Albany’s Desperate Attempt to Break Home-sharing Breaks Federal Law

Reclaim New York executive director Brandon Muir offered the following statement in response to Governor Cuomo’s late Friday signing of a bill to levy heavy fines on Airbnb and its users. Section 230 of the Communications Decency Act specifically prohibits states from holding a tech platform legally liable for a user’s actions, which this bill does:

“In a desperate attempt to hammer Airbnb to please the hotel unions, state officials just risked nixing $2 billion worth of economic activity that benefits people struggling to afford to live here.

“Everyone who had a hand in this farce from Governor Cuomo, to Senator Krueger, and Assemblywoman Rosenthal are backing rules that violate federal law.

“Levying outrageous fines on New Yorkers just for renting out a room in their own homes exemplifies how broken the thinking is in Albany. There’s no sensible, factual argument for their position, just a transparent attempt to pay-back special interests and political cronies at the expense of everyday people.

“Once again, the Governor’s Friday afternoon surprise goes out of its way to screw New Yorkers and step on the neck of real economic growth.”