A City Council committee has deferred action on a measure addressing illegal vacation rentals and the concerns from residents that a growing market for these transient units has harmed Oahu neighborhoods.

Resolution 17-52, introduced by Council Chairman Ron Menor and Councilman Joey Manahan, would amend the Land Use Ordinance to allow neighbors to file a civil case in court against operators of illegal vacation rentals without first exhausting city administrative procedures. Illegal vacation rental operators would be prohibited from advertising their units by any means, including signs, print or online.

The measure also would further regulate “hosting platforms,” described as marketplaces that facilitate vacation rentals — such as Airbnb and Craigslist — requiring them to submit monthly reports to the city with details on vacation rental listings and other information. Additionally, it called for more funding for investigations into illegal vacation rentals and enforcement of regulations.

The Zoning and Housing Committee agreed to defer the resolution at a meeting Thursday after the city Corporation Counsel and the city Department of Planning and Permitting raised legal and other concerns. If the full Council adopts the measure, it would need to be reviewed by the Honolulu Planning Commission and would then be reintroduced to the Council as a bill, a process that could take about six months.

Kathy Sokugawa, DPP acting director, asked Council members to defer the measure, citing concerns with placing enforcement in the hands of residents, essentially bypassing her department. Sokugawa said violation complaints filter through her department and that she has not heard of an instance where one was directly filed in court. She added that inspectors need a substantial amount of evidence to issue a violation on an illegal vacation rental, such as having a guest admit that they were a tenant for fewer than 30 days.

Last year, Sokugawa said, there were 3,300 investigations and 79 notices of violation issued. There are 12 inspectors who work on vacation rental enforcement in residential areas, as well as others in areas zoned for apartment uses, according to DPP. But all of those inspectors do not solely focus on vacation rentals.

“We are totally in sync with the concern about the impacts of illegal short-term rentals in our communities. I don’t think that our current practice of enforcement is actually very effective,” Sokugawa said. “(But) we do not support a strategy that takes the department pretty much out of the enforcement process and depends on neighbors to enforce a zoning code. The issue is how does the neighbor have the resources or expertise to make the call that their neighbor is actually violating the law.”

At Thursday’s meeting Noel Denis, a Kaaawa resident and Turtle Bay Resort employee, said she has noticed several illegal vacation rentals popping up in her community, which she said affects quality of life and safety. She said she has not filed complaints with DPP because she feels it would not be effective in curbing the problem.

“I see new families every week. I see new cars every week,” Denis said. “We should be able to file complaints and see something happen out of those. We shouldn’t feel as though we’re victims within our own communities and handcuffed and we can’t take action.”

But Peter Yee, who said he has vacation rentals at his Waikiki condominiums, maintained that the measure is unfair and gives too much power to neighbors in resolving complaints. “I was just blown away by the lack of fairness in the proposed language and wording in this amendment,” Yee said. “I was just stunned by the horrendous shift to one side on the scale of justice.”

Committee Chairwoman Kymberly Pine said Council members would work on changes before bringing back the measure next month.