Airbnb on Tuesday blasted the state’s effort to subpoena its records as a “fishing expedition” that could invade the privacy of New York City tourists.
During oral arguments in Albany Supreme Court, a lawyer for the popular home-sharing Web site said there’s nothing in its files to help state Attorney General Eric Schneiderman crack down on illegal sublets and collect unpaid hotel taxes.
“This is private information,” Roberta Kaplan said.
Karla Sanchez, Schneiderman’s deputy AG, countered that Airbnb has “admitted they have hosts who are violating the law” and revealed Monday that it was cancelling 2,000 shady listings.
Acting Justice Gerald Connolly didn’t rule on Airbnb’s motion to quash the AG’s subpoena nor did he say when he would. But he leaned on the site’s acknowledgment of abuses.
“Isn’t that a valid reason to be seeking this information?” Connolly said.
Airbnb had nearly 16,000 New York hosts in January, about two-thirds of whom were suspected of offering illegal sublets, according to the AG’s Office.
At a news conference Tuesday, city officials accused Airbnb of fueling an underground industry.
“People should have a right to know that their neighbor in apartment 2A is not running an illegal brothel,” Assemblyman Keith Wright said.
Additional reporting by Amber Sutherland