After Idaho, Which States Are Next. The 2026 STR Preemption Movement and What It Means for Hosts and Investors

Idaho Governor Brad Little signed House Bill 583 on March 16, 2026, and with one signature turned Idaho into the most STR-friendly state in the country. The law, which takes effect July 1, prohibits cities and counties from imposing any regulation on short-term rentals that doesn’t also apply to traditional single-family homes. No STR-specific permits. No STR-specific fees. No STR-specific caps. If you can’t require it of a regular homeowner, you can’t require it of a host.

I’ve reviewed a lot of state legislation over the years (more zoning codes than most people have unread emails, honestly), and HB 583 stands out. Not because preemption is new. Arizona did it in 2016. Florida’s been at it since 2011. But Idaho’s version is the cleanest, most comprehensive preemption framework any state has enacted in the short-term rental era. And it passed with comfortable margins: 54-16 in the House, 23-12 in the Senate.

The bigger story, though, isn’t Idaho. It’s what Idaho represents. At least five other states are actively debating, expanding, or reconsidering how much power local governments should have over short-term rentals. Some are following Idaho’s lead. Others are pushing back. If you own STR properties in multiple states (or you’re evaluating where to buy next), the preemption map is becoming one of the most important tools in your regulatory risk assessment.

This article provides general information and should not be construed as legal advice. Consult a qualified attorney in your jurisdiction for advice specific to your situation.

What Idaho HB 583 Actually Does (and What It Doesn’t)

Let me break down the key provisions, because the details matter more than the headline.

HB 583 reclassifies short-term rentals as a “nontransient residential use” for zoning and building code purposes. That’s the legal foundation everything else rests on. By defining STRs as residential (not commercial), the law strips away the legal basis cities have traditionally used to regulate them differently.

Here’s what cities and counties in Idaho can no longer do under HB 583:

• Require STR-specific licenses, permits, fees, certifications, or registrations. If the city doesn’t require your neighbor to get a permit to live in their house, they can’t require you to get one to rent yours on Airbnb.
• Impose restrictions on STRs that differ from those on single-family homes. Occupancy limits, parking requirements, noise rules: all fine, but only if they apply equally to every residential property.
• Treat short-term rentals as a separate zoning category. The “nontransient residential use” classification means your STR is legally the same as any other home in the neighborhood.

There is a safety carve-out, and it’s reasonable. Local governments can still require smoke alarms in all sleeping areas, fire extinguishers, carbon monoxide detectors on every floor, and removable escape ladders in bedrooms with windows above ground level. Most serious hosts already have all of this. The Idaho Vacation Rental Association (IVRA) supported the bill and participated in the signing ceremony.

For a deeper look at the Idaho law specifically, including what it means for hosts already operating in cities like Boise and Sun Valley, see our full breakdown: Idaho HB 583: What the New STR Preemption Act Means for Hosts and Cities.

The Constitutional Backdrop Most Hosts Don’t Know About

Picture this: you’re a host in a city that just passed a restrictive STR ordinance. You’re angry. You want the state to step in. But whether the state can step in (and how easily) depends on something most property owners have never considered: whether your state follows Dillon’s Rule or the Home Rule doctrine.

Dillon’s Rule (named after Iowa Supreme Court Judge John Forrest Dillon, who articulated it in 1868) says local governments only have the powers explicitly granted to them by the state. Cities are, in legal terms, creatures of the state. If the state hasn’t authorized a city to regulate something, the city can’t regulate it. And the state can take back whatever authority it previously gave.

Home Rule is the opposite end of the spectrum. States that operate under Home Rule grant local governments broad autonomy to govern their own affairs. When there’s a dispute about whether a particular authority belongs to the city or the state, Home Rule generally resolves it in favor of the city.

Idaho follows Dillon’s Rule. So does Tennessee. So does Indiana. That’s not a coincidence. In Dillon’s Rule states, the legal pathway to preemption is straightforward: the state already holds the authority, and it’s simply choosing to exercise it. The political debate happens, but the constitutional question is settled.

In Home Rule states like Arizona and Colorado, preemption is more contentious. When Arizona passed its STR preemption in 2016, it was overriding powers that cities had long considered their own. That tension hasn’t gone away. It’s why Arizona is now debating HB 2429, which would claw back some of the authority the state took from cities eight years ago.

