AirBnB tells New Orleans new data sharing rules are unconstitutional

In a letter earlier this month, Airbnb told the city that new data-sharing requirements recently approved by the New Orleans City Council to crack down on illegal short-term rentals violate the U.S Constitution and the federal Stored Communications Act.

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The requirements, codified into law earlier this year as part of the most recent overhaul of New Orleans’ short-term rental rules, mandate that platforms like Airbnb and VRBO share data, like property addresses, with the city. The rules were specifically designed to crack down on illegal rentals, which can be difficult to identify because platforms do not list the exact locations of their customers’ properties on their websites. The company says the requirement amounts to an unconstitutional search.

The May 1 letter from “The Airbnb Team” said the company would be “willing to compromise with the City solely to avoid a dispute” and “work with the City on developing reasonable disclosure requirements.” It also included a suggested compromise with much more limited data sharing that would likely have a significant impact on the city’s ability to sniff out illegal rentals.

The letter did not explicitly say whether Airbnb is considering taking legal action against the city, although the company has sued other cities over similar disclosure requirements in the past. Airbnb provided a statement to Verite on Friday (May 19), but did not answer questions about how it will respond to the city’s new rules.

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