawful games, and short-term rentals, and may fix the rates of the license fee and provide for its collection by suit or otherwise. Any legislative body, including the legislative body of a charter city, that fixes the rate of license fees pursuant to this subdivision upon a business operating both within and outside the legislative body’s taxing jurisdiction, shall levy the license fee so that the measure of the fee fairly reflects that proportion of the activity actually carried on within the taxing jurisdiction.

(b) No A license fee levied pursuant to subdivision (a) that is measured by the licensee’s income or gross receipts, whether levied by a charter or general law city, shall not apply to ~~any~~ either of the following:

(1) A nonprofit organization that is exempted from taxes by Chapter 4 (commencing with Section 23701) of Part 11 of Division 2 of the Revenue and Taxation Code or Subchapter F (commencing with Section 501) of Chapter 1 of Subtitle A of the Internal Revenue Code of 1986, or the successor of ~~either, or to any~~ either.

(2) Any minister, clergyman, Christian Science practitioner, rabbi, or priest of any religious organization that has been granted an exemption from federal income tax by the United States Commissioner of Internal Revenue as an organization described in Section 501(c)(3) of the Internal Revenue Code or a successor to that section.

(c) Before a city, including a charter city, issues a business license to a person to conduct business as a contractor, as defined in Section 7026, the city shall verify that the person is licensed by the Contractors’ State License Board.

(d) (1) For purposes of this section, “short-term rental” means a residential property that is rented to a visitor for fewer than 30 days through a centralized online platform whereby the rental is advertised and payments for the rental are securely processed.
(2) If the legislative body of a city licenses short-term rentals pursuant to this section, the city shall post the following information on its internet website with respect to each licensee:
(A) The name of the licensee.
(B) The address of the residential property to be rented.
(C) The license number.

SEC. 2.

Section 16100 of the Business and Professions Code is amended to read:

16100.

(a) The board of supervisors may in the exercise of its police powers, and for the purpose of regulation, as herein provided, and not otherwise, license any kind of business not prohibited by law, transacted and carried on within the limits of its jurisdiction, including all shows, exhibitions, ~~and~~ lawful games, and short-term rentals, and may fix the rate of the license fee and provide for its collection by suit or otherwise.

(b) No A license fee levied pursuant to subdivision (a) that is measured by the licensee’s income or gross receipts, whether levied by a charter or general law county, shall not apply to ~~any~~ either of the following:

(c) Before a county issues a business license to a person to conduct business as a contractor, as defined by Section 7026, the county shall verify that the person is licensed by the Contractors’ State License Board.

(d) (1) For purposes of this section, “short-term rental” means a residential property that is rented to a visitor for fewer than 30 days through a centralized online platform whereby the rental is advertised and payments for the rental are securely processed.
(2) If a county licenses short-term rentals pursuant to this section, the county shall post the following information on its internet website with respect to each licensee:
(A) The name of the licensee.
(B) The address of the residential property to be rented.
(C) The license number.

SEC. 3.

Section 22598 is added to the Business and Professions Code, to read:

22598.
(a) For purposes of this section, “licensing county or city” means a county or a city that, pursuant to Section 16000 or 16100, as applicable, licenses short-term rentals within its jurisdiction.
(b) (1) If an offeror lists a residence for short-term rental on a hosting platform, and the offeror was required to obtain a license by a licensing county or city, the offeror shall include the license number on that listing.
(2) An offeror who violates this subdivision shall be subject to a fine in an amount determined by the licensing county or city, not to exceed one thousand dollars ($1,000), for each day that the residence is listed on a hosting platform without including the license number. The licensing county or city shall collect any amount of fine imposed pursuant to this paragraph.
(c) The licensing county or city shall be responsible for confirming each license number listed by an offeror on a hosting platform. For the purpose of confirming the license number of listings within the jurisdiction of a licensing county or city, a hosting platform shall provide, upon request of a licensing county or city, location information for each listing that is within the jurisdiction of the licensing county or city.

SEC. 4.

Section 22599 is added to the Business and Professions Code, to read:

22599.
(a) In the exercise of its police power, the legislative body of a city or the board of supervisors of a county may enact an ordinance or resolution that does any or all of the following:
(1) Consistent with applicable constitutional limitations, require the hosting platform to regularly disclose listing and booking information to the city or county for the purpose of verifying that the use of a residential property complies with any applicable licensing or permitting requirement of the city or county.
(2) If the legislative body or board of supervisors has exercised its authority to license short-term rentals pursuant to Section 16000 or 16100, as applicable, prohibit the hosting platform from listing, and require the hosting platform to remove, any short-term rental that does not have a valid license from the city or county.
(3) Prohibit a hosting platform from collecting or receiving a fee for facilitating or providing services ancillary to the short-term rental of a residence.
(b) This section shall not be construed to prohibit the legislative body of a city or the board of supervisors of a county from enacting any other regulation of a hosting platform that is consistent with its police power and not otherwise prohibited by law.

