The special legislative commission studying the short-term rental industry’s economic and social effects will meet with regional tourism directors on Thursday, September 26, to discuss its pros and cons.
The commission was established to study the industry in 2023 as a result of legislation sponsored by Rep. Lauren Carson (D-Dist. 75, Newport).
The Special Legislative Commission to Review and Provide Recommendations for Policies that Deal with Numerous Economic and Social Short-Term Rentals Issues will meet at 2 p. in Room 135 on the first floor of the State House.
The commission will meet with regional tourism directors to discuss the pros and cons of short-term rentals, with presentations from Providence Warwick Convention & Visitors Bureau President and CEO Kristen Adamo and Block Island Tourism Council Executive Director Jessica Willi. The public is welcome to watch the meeting live on the Capitol Television channel 61 or streamed on the capitoltvri.cablecast.tv website.
The commission was created to review current and existing Rhode Island statutes related to short-term rentals, the Department of Business Regulation’s registration process, enforcement, and municipal vs. state regulation. The commission is also working to develop a working definition of “short-term rentals”, and to engage the public and community stakeholders including property owners, industry representatives, police and fire chiefs and zoning and planning officials for input. The commission aims to establish an understanding of the nature, extent, and scope of short-term rental activity, and to identify specific benefits, problems, or issues associated with short-term rentals and how they vary from neighborhood to neighborhood and municipality to municipality.
The commission will also consider the impact of short-term rentals on year-round and local housing markets and neighborhoods, health and safety concerns, and best practices in other states and communities.
Generative artificial intelligence (AI) assisted a What’sUpNewp journalist with the reporting included in this story.
