SUBMITTAL TO THE BOARD OF SUPERVISORS
COUNTY OF RIVERSIDE, STATE OF CALIFORNIA
FROM: Supervisors Benoit and Washington SUBMITTAL DATE:
January 6, 2016
SUBJECT: Re-introduction of Ordinance No. 927 Regulating Short Term Rentals, CEDA Exempt RECOMMENDED MOTION: That the Board of Supervisors:
1. Find that the re-introduction and adoption of Ordinance No. 927, attached hereto as Attachment A, is exempt from CEQA pursuant to Public Resources Code section 21080(b)(8) and CEQA FORM APPROVE COUNTY COUNSE /16 PRIAMOS Guidelines section 15273 because it entails the establishment, modification, structuring, restructuring of charges by public agencies that are not designed to increase services or expand a system and are designed to meet operating expenses; and
2. Re-introduce, waive reading of, and adopt on successive weeks Ordinance No. 927, an Ordinance of the County of Riverside Regulating Short-Term Rentals.
BACKGROUND:
On November 17, 2015, the Board introduced Ordinance No. 927 Regulating Short-Term Rentals (Item 3- 28).
The purpose of this ordinance is to establish regulations for the use of privately owned residential dwellings as short-term rentals to minimize the negative secondary effects on surrounding properties and to ensure the collection and payment of transient occupancy taxes.
Per counsel recommendation, Ordinance 927 is being re-introduced because revised language includes changes not discussed initially.
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Chuck Wat
enor
Fourth District Supervisor Chuck Washington, Third District Supervisor Prev. Agn. Ref.: 3-28, 11/17/15 District: ALL Agenda Number: 3-3 RE: Adoption of Ordinance 927 Regulating Short Term Rentals Date: January 6, 2016
Summary
There are nearly 300 short-term rentals publicly advertised on VRBO.com and Airbnb.com in unincorporated areas of Riverside County. Most of these rentals are clustered in the areas of Idyllwild, Wine Country and Bermuda Dunes.
Growth in the short-term rental market is being driven by ample supply and demand. Travelers are increasingly opting to stay in private residences while on business or vacation. Homeowners (and sometimes renters) have found it profitable to offer their homes - either in part or in whole - for rent on a short-term basis at rates that rival those of traditional hotels. A cursory search of the above mentioned sites show some homes and condos renting for less than $70 a night. On the high end, large lot estates may be booked for more than $3,000 a night.
Unregulated short-term rental homes have disrupted some neighborhoods with renters generating excessive noise, disorderly conduct, traffic congestion, illegal vehicle parking and accumulation of trash. These issues have been especially pronounced in tourist areas.
In response to citizen complaints, many cities and counties in the state have developed a system of regulation to control the impact of short-term rentals. Regulation is more advantageous than an outright ban because short-term rentals support the tourism industry, promote economic activity and can generate transient occupancy tax (TOT) revenue. (Collecting TOT is an important step in leveling the playing field between short-term rental operators and traditional hotel and rental operators.) The goal is to preserve peace and quiet for all residents, allow those residents who desire to rent their home on a short-term basis to do so and to create another product for travelers to enjoy our county and support our economy.
Cities in the Coachella Valley have been on the forefront of regulating short-term rentals and provide proven principles for running an effective short-term rental program. Some cities and counties struggle to control short-term rentals, even when they have regulations in place. The City of Anaheim serves as a case study. Despite having the typical rules on the books - quiet hours, maximum occupancies, etc. - the City has faced growing citizen complaints and adopted a moratorium to reanalyze its program.
The problem was not the regulations, but compliance. Of the 400 homes publicly advertised online, only 200 were registered with the City and abiding by the rules.
Cities in the Coachella Valley have adopted a highly successful, aggressive and cost-efficient enforcement program to identify and register short-term rentals. Although each city has different regulations, most of them utilize the services of an independent contractor to ensure compliance Similarly, all the cities in the Coachella Valley utilize a vendor to provide a single hotline to report complaints related to short-term rentals. This central hotline reduces the burden on cities by being the first point of contact for complaints 24/7 and dispatching responsible parties to resolve the concerns. A report of complaints is generated and forwarded to the cities on the next business day for follow up.
