Arizona Lawmakers Ignore STR Regulation for 2024 Session

[Melanie Johnston]

STR owners across the state are breathing a sigh of relief as the Arizona Legislature "declined to consider" the issue of STR regulation during the current legislative session, according to a report in The Arizona Republic today.

"This year, a group of bipartisan residents was hoping the Legislature would return cities' power to limit the number of short-term rentals in an area and regulate the rentals in the same manner as hotels. Former Gov. Doug Ducey took that authority away in 2016, when he signed a law that prevented cities from banning short-term rentals and required them to treat short-term rentals the same as long-term rentals," The Republic reported.

"But Republican lawmakers declined to consider Republican Rep. Selina Bliss's proposal to limit short-term rentals in the Regulatory Affairs subcommittee this week, meaning it has no chance of advancing to Gov. Katie Hobbs' desk to be signed into law."

This was the most concerted effort to return greater regulatory power back to the cities. 

The article leads with what could happen as a result: "Furious Arizona voters are threatening to vote out Republicans after the Legislature declined to consider short-term rental regulations this session, dashing any hope they had for change in the immediate future."

What does this mean for STR operators? For now it's business as usual.

Major cities, including Phoenix, Scottsdale, Mesa, Sedona and others, have adopted their own STR rules and regulations, primarily requiring operators to register their rentals. Each city has its own laundry list of licensing requirements, but they have not had the power to limit the number of rentals or make other market-limiting moves.

This issue is likely to come up again. But if the effort that went into promoting it for inclusion in the 2024 legislative session was not successful, it makes you wonder about the issue's traction in the future.