TALLAHASSEE — Homeowners should be able to rent their property for a short term to tourists without getting treated differently than their neighbors, according to the sponsor of a bill to restrict local vacation rental regulations.

State Rep. Mike La Rosa said some counties and municipalities have gone overboard imposing hefty fines and restrictions on rentals and he wants the state to roll back local governments' right to do so. His House Bill 425 narrowly cleared its first committee Tuesday on a 9-6 vote, with support from the rental industry and opposition from the Florida Association of Counties.

If La Rosa's bill becomes law, ordinances to restrict parking, occupancy and noise in places such as Indian River County would be thrown out unless they predate a 2011 law that preempted local control.

La Rosa, R-St. Cloud, said if local governments want to address such issues, they should pass ordinances that affect all properties of the same type, such as all single-family homes, and not just short-term rentals.

“What I’d tell homeowners and city commissions is, whenever you want to resolve a problem do it across the board, not just for rentals," La Rosa told the House Agriculture and Property Rights Subcommittee on Tuesday.

LOCAL ACTION

As more tourists book rentals through websites such as Airbnb and HomeAway, local officials on the Treasure and Space coasts and Collier County grapple with complaints from neighbors about noise, partying, too many people coming and going and too many cars being parked on their street.

A 2014 state law allowed local regulations as long as they didn't require a minimum stay or prohibit vacation rentals. La Rosa's bill would get rid of the 2014 law, along with ordinances passed in about 20 counties and municipalities since then, and would leave only the 2011 preemption in place. For example, Vero Beach, which banned rentals for less than 30 days in 1977, would be allowed to keep its regulation because it predates the preemption.

Last year, Indian River Countyimposed an occupancy limit on rentals leased for less than 30 days — two people per bedroom plus two additional guests or 10 people, whichever is less. The county also requires owners to get a license, restricts parking and bans events such as weddings in homes rented specifically for that purpose. Vacation Rentals in Brevard County has regulations dating back to 2007 and 2008 on maximum occupancy and noise levels at one-family or multifamily units rented out for less than three months at a time.

Opponents of La Rosa's bill said vacation rentals aren't the same as regular single-family homes. They are, for example, required to pay tourist development taxes, get a license from the Department of Business and Professional Regulation and are subject to inspections. Some homes are operated by companies, and not homeowners, that advertise them as small hotels.

The 2011 preemption on local control already was a big win for the industry and the 2014 law allowed local governments to prevent rentals from becoming small hotels, said Florida Association of Counties lobbyist Eric Poole.

"If you got a different group coming in every weekend … it begins to look less residential and more and more like a small hotel," Poole said.

USA Today Network writer Dave Berman contributed to this report.