Montgomery County Councilmember Shebra Evans introduced legislation Tuesday aimed at increasing compliance with County licensing requirements for short-term residential rentals and recovering revenue lost through unlicensed rentals.
Bill 42-26 would require online rental platforms to verify that a property has a valid County license before listing it and prohibit platforms from processing payments for unlicensed rentals. The legislation would also establish penalties for noncompliance and require the County to provide an electronic license verification system.
Evans cited a Montgomery County Office of the Inspector General report that found more than 85 percent of short-term residential rentals reviewed were operating without a license. According to Evans, the OIG estimated that lost County revenue could approach $1 million annually…