The short-term rental industry is growing exponentially throughout the country. The problem has become particularly acute in the Fourth District where investors have targeted the unincorporated community of Bermuda Dunes and advertise the homes there as being in Palm Springs, Rancho Mirage and Indian Wells while not following any of the regulations in effect in those cities. As mentioned earlier, short-term rentals also are in Wine Country, Idyllwild and potentially other unincorporated county areas.
The proposed ordinance regulates short-term rentals in unincorporated Riverside County. Attachment B shows how our proposed ordinance compares to ordinances in other cities and counties. (Continued on next page)
RE: Adoption of Ordinance 927 Regulating Short Term Rentals Date: January 6, 2016
Based on the demonstrated track record of success in the Coachella Valley, we are recommending that the county follow the lead of those cities in addressing these issues. In addition to the regulations in the attached ordinance, we propose going out to bid to retain a contractor to help the county implement the program and ensure compliance. We propose the contractor work with the Planning Department to develop and process applications, maintain a list of operators and actively register short-term rentals.
The county will benefit from the professional services of a firm experienced in short-term rental regulation.
Our expectation is that this system of regulation will protect residents and help reduce the burden on county staff. The experience of others is that most responsible parties resolve any differences or misunderstandings quickly with the assistance of the contractor. The County has insufficient staff to implement and operate the Short-Term Rental Ordinance, and County staff will get involved only if the responsible person fails to correct the problem or issues persist.
Ordinance No. 927 is exempt from the California Environmental Quality Act (CEQA) pursuant to Public Resources Code section 21080(b)(8) and CEQA Guidelines section 15273 because CEQA does not apply to the establishment, modification, structuring, restructuring, or approval of rates, tolls, fares, or other charges by public agencies that are not designed to increase services or expand a system and because the purpose of the fees is to meet operating expenses.
Transiency Occupancy Tax
The proposed Short-Term Rental Ordinance does not propose a change to Ordinance No. 495 Relating to Transient Occupancy Tax (TOT Ordinance). The TOT Ordinance imposes a 10% tax on hotel stays in unincorporated areas of Riverside County. The TOT Ordinance defines "Hotel" as "any structure, or any portion of any structure, which is occupied or intended or designed for occupancy by transients for dwelling, lodging, or sleeping purposes." Ordinance No. 927 Section 9 specifically recognizes that a Short-Term Rental qualifies as a hotel under the existing TOT Ordinance. Therefore, short-term rentals are sufficiently covered by the existing TOT Ordinance.
TOT revenue will go to the county's general fund. Such revenues cannot be earmarked and dedicated to enforcing the proposed ordinance. However, even with the contractor, we anticipate some additional workload for Code Enforcement. We ask that Code Enforcement track all costs related to this ordinance with the anticipation that additional costs may be addressed through the budget process.
Registration Fee
Application fees vary widely from jurisdiction to jurisdiction. A comparison of these costs can be found in Attachment B. Registration fees should cover the cost of rental registration. The proposed ordinance proposes a $250 registration fee and a $100 renewal registration fee. Theses fee will cover the cost of processing permits and notifying nearby neighbors. Our intent is to only charge rental operators the cost of registering their short-term rental.
Contractor/Consultant
Many of the cities in the Coachella Valley have retained a contractor to assist in implementing and operating their short-term rental programs. Some cities contract out their entire program while others contract out specific functions. As part of the introduction of Ordinance No. 927, bids were solicited and at least one response was received. Purchasing will be conducting a bid review to determine responsiveness.
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RE: Adoption of Ordinance 927 Regulating Short Term Rentals Date: January 6, 2016
Revisions
This revised ordinance makes the following changes, along with some minor wording and organizational adjustments, pursuant to Board direction:
1. Eliminate Occupancy Limits
During the introduction of the ordinance, a couple of short-term rental operators requested a higher occupancy limit than was originally proposed. Existing state and federal laws already place limits on residential occupancy. Operators will be subject to these existing occupancy limits.
