The city of Prairie Village’s ongoing discussion about how to address short-term rentals, like AirBnbs and Vrbos, veered into new territory Tuesday, with the majority of the city council expressing interest in exploring the idea of imposing a transient guest tax on such properties. Previously, the city council had discussed new rules that would effectively ban short-term rentals in the city. But on Tuesday, the Prairie Village City Council directed city staff to research how much tax revenue existing short-term rental properties could generate for the city. Transient guest taxes are imposed by some Kansas municipalities on room rentals or lodging, but can only apply to dwellings with more than two bedrooms that are rented for 28 consecutive days or less, according to the Kansas Department of Revenue. Tuesday’s discussion was a departure from the city council had in May, when it asked city staff to begin exploring a possible minimum 30-day stay requirement on all rentals, a move that, in practice, would be an outright ban on short-term rentals, which are generally defined as lasting 28 days or less. City staff on Tuesday initially shared ban-related information with the city council, originally seeking further direction from councilmembers on the details of a ban.
Source: Prairie Village Post
