Richard Moody is reporting for Columbia-Greene Media Columbia County is planning to create and approve a plan to tax short-term rentals by November. The revenue that would be generated by such a tax is estimated to be approximately $270,000. Assistant County Attorney Heidi Cochrane told the members of the Board of Supervisors Occupancy Charge Review Subcommittee meeting Feb. 14, the county should pass a local law to impose a tax on short-term rentals, such as those advertised on websites like AirBnB, by November because the tax would require approval from state officials. “I would say the sooner you pass something the better,” Cochrane said. “But no later than November.” A public hearing would have to be held at the county level before anything is approved. County Board of Supervisors Chairman Matt Murrell said if the law is adopted, enforcement will be left to the local municipalities. It is undecided at this point if the county will include Hudson in the plan. “We will need to talk to Hudson about this,” Murell said. “We will need to address this some time soon.” In all, the county has nearly 1,300 short-term rentals, hotels, motels and bed-and-breakfast rooms available. Hudson started imposing its own occupancy tax on short-term rentals and hotels in March 2017. Read the full story at HudsonValley360 [dot] com.