The revised proposal eliminates the more restrictive occupancy limits set forth in the prior version of Ordinance No. 927. This change is consistent with the intent of not creating a burdensome system of regulation.
Further, a review of short-term rental ads online found that most owners already place occupancy limits on their own properties. The removal of this provision will continue to allow owners to determine how many occupants they are willing and able to allow within the existing laws.
2. Allow On-Street Parking in Idyllwild and Pine Cove Areas This revised ordinance includes an exemption to allow on-street parking in the mountain communities of Idyllwild and Pine Cove because of the lack of adequate space for on-site parking. This change is supportable because short-term rentals already are operating in the area, and parking is not a prominent complaint.
However, residents complain that parking is an issue in areas with larger homes and lots that can accommodate more people. Residents in the La Cresta area wrote letters to the County stating that on-street parking for rentals in that area restrict access to their homes and create safety concerns. The on-site parking requirement will remain for La Cresta and all other unincorporated areas of the County.
3. Clarify Impacts on Deed Restrictions, Including CC&Rs Section 8 now clarifies that the ordinance will not allow short-term rentals on properties where they are now forbidden pursuant to an applicable deed restriction. Such deed restrictions may include private covenants, conditions and restrictions.
Attachments
A. Ordinance No. 927 as revised and reintroduced
B. Comparison Chart
1 ORDINANCE NO. 927
2 3 AN ORDINANCE OF THE COUNTY OF RIVERSIDE
4 REGULATING SHORT TERM RENTALS
5 6 The Board of Supervisors of the County of Riverside ordains as follows:
7 Section 1. FINDINGS. The Board of Supervisors finds that there has been an increase 8 in privately owned residential dwellings being used as short term rentals in the County of Riverside. 9 While short term rentals provide a benefit to the County by expanding the number and type of lodging 10 facilities, the alarming increase has caused adverse impacts to surrounding neighbors and properties 11 including excessive noise, disorderly conduct, traffic congestion, illegal vehicle parking and accumulation 12 of refuse. This ordinance is necessary to ensure neighborhood compatibility, to facilitate economic 13 growth within the County and to protect the health, safety and general welfare of the County's residents. 14 Section 2. PURPOSE. The purpose of this ordinance is to establish regulations for 15 the use of privately owned residential dwellings as short term rentals to minimize the negative secondary 16 effects on surrounding properties and to ensure the collection and payment of transient occupancy taxes. 17 Section 3. AUTHORITY. In accordance with the California Constitution, Article XI, 18 Section 7, a county may make and enforce within its limits all local, police, sanitary and other ordinances 19 and regulations not in conflict with general laws.
20 Section 4. DEFINITIONS. As used in this ordinance, the following terms shall have 21 the following meanings:
22 A. County. The County of Riverside.
23 B. Good Neighbor Brochure. A brochure, available from the County, to be given to guests, which includes a summary of the County's regulations relating to short term rentals.
C. Guest. The overnight occupants renting the short term rental for a specified period and the daytime visitors of the overnight occupants. 1 1 D. Local Contact Person. The person designated by the owner or the owner's 2 authorized representative who shall be available twenty-four hours per day, 3 seven days per week for the purpose of responding within sixty minutes to 4 complaints related to the short term rental and taking remedial action to 5 resolve such complaints.
6 E. Operator. The owner or the owner's authorized representative who is responsible for compliance with this ordinance.
8 F. Owner. The person or entity that holds legal or equitable title to the short 9 term rental.
10 G. Responsible Person. A guest of the short term rental who is at least eighteen 11 years of age and who is legally responsible for ensuring that all guests of the 12 short term rental comply with all applicable laws, rules and regulations 13 pertaining to the use and occupancy of the short term rental. 14 H. Short Term Rental Certificate. A certificate that allows the use of a privately 15 owned residential dwelling as a short term rental pursuant to this ordinance. 16 I. Short Term Rental. A privately owned residential dwelling, such as, but not 17 limited to, a single family detached or multiple family attached dwelling, 18 apartment house, condominium, cooperative apartment, duplex, mobile home 19 on permanent foundations or a manufactured home on permanent 20 foundations, or any portion of such dwellings, rented for occupancy for 21 dwelling, lodging or sleeping purposes for any period less than thirty 22 consecutive days.
