O2748City Council Meeting: May 23, 2023 Santa Monica, California
ORDINANCE NUMBER 2748 (CCS)
(City Council Series)
AN ORDINANCE OF THE CITY COUNCIL OF THE CITY OF SANTA MONICA
AMENDING SANTA MONICA MUNICIPAL CODE CHAPTER 6.20, HOME-SHARING
AND VACATION RENTALS, TO AUTHORIZE HOME-SHARING IN CERTAIN
QUALIFYING ACCESSORY STRUCTURES AND INCORPORATE A HOME-SHARING
LEGALIZATION PROGRAM
WHEREAS, on May 12, 2015, the Council adopted Ordinance 2484 (CCS), adding
Santa Monica Municipal Code Chapter 6.20, Home-Sharing and Vacation Rentals, to
clarify the City’s long-standing prohibition of renting any dwelling unit, in whole or in part,
for a period of thirty consecutive days or less for exclusive transient use, or “vacation
rentals”, and to relax that prohibition by allowing renting of one or more bedrooms in a
dwelling unit that is the primary residence of the host for a period of thirty consecutive
days or less, while the host lives on site, in the dwelling unit, throughout the visitors’ stay,
or “home-sharing” (the “Home-Sharing Ordinance”); and
WHEREAS, on January 24, 2017, Council adopted Ordinance 2535 (CCS) to
amend the Home-Sharing Ordinance to clarify certain definitions and, in response to
portions of the ordinance challenged by home-sharing platforms, to limit the obligations
imposed on those platforms; and
WHEREAS, on June 27, 2017, Council adopted Ordinance 2547 (CCS), to amend
the Home-Sharing Ordinance to treat accessory dwelling units (“ADUs”) that received
building permits on or after March 31, 2017 as separate dwelling units for the purpose of
defining home-sharing activity; and
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WHEREAS, on September 24, 2019, Council adopted Ordinance 2616 (CCS), to
further amend the Home-Sharing Ordinance to strengthen regulation of home-sharing
and vacation rentals; and
WHEREAS, permitting regulated home-sharing while prohibiting vacation rentals
strikes an important balance: allowing residents to supplement their income through
home-sharing and providing home-share visitors with potentially more affordable
accommodations, while deterring landlords from evading rent control laws, evicting
tenants, and converting residential units into de facto hostels or hotels, thus removing
needed permanent housing from the market while at the same time changing the
character of and undermining community ties in residential neighborhoods; and
WHEREAS, Santa Monica Municipal Code Section 9.21.020 provides that
accessory structures shall be considered part of the principal building if the accessory
building is located less than 6 feet from the principal building or if connected to it by fully
enclosed space; and
WHEREAS, Santa Monica Municipal Code Section 9.21.020 prohibits an
accessory structure from containing a shower or tub enclosure; and
WHEREAS, the Santa Monica Municipal Code previously required certain property
owners to record deed restrictions which, in part, prohibited using accessory structures
that were not accessory dwelling units as rented rooms or sleeping quarters; and
WHEREAS, since September 2020, the City has denied applications for renewal
of home-share licenses for properties that were previously approved for home-share due
to changes in regulations in the home-share regulations or because the permits were
previously erroneously issued; and
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WHEREAS, on June 8, 2021, City Council directed staff to return with proposed
amendments to Santa Monica Municipal Code Chapter 6.20, the City’s home-sharing
ordinance, to allow the home-sharing of detached accessory buildings located more than
six feet from the main building occupied by the host; and
WHEREAS, amendments to Santa Monica Municipal Code Section 9.21.020 were
also necessary for consistency with Council direction; and
WHEREAS, until the amendments to Chapter 6.20 and Section 9.21.020 could
occur, on October 25, 2022, City Council adopted a Resolution to Establish a Home-
Share Legalization Program (“Program”) that allowed Council to authorize previously
licensed home-share operators to receive a temporary, conditional license to resume
operations pending updates to the Home-Share Ordinance, as long as the proposed
home-share units do not have any outstanding unpermitted work in order to protect the
health and safety of home-sharing guests;
WHEREAS, that Program expires on the earlier of: 1) effective date of
amendments to Santa Monica Municipal Code Chapter 6.20 and Section 9.21.020; or (2)
June 30, 2023; and
WHEREAS, on April 11, 2023, the City Council adopted Ordinance Number 2742
(CCS), amending the text of the Zoning Ordinance to, among other things, eliminate the
prohibition on accessory structures from containing a shower or tub enclosure, which is
expected to become effective May 11, 2023; and
WHEREAS, Council now seeks to codify the Program through amendments to
Chapter 6.20 prior to the June 30, 2023, expiration date.
