Just a day after a judge had voided New York Attorney General Eric Schneiderman's subpoena to seek information and materials needed from Airbnb Inc to determine whether the service's users violated state tax law, a new revised subpoena has been issued to the home-sharing firm.
Spokesman Matt Mittenthal for Schneiderman said, "The time has come for Airbnb to stop shielding hosts who may be violating a law that provides vital protections for building residents and tourists."
The San Francisco-based firm has allowed its users of its platform to rent a couch, bedroom, or sometimes a whole house from a host while making money by charging a fee per transaction. The company has listings in about 34,000 cities across the globe and is currently said to be worth $10 billion under a TPG Capital financing deal.
In a ruling on May 13, Acting Supreme Court Justice Gerald Connolly in Albany has rejected the validity of the initial subpoena issued by Schneiderman's office on the basis that the demand was too broad. Connolly said that the information detailed in the demand required submission of names, addresses and other materials that are irrelevant to Schneiderman's probe.
Mittenthal said in an email that the new subpoena was amended to address a technical matter that Connolly had pointed out in the May 13 ruling.
In a statement yesterday, Airbnb challenged the attorney general's demand, and called it a government-backed fishing expedition. Moreover, the company also said that it has done its part to purge "bad actors" from its service, referring those who have abused the firm's service. Airbnb also insisted that it supports policy changes that would allow the service to collect and remit taxes to comply with the law.
Airbnb spokesman Nick Papas said, "We are reviewing this new demand, but remain eager to work with the attorney general and we will continue to advocate for New Yorkers who simply want to share their homes."