For hosts and investors, the practical takeaway is this: if you’re in a Dillon’s Rule state, preemption legislation has a shorter path to passage and faces fewer constitutional challenges. If you’re in a Home Rule state, preemption can still happen, but expect it to be messier, slower, and more likely to include compromises.

The States to Watch in 2026

Idaho made the headlines, but it’s not operating in isolation. Here’s where preemption is active, pending, or evolving right now.

Tennessee: SB 104 / HB 109

Tennessee already has partial preemption on the books (the Short-Term Rental Unit Act), but SB 104 and its companion bill HB 109 would go further. The bills would prohibit local governments from adopting ordinances that ban short-term rentals outright or cap the number of permits in residential zones. They’d also block primary-residence requirements (the kind of restriction Sacramento is currently considering in California). In exchange, the bills expand lodging tax authority to short-term rentals, giving cities a revenue incentive to accept the trade.

Hearings have been held. No floor vote yet. The Tennessee legislature remains in session through 2026, and as a Dillon’s Rule state, the constitutional pathway is clear. This is one to watch closely.

Arizona: The Preemption That’s Being Pulled Back

Arizona’s story is the cautionary tale for the preemption movement. In 2016, the state passed SB 1350, which prohibited cities from banning or capping short-term rentals. It was one of the first and broadest STR preemptions in the country. Then reality set in. Neighborhoods complained. Party houses made the news. Cities felt powerless.

In 2022, the legislature passed SB 1168, which gave cities licensing authority and the ability to suspend permits for properties with three nuisance violations within 12 months. That was the first rollback.

Now comes HB 2429, which passed the Arizona House 36-19-4 in March 2026 and is awaiting Senate action. The bill would let cities set occupancy limits for overnight stays, expand the violation window from 12 to 24 months before license suspension, and tie fines to a listing’s advertised nightly rate. An earlier version would have also allowed cities to cap total licenses and set minimum distances between properties, but those provisions were removed after opposition from the Arizona Association of Realtors and Airbnb.

Arizona shows that preemption isn’t necessarily permanent. When the original framework creates enough friction at the local level, the pendulum can swing back.

Florida: Strong Preemption, Frozen in Place

Florida’s preemption dates to 2011 (Florida Statutes Section 509.032(7)), and it remains one of the strongest in the country. Cities and counties cannot prohibit vacation rentals or regulate the duration or frequency of stays, with one important exception: any local ordinance in place before June 1, 2011, is grandfathered and remains enforceable.

In 2024, the legislature passed CS/SB 280, which would have expanded preemption further and created a statewide registration system. Governor DeSantis vetoed it. So Florida’s preemption is stuck in its 2011 configuration: strong enough to prevent outright bans, but with a growing patchwork of local operational rules (licensing, inspections, safety requirements, parking, noise) that cities continue to layer on within the space the preemption allows.

No new preemption legislation has advanced in 2025 or 2026. Florida is stable, but the grandfathered-ordinance loophole and expanding local regulations make it less of a clean preemption than Idaho’s.

New Mexico: Preemption in Development

New Mexico doesn’t have preemption yet, but it’s getting organized. The HM 52 work group, which includes the New Mexico Short-Term Rental Association and state legislators, is developing a preemption bill for introduction in a future session. The initial focus is on preventing counties from reclassifying STR properties as commercial for tax purposes, a growing trend that effectively penalizes hosts without an outright ban.

This is still in the early stages (no bill number, no floor vote timeline), but New Mexico represents the next wave: states where preemption is being built from scratch rather than expanded or amended.

Texas: Recurring Attempts, No Breakthrough

Texas has tried preemption before. In 2023, HB 2665 would have prevented cities from banning short-term rentals, but the bill was amended into a study commission instead of actual preemption. The pattern in Texas is familiar: a preemption bill gets introduced, city lobbies push back, the bill gets watered down or dies in committee.

Given that cities like Houston just enacted significant new STR permit requirements (enforcement begins April 1, 2026), the tension between state and local authority isn’t going away. Texas courts have scrutinized outright STR bans and overly broad restrictions, which puts some guardrails on local overreach even without formal preemption. But a clean preemption statute remains elusive. For more on what Houston’s enforcement means for hosts right now, see: Houston STR Permit Enforcement Starts April 1.