23 Section 5. APPLICABILITY. This ordinance applies to short term rentals as defined 24 in Section 4. The following do not qualify as a privately owned residential dwelling as used herein, and 25 therefore do not need to obtain a short term rental certificate: any hotel, motel, studio hotel, rooming 26 house, dormitory, public or private club, bed and breakfast inn, cottage inn, or country inn; a camping 27 site, recreational vehicle, or park model; a hospital, sanitarium, medical clinic, convalescent home, rest 28 2
1 home, home for aged people, foster home, halfway house, transitional housing facility, or other similar facility operated for the care, treatment, or reintegration into society of human beings; any asylum, jail, 3 prison, orphanage or other facility in which human beings are detained and housed under legal restraint; 4 any housing owned or controlled by an educational institution and used exclusively to house students, 5 faculty or other employees with or without their families, any fraternity or sorority house or similar facility occupied exclusively by students and employees of such educational institutions and officially 7 recognized and approved by it; any housing operated or used exclusively for religious, charitable or 8 educational purposes; any housing owned by a governmental agency and used to house its employees or 9 for governmental purposes; any camp as defined in the Labor Code or other housing furnished by an 10 employer exclusively for employees or employees and their families; and any second unit. No guest 11 quarters, as defined in Riverside County Ordinance No. 348 section 18.18, shall qualify as a short-term 12 rental unless the privately owned residential dwelling on the lot is also being rented or leased as a short- term rental to the same renter or lessee.
14 Section 6. SHORT TERM RENTAL CERTIFICATE.
15 A. In addition to any land use entitlement required by Riverside County 16 Ordinance No. 348, the operator shall obtain a short term rental certificate 17 pursuant to Sections 6 and 7 herein from the Riverside County Planning 18 Department before renting or advertising for rent any short term rental. 19 B. No short term rental certificate is required if a Temporary Outdoor Event 20 permit has been obtained, for the duration of the Temporary Outdoor Event 21 permit only.
22 Section 7. SHORT TERM RENTAL CERTIFICATE REGISTRATION FEE AND 23 APPLICATION.
24 A. An operator shall submit to the Planning Department a short term rental 25 certificate application provided by the County along with a first-time 26 registration fee of $250. The short term rental certificate shall be valid for 27 one year from the date of issuance.
28 3
1 B. A short term rental certificate shall be renewed on an annual basis based on 2 the anniversary of the original certificate issuance by submitting to the 3 Planning Director a short term rental certificate application and a renewal 4 registration fee of $100.
5 C. The short term rental certificate shall expire automatically when the short 6 term rental changes ownership, and a new initial application and first-time registration fee will be required. A new application and first-time registration 8 fee shall also be required for any short term rental that had its short term 9 rental certificate revoked or suspended.
10 D. The registration fees may be used to cover any County costs for administering or enforcing this ordinance, including the use of an outside management 12 company retained for such purpose.
13 Section 8. SHORT TERM RENTAL OPERATIONAL REQUIREMENTS. 14 A. The operator shall ensure that the short term rental is used in a manner that 15 complies with all applicable laws, rules and regulations pertaining to the use 16 and occupancy of a short term rental.
17 B. The short term rental shall be occupied for not less than two (2) days and one 18 (1) night.
19 C. A short term rental shall not change the residential character of the outside 20 appearance of the residence including color, material, lighting or any advertising mechanism.
22 D. Except within the Village Tourist Policy Area of Idyllwild/Pine Cove as 23 defined in the General Plan as may be amended from time to time, all parking 24 for the short term rental shall be entirely on-site, such as in the garage, carport 25 or driveway or otherwise off of the public roadway, and on-street parking by 26 guests is prohibited. The on-site parking requirements of this ordinance shall 27 not apply within the Village Tourist Policy Area of Idyllwild/Pine Cove. 28 4
1 E. Guests of the short term rental shall comply with Riverside County Ordinance 2 No. 847 Regulating Noise, including quiet hours between the hours of 10 PM 3 and 7 AM.