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NOW, THEREFORE, THE CITY COUNCIL OF THE CITY OF SANTA MONICA
DOES HEREBY ORDAIN AS FOLLOWS:
SECTION 1. Santa Monica Municipal Code Section 6.20.010 is hereby amended
to read as follows:
6.20.010 Definitions.
For purposes of this Chapter, the following words or phrases shall have the following
meanings:
(a) Accessory Dwelling Unit. “Accessory Dwelling Unit” shall have the same
meaning as set forth in 9.21.020(A). An accessory dwelling unit that received its building
permit on or after March 31, 2017, constitutes a separate dwelling unit for purposes of
this Chapter.
(b) Bedroom. Any habitable space in a dwelling unit other than a kitchen or living
room that is intended for or capable of being used for sleeping, is at least seventy square
feet in area, is separated from other rooms by a door, and is accessible to a bathroom
without crossing another bedroom.
(c) Booking Transaction. Any reservation or payment service provided by a person
who facilitates a home-sharing or vacation rental transaction between a prospective
visitor and a host.
(d) Dwelling Unit. One or more rooms designed, occupied, or intended for occupancy
as separate living quarters, with full cooking, sleeping, and bathroom facilities for the
exclusive use of a single household. A dwelling unit includes a single‐family residence,
and each unit of an apartment, duplex, or multiple dwelling structure designed as a
separate habitation for one or more persons, but does not include units located within
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City-approved hotels, motels, and bed and breakfasts, as defined in Section
9.51.030(B)(15). Notwithstanding anything to the contrary in 9.21.020(A), for purposes
of this Chapter, an accessory building shall be considered part of the principal dwelling
unit if it is located on the same parcel as the principal building.
(e) Eligible Resident. Any natural person who: (1) is either: (i) a long-term resident
of a dwelling unit, or (ii) an owner of a dwelling unit; and (2) uses that dwelling unit as his
or her primary residence.
(f) Home-Sharing. Renting for a period of thirty consecutive days or less, one or
more bedrooms in a dwelling unit that is the primary residence of the host, while the host
lives on site, in the dwelling unit, throughout the visitors’ stay. A dwelling unit rented out
for home-sharing is referred to as a “home-share.”
(g) Host. Any natural person who is an eligible resident of a dwelling unit offered for
use as a home-share.
(h) Hosting Platform. A person who participates in the home-sharing or vacation
rental business by collecting or receiving a fee, directly or indirectly through an agent or
intermediary, for conducting a booking transaction using any medium of facilitation.
(i) Lives On Site. Maintains a physical presence in the dwelling unit, including, but
not limited to, sleeping overnight, preparing and eating meals, and engaging in other
activities in the dwelling unit, of the type typically maintained by a natural person in the
dwelling unit in which he or she is an eligible resident.
(j) Long-Term Resident. Any natural person who, as of the date a home-share
application is submitted pursuant to Section 6.20.021: (1) has occupied the dwelling unit
that is the subject of the home-share application as his or her primary residence for at
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least the prior twelve months; and (2) has either: (i) if the natural person is a tenant,
subtenant, lessee, or sublessee, a written rental housing agreement for the dwelling unit
for a period of twelve months or more after the date the home-share application is
submitted, or (ii) if the natural person is not a tenant, subtenant, lessee, or sublessee,
written documentation establishing that the natural person will reside at the dwelling unit
for a period of twelve months or more after the date the home-share application is
submitted.