Indiana: Quiet Preemption

Indiana’s preemption doesn’t get the attention of Arizona’s or Florida’s, but it’s effective. State law significantly limits local governments’ ability to restrict short-term rentals. Cities can require registration and impose safety standards, but they cannot ban STRs outright. It’s a middle-ground preemption: less absolute than Idaho’s, more protective than what most states offer.

What Preemption Actually Protects (and What It Doesn’t)

I want to be direct about something, because I see hosts misunderstand this constantly. Preemption does not mean deregulation. Preemption means the state sets the regulatory floor (and sometimes the ceiling), not the city.

Even in Idaho, under HB 583, your city can still enforce noise ordinances, parking rules, building codes, and safety requirements. They just can’t apply those rules only to short-term rentals. If the noise ordinance applies to every house on the block, it applies to yours too.

Preemption protects against:

• Outright STR bans
• STR-specific permit caps
• Primary-residence requirements that target only STR owners
• Discriminatory fee structures (charging STR owners more than other homeowners for the same services)

Preemption does not protect against:

• Generally applicable zoning rules (if no one in the zone can operate a business, that includes you)
• HOA restrictions (HOAs are private contracts, not government regulation)
• State-level taxes and registration requirements
• Safety mandates that apply equally to all residential properties

The HOA point is worth emphasizing. I hear from hosts regularly who assume state preemption overrides their HOA’s ban on short-term rentals. It doesn’t. HOA covenants are private contractual agreements between property owners, and they operate outside the scope of state preemption statutes. If your CC&Rs prohibit short-term rentals, preemption won’t help you. Read your documents before you buy.

Why the Momentum Is Accelerating Now

Three forces are converging to push preemption forward in 2026.

Property rights coalitions are getting organized. The VRMA (Vacation Rental Management Association), state-level STR associations like Idaho’s IVRA, and organizations like the Institute for Justice have built advocacy infrastructure that didn’t exist five years ago. They’re drafting model legislation, testifying at committee hearings, and coordinating across state lines. Idaho’s HB 583 didn’t appear out of nowhere. It was years of groundwork.

The data on local bans is coming in, and it’s mixed. Cities that enacted aggressive STR restrictions are discovering the outcomes aren’t always what they expected. Housing affordability hasn’t improved in most markets that capped STRs. Tax revenue has declined where STRs were curtailed. Tourism infrastructure has shifted. State legislators are paying attention to these results when evaluating preemption proposals.

The patchwork problem is getting worse. For investors operating across multiple cities, the compliance burden of navigating different rules in every jurisdiction is becoming untenable. A preemption framework simplifies this. When one state standardizes its rules and a neighboring state doesn’t, the investment capital follows the clarity. State economic development offices understand this dynamic, and it gives preemption bills an economic argument beyond property rights.

What This Means for Your Investment Strategy

If you’re evaluating STR markets across state lines, the preemption landscape should be part of your analysis. Here’s the framework I’d use.

Lowest regulatory risk: States with strong, recently enacted preemption (Idaho after July 1, 2026). The law is new, the political support is clear, and the framework is comprehensive.

Moderate regulatory risk: States with existing but older preemption that’s being tested (Florida’s 2011 framework, Arizona’s evolving landscape). The preemption exists, but local governments are finding ways to regulate within it, and some states are actively pulling preemption back.

Higher regulatory risk: States with no preemption and active local restriction trends (California, New York, Colorado). In these states, your regulatory environment depends entirely on your specific city, and it can change with one city council vote.

Transitional: States where preemption is pending or in development (Tennessee, New Mexico). The legislative momentum is there, but nothing is guaranteed until the governor signs.

Run your target markets through the StaySTRA Analyzer to see current performance metrics, then layer the regulatory risk assessment on top. A market with strong numbers and preemption protection is a completely different investment than one with strong numbers and an incoming regulatory crackdown.

We do our best to keep our regulatory guides accurate and up to date, but ordinances change and we are only human. Always verify current requirements directly with your local municipality before making business decisions.

Run Your Markets

The preemption map is changing fast. Whether your properties are in a protected state or one where local regulations could shift overnight, you need current data to make informed decisions. Run your markets through the StaySTRA Analyzer to see occupancy, revenue, and ADR data for any market in the country.