4 F. The operator shall post the following information in a prominent location 5 within the short term rental:
6 1. Operator name and number;
7 2. Local contact person name and number;
8 3. The telephone number for the sheriff's department and for code 9 enforcement;
10 4. The maximum number of parking spaces available onsite;
5. Trash pick-up day and applicable rules and regulations; 12 6. A copy of Riverside County Ordinance Nos. 847 and 927; 13 7. A copy of the good neighbor brochure; and
14 8. Notification that a guest, local contact person, responsible person or 15 owner may be cited or fined by the County in accordance with this 16 ordinance and Riverside County Ordinance No. 725.
17 G. While a short term rental is rented, the operator or local contact person shall 18 be available twenty-four hours per day, seven days a week for the purpose of 19 responding within sixty (60) minutes to complaints regarding the condition, 20 operation or guests' conduct of the short term rental. 21 H. Prior to occupancy of a short term rental, the operator shall do the following:
22 1. Obtain the name, address and copy of a valid government identification 23 of the responsible person;
24 2. Provide a copy of the good neighbor brochure to the responsible person; 25 3. Require the responsible person to execute a formal acknowledgement 26 that he or she is legally responsible for compliance by all guests of the 27 28
5 1 short term rental with all applicable laws, rules and regulations 2 pertaining to the use and occupancy of the short term rental; and 3 4. Maintain the information required herein, including copies of the 4 notices provided, for a period of three (3) years and make it available 5 upon request by any officer of the County responsible for enforcement 6 of any provision of this ordinance or any other applicable law, rule or 7 regulation pertaining to the use and occupancy of the short term rental. 8 I. The owner, operator or local contact person shall respond within sixty (60) 9 minutes of being notified that the responsible person or guest of the short 10 term rental created unreasonable noise, engaged in disorderly conduct or 11 committed violations of any applicable law, rule or regulation and halt or 12 prevent the recurrence of such conduct. The owner, operator or local contact 13 person shall be subject to all administrative, legal and equitable remedies 14 available to the County for failing to respond within 60 minutes. 15 Trash and refuse shall not be left stored within public view, except in proper 16 containers for purposes of collection by the County's authorized waste hauler. 17 K. The operator shall include the current short term rental certificate number on 18 or in any advertisement appearing in any newspaper, magazine, brochure or 19 internet website that promotes the availability of the short term rental. 20 An application may be denied if the applicant has had a prior short term rental 21 certificate revoked for the same dwelling within the past twelve calendar 22 months.
23 M. Pursuant to this ordinance, a short term rental may operate in all zoning 24 classifications where one-family dwellings or multiple family dwellings are 25 allowed pursuant to Ordinance No. 348. If there is a deed restriction on a 26 property that prohibits the use of a residential dwelling as a short-term rental, 27 28
6 1 then that deed restriction shall control. The County shall not enforce said 2 deed restriction.
3 Section 9. TRANSIENT OCCUPANCY TAX. The operator shall comply with all the 4 requirements of Riverside County Ordinance No. 495, the Uniform Transient Occupancy Tax Ordinance. 5 For the purposes of Riverside County Ordinance No. 495 only, a short term rental shall quality as a 6 "hotel." The Treasurer Tax-Collector shall be responsible for the enforcement of the provisions of this 7 section and Ordinance No. 495 and shall have no other enforcement duties related to this ordinance 8 beyond these responsibilities.
9 Section 10. NOTIFICATION AND COMPLAINTS.
10 A. Written notice will be provided to all dwellings located within 100 feet of the 11 short term rental's property line that a short term rental certificate was 12 obtained for the short term rental. Such notification shall also include the operator's and local contact person's contact information. 14 B. Complaints related to the operation of the short term rental including, but not limited to, unreasonable noise and disorderly conduct shall be initially directed to the local contact person. If the local contact person is unavailable 17 or fails to respond, the complaint shall be made to the Riverside County 18 Sheriff dispatch service.