SEC. 5.

Section 7283.2 is added to the Revenue and Taxation Code, to read:

7283.2.
(a) Notwithstanding any other law, on and after July 1, 2021, an operator of a hosting platform engaged in business in this state shall collect any transient occupancy tax of a city that is levied on the occupancy of a residential unit offered and reserved through the hosting platform.
(b) (1) The operator of a hosting platform engaged in business in this state shall remit any transient occupancy taxes collected to the city in a form and manner as may be determined by the legislative body of the city. When the hosting platform remits the taxes it shall also provide all of the following information related to the occupancy:
(A) The short-term rental permit, license, or registration number issued by the city of the offeror of the residential unit.
(B) The street address of the offeror of the residential unit.
(C) The name of the offeror of the residential unit.
(D) The number of guests, if available.
(E) The names of guests, if available.
(F) The length of occupancy by the guest for whom the transient occupancy taxes are remitted.
(2) Any transient occupancy tax collected by an operator of a hosting platform from a person, and any amount unreturned to a person who paid an amount in excess of the transient occupancy tax owed, but was collected from the person under the representation by the operator that it was owed as transient occupancy tax, constitutes a debt owed by the operator to the city that levied the transient occupancy tax.
(3) Any person subject to the transient occupancy tax or the offeror of the residential unit is liable for that tax until it has been paid to the operator, and that payment to the operator relieves the person or offeror from further liability for the tax.
(c) For purposes of this section, all of the following shall apply:
(1) “City” means any city, including a charter city.
(2) “Hosting platform” means a hosting platform as defined in Section 22590 of the Business and Professions Code.
(3) “Transient occupancy tax” means any tax levied by a legislative body of a city on the privilege of occupying a room or rooms, or other living space, in a hotel, inn, tourist home or house, motel, or other lodging for a period of 30 days or less.
(d) The Legislature finds and declares that ensuring the collection of transient occupancy taxes on short-term rentals listed on hosting platforms has a significant economic impact in this state and, therefore, is a matter of statewide concern and is not a municipal affair as that term is used in Section 5 of Article XI of the California Constitution. Therefore, this section applies to all cities, including charter cities.

SECTION 1.Section 25242 of the Business and Professions Code is amended to read:
25242.
(a)(1)The Legislature finds and declares that for more than a century, certain California counties have been widely recognized for producing grapes and wine of the highest quality. Both consumers and the wine industry associate the names of those counties with the distinctive wine produced from grapes grown within those counties. If producers were to use the names of these counties on labels, for packaging materials, and in advertising for wines that are not made from grapes grown in the designated counties, consumers may be confused or deceived by these practices.
(2)It is the intent of the Legislature to assure consumers that the wines produced or sold in the state with brand names, packaging materials, or advertising that mention or refer to these California counties, in fact accurately reflect the origin of the grapes used to make the referenced wine.
(b)(1)A wine produced, bottled, labeled, offered for sale or sold in California shall not use, in a brand name or otherwise, on any label, packaging material, or advertising, the name of viticultural significance listed in subdivision (c), unless that wine qualifies under Section 4.25 of Title 27 of the Code of Federal Regulations for an appellation of origin that is either Sonoma County or a viticultural area lying entirely within Sonoma County and includes that appellation of origin on the label, packaging material, and advertising for the wine.
~~(2)Notwithstanding paragraph (1), this subdivision shall not grant any labeling, packaging, or advertising rights that are prohibited under federal law or regulations.~~
~~(c)The following name is of viticultural significance for purposes of this section:~~
~~(1)Sonoma.~~
~~(2)Any similar name to that in paragraph (1) that is likely to cause confusion as to the origin of the wine.~~
(d)The appellation of origin required by this section shall meet the legibility and size-of-type requirements set forth in either Section 4.38 or Section 4.63 of Title 27 of the Code of Federal Regulations, whichever is applicable.
(e)Notwithstanding subdivision (b), any name of viticultural significance may appear either as part of the address required by Sections 4.35 and 4.62 of Title 27 of the Code of Federal Regulations, if it is also the post office address of the bottling or producing winery or of the permittee responsible for the advertising, or as part of any factual, nonmisleading statement as to the history or location of the winery.
(f)The department may suspend or revoke the license of any person who produces or bottles wine who violates this section. Following notice of violation to the person in possession of the wine and a hearing to be held within 15 days thereafter, if requested by any interested party within five days following the notice, the department may seize wine labeled or packaged in violation of this section regardless of where found, and may dispose of the wine upon order of the department. From the time of notice until the departmental determination, the wine shall not be sold or transferred.
~~(g)This section applies only to wine which is produced, bottled, or labeled after December 31, 2008.~~
~~(h)This section does not pertain to the use of a brand name, or otherwise, which was the name of the winery owner as established prior to 1950.~~