Tech titans urge Cuomo to veto anti-Airbnb bill
New York tech moguls are urging Gov. Cuomo to veto legislation that threatens to cripple Airbnb’s business in the Big Apple.
A Friday letter signed by more than 80 tech execs — including the co-founders of Warby Parker eyeglasses, Casper beds and the ad-tech giant AppNexus — urged Cuomo to block a bill that would ban the advertising of residential sublets shorter than 30 days.
The bill “not only limits a new industry that is supporting families, small businesses and tourism, but also threatens to slow the growth of New York’s tech economy,” says the letter obtained by The Post.
Passed by the state legislature in June, the bill would impose fines as high as $7,500 per violation for illegal residential sublets in multifamily housing units in New York City.
Cuomo’s office, which could take until the end of 2016 to sign the bill, has kept mum on its position.
Contending that New York’s reputation as an “innovation capital” is at risk, tech entrepreneurs claimed that the anti-Airbnb law would amount to “tilting the scales” in favor of “special interests,” including the hotel industry and its unions.
Proponents of the legislation have argued that the rise of apartment rentals on Airbnb is siphoning away the availability of affordable housing in the city.
In their Friday letter, the tech execs pleaded for “clear rules” that would crack down on illegal hotel operators while “embracing everyday New Yorkers who share their homes when they are out of town to make ends meet.”