(k) Owner. Any person who, alone or with others, has legal or equitable title to a
dwelling unit. A person whose interest in a dwelling unit is solely that of a tenant,
subtenant, lessee, or sublessee under an oral or written rental housing agreement shall
not be considered an owner.
(l) Person. Any natural person, joint venture, joint stock company, partnership,
association, club, company, corporation, business trust, or organization of any kind.
(m) Primary Residence. The usual place of return for housing of an owner or long-
term resident as documented by at least two of the following: motor vehicle registration,
driver’s license, California state identification card, voter registration, income tax return,
property tax bill, or a utility bill. A person can only have one primary residence.
(n) Vacation Rental. Renting for a period of thirty consecutive days or less any
dwelling unit, in whole or in part, for exclusive transient use. Exclusive transient use shall
mean that no eligible resident of the dwelling unit lives on site, in the dwelling unit,
throughout any visitor’s stay. Rentals of units located within City-approved hotels, motels,
and bed and breakfasts shall not be considered vacation rentals.
(o) Visitor. A natural person who rents a home-share or vacation rental.
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SECTION 2. Santa Monica Municipal Code Section 6.20.110 is hereby added to
read as follows:
6.20.110 Home-Sharing Legalization Program.
Notwithstanding the foregoing, or anything to the contrary in this Code, an accessory
dwelling unit that received its building permit on or after March 31, 2017, shall not
constitute a separate dwelling unit for purposes of this Chapter if it meets all of the
following conditions:
(a) The City previously issued the applicant a home-share permit for the dwelling unit
in accordance with this Chapter;
(b) The City subsequently denied the applicant’s request to renew the home-share
permit due to changes in the City’s home-share regulations or because the permit was
previously erroneously issued; and
(c) The dwelling unit applicant proposes to use for home-sharing activities does not
have any outstanding code violation for unpermitted work.
SECTION 3. Any provision of the Santa Monica Municipal Code or appendices
thereto inconsistent with the provisions of this Ordinance, to the extent of such
inconsistencies and no further, is hereby repealed or modified to the extent necessary to
effect the provisions of this Ordinance.
SECTION 4. If any section, subsection, sentence, clause, or phrase of this
Ordinance is for any reason held to be invalid or unconstitutional by a decision of any
court of competent jurisdiction, such decision shall not affect the validity of the remaining
portions of this Ordinance. The City Council hereby declares that it would have passed
this Ordinance and each and every section, subsection, sentence, clause, or phrase not
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declared invalid or unconstitutional without regard to whether any portion of the ordinance
would be subsequently declared invalid or unconstitutional.
SECTION 5. The Mayor shall sign and the City Clerk shall attest to the passage
of this ordinance. The City Clerk shall cause the same to be published once in the official
newspaper within 15 days after its adoption. This Ordinance shall become effective 30
days from its adoption.
APPROVED AS TO FORM:
_________________________
Douglas Sloan, City Attorney
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Approved and adopted this 23rd day of May, 2023.
_____________________________
Gleam Davis, Mayor
State of California )
County of Los Angeles ) ss.
City of Santa Monica )
I, Denise Anderson-Warren, City Clerk of the City of Santa Monica, do
hereby certify that the foregoing Ordinance No. 2748 (CCS) had its introduction
on May 9, 2023 and was adopted at the Santa Monica City Council meeting held
on May 23, 2023, by the following vote:
AYES: Councilmembers de la Torre, Brock, Zwick
Mayor Davis
NOES: None
ABSENT: Mayor Pro Tem Negrete
ATTEST:
_____________________________________ _________________
Denise Anderson-Warren, City Clerk Date
A summary of Ordinance No. 2748 (CCS) was duly published pursuant to
California Government Code Section 40806.
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5/24/2023