19 C. Complaints related to the issuance of a short term rental certification and 20 compliance with this ordinance shall be directed to the Riverside County 21 Code Enforcement Department.
22 Section 11. ENFORCEMENT, VIOLATIONS, FINES AND PENALTIES. 23 A. In addition to any other remedies provided by law, violations of this 24 ordinance shall be enforced as authorized in Riverside County Ordinance No. 25 725. Each day a violation is committed or permitted to continue shall 26 constitute a separate offense. Violations of this ordinance shall be treated as a 27 public nuisance and strict liability offense regardless of intent. 28 7
1 After an administrative hearing has been held in accordance with Section 10 of Riverside 2 County Ordinance No. 725, a violation of any provision of this ordinance by any of the guests, owners or 3 operators shall constitute grounds to suspend or revoke a short term rental certificate. 4 Section 12. SEVERABILITY. If any provision, clause, sentence or paragraph of 5 this ordinance of the application thereof to any person or circumstances shall be held invalid, such 6 invalidity shall not affect the other provisions of this ordinance which can be given effect without the invalid provision or application, and to this end, the provisions of this ordinance are hereby declared to be 8 severable.
9 Section 13. EFFECTIVE DATE. This ordinance shall take effect thirty (30) days 10 after its adoption.
BOARD OF SUPERVISORS OF THE COUNTY
12 OF RIVERSIDE, STATE OF CALIFORNIA
13 By:
14 Chairman, Board of Supervisors
15 ATTEST:
CLERK OF THE BOARD
16 By:
17 Deputy
18 19
(SEAL)
20 21 APPROVED AS TO FORM
22 January 7, 2016
23 By:
24 MELISSA R. CUSHMAN
Deputy County Counsel
25 26
27 28
Attachment B
Ordinance Provision County of Riverside County of Sonoma County of San Bernardino City of Palm Springs Santa Cruz County City of Rancho Mirage Max Stay 30 consecutive days or less 30 consecutive days or less 30 consecutive days or less 28 consecutive days or less 27 consecutive days or less Vacation Rental Permit
guest rooms or less require
Short Term Rental i permit while larger rentals Special use Permit renewed Vacation Rental Registration (valid as long as operated as Vacation Rental Certificate Permit required Certificate on biennial basis Certificate require a CUP
Maximum of 5 guestrooms. One person per 100 square hat pemited by Briding Maximum number of More than 5 allowed with feet of building area, not to 7 permitted bedrooms guestrooms adequate sewage capacity exceed number of beds nd Fire Codes Allowed zones Ag and residential zones Mountain Region All residential zones Overnight guests 12 maximum 2 persons per bedroom 2 persons per bedroom + 2 14 total occupants Daytime guests 18 adults Overnight occupancy + 50% Double Daytime Occupancy 18 total occupants 2 spaces, larger rentals must Entirely on site
Parking requirements Entirely on site show adequate parking One space per bedroom Trash and refuse shall not be Occupancy limited to septic Must provide trash Trash and refuse shall not be Trash/Sewage management plan left stored within public view left stored within public view
Quiet hours 10 pm to 7 am 10pm to 9 am 10 pm to 8 am 10pm and 10am Must comply with Fire, Must comply with Fire, Must comply with Fire, Code requirements Building, and Health and Building, and Health and Building, and Health an Safety Codes Safety Codes Safety Codes
Contact information
Initial complaints to contact Initial complaints to contact Initial complaints to contact A violation of the Code is Enforcement person then Code person then Code person then Code Enforcement Enforcement Enforcement considered a public nuisance Notification Residents within 100' radius Residents within 100' radius Contiguous property owners Owners within 300' radius Owners within 300' radius TOT Yes, 10% Yes, 9% No Yes, 11.25% Yes, 11% Yes, 10%
Permit required for Permit required for
Special events Temporary Event Permit gatherings that exceeding gatherings that exceeding (Ord. 348) maximum occupancy maximum occupancy
5250 (initial) S100 (renewal) 5295; 5+ bedrooms require $671 (initial); $433 $225 $131 Fees CUP (starts at $887) (renewal) $441 (initial), $289 (renewal)