New Orleans AirBnB's

In New Orleans hotels like any business generate sales tax, 4% state 5% Orleans Parish.  More importantly hotels generate hotel taxes of 9% to the state and 4% to Orleans parish.  Hotels pay an Occupancy tax of around .50 cents per room per night for small hotels and $1 for normal.  There is also a parking tax of 4% to the state and 8% to the state.  Hotels also pay licensing fees for occupancy and alcohol. 

The virtual economy of AirBnB bypasses the fundamental link between the private economy needing to operate in the infrastructure of the public economy that supports its existence.  Sure it would be great to not have to pay sales tax on what Amazon ships to your house or not pay that hotel tax and think well everybody else is doing it, what is the problem? 

One of the reasons public governments are so in debt is the gap the average person comprehends how these taxes not being paid translates to the police, fire, infrastructure, health, and education services the state provides.  The state of Louisiana is confronting the sharing economy, and the city of New Orleans and our leading industry most so with hotels.

The gentrification of neighborhoods, of putting business operations in residential zones, affecting quality of life, parking, noise, and culture is paid for under-taxed resources.  Most importantly this drives up rents in a city desperate for affordable housing.  This also hinders the traditional hotels that support a significant number of jobs in the hospitality industry in New Orleans. 

This has to change.  Tax laws need to apply equally.  Safety and health regulations, licensing, and zoning laws need to apply equally.  The sad part is what New Orleanians making a few thousand untaxed dollars a year selling out the other side of a shotgun home think is cheap, costs the economy and the state and city we live in far more than most realize.  According to federal tax laws you can rent your home out for untaxed profit as long as it is less than two weeks in a calendar year.  This isn’t just a Mardi Gras or Jazz Fest thing.  This is a fundamental shift in total housing use and the rules need to adapt for a digital paradigm.