Popular technology-driven businesses like home- and ride-sharing apps are running into hurdles in New York State. Zack Fink filed the following report.
Earlier this month, Governor Andrew Cuomo signed legislation to charge higher penalties against those who illegally advertise their apartments, located in multiple family dwellings, on the popular home sharing site Airbnb. And this past June, a bill to expand ride sharing services like Uber to upstate New York was killed by the Assembly before even getting a vote.
"This isn't going to be the kind of thing where we are not eventually going to be home sharing or maybe in upstate New York ride sharing," said Julie Samuels of Tech:NYC. "These new business models that technology enables in many instances are inevitable."
They may be inevitable, but some believe New York may be stifling business growth, the very opposite of what this advertising campaign launched by the Cuomo administration is trying to say.
The Cuomo administration and supporters of the Airbnb bill say it only cracks down on home rentals that were already made illegal in 2010. Powerful unions that reporesent hotel workers also supported the bill, as did housing advocates.
"Sure, unions and labor has a role in much of what goes on in this city and state, but the reason for this huge response to Airbnb is because we are finding gentrification," said Assemblywoman Linda Rosenthal of Manhattan.
But some believe renting one's apartment online should never have been made illegal in the first place.
"When you are sending that message, we feel as though that is a really unfortunate situation," Samuels said. "Because that is sending a message that you shouldn't grow your company here. That's sending a message to future founders, to technologists, to entrepreneurs that New York is not open for business."
Cuomo says he supports the expansion of ride sharing.
"I think ride sharing should exist in upstate New York," the governor said. "It's going to require legislation, but I support it."
Observers say Cuomo is already looking ahead to running again in 2018, so he is unlikely to do anything that upsets the unions between now and then. However, experts believe there is a way forward, and there certainly can be a compromise that, while it may not make all sides happy, can certainly be something they can live with. Such is often the case with Albany legislation.