The lodging service Airbnb, which lets guests reserve people’s homes and spare rooms, will start paying state and local taxes in Florida. That means people will now pay more.
The charges began Dec. 1.
Florida is now the fourth state where Airbnb collects taxes. The company also pays taxes in major cities like Chicago and Washington, D.C.
Airbnb spokesperson Christopher Nultey said it’s the right thing to do.
“We are really adamant to and welcome and open to working with any city, any state that is interested in working with us to make it possible for our community to pay their fair share of taxes,” he said.
Guests will pay state and in some cases local sales taxes.
The company negotiated with 22 counties where the state is involved in collecting what’s often called a “bed tax.” If the state is not involved with the county bed tax, Airbnb has to work it out independently like it did with Pinellas County. The company also began paying taxes in Pinellas County on Dec. 1.
Nultey said Airbnb is in conversations with other counties to pay taxes there.
The company will collect the taxes from visitors and hand the money over to the state and counties.
State and local lawmakers have grappled over how to approach an emerging service that exists outside of the rules traditionally followed by hotels including proposed legislation that died earlier this year.
