Manatee County Vacation Rental Ordinance: 2026 Tracker

Status at a glance (last updated June 2026)

As of late June 2026, Manatee County does NOT have a countywide vacation rental ordinance in effect. A draft ordinance for unincorporated Manatee County was discussed at the Board of County Commissioners meeting in mid-June 2026 (the June 16-17 meeting). Commissioners did not adopt anything. Instead they voted to send the draft to county staff to review and revise, then bring back an executable version for consideration. Reporting indicated the revised ordinance was not expected to come back before the board until late July 2026 at the earliest, and any adoption would still require the normal public-hearing process after that. Bottom line for hosts: nothing here is law yet, but the direction of travel is clear, so watch this space. This page is part of our broader Sarasota-Bradenton guidance at /vacation-rental-rules.

What it covers: unincorporated Manatee only

The proposed ordinance targets short-term rentals in UNINCORPORATED Manatee County. The county's three Anna Maria Island cities (Anna Maria, Holmes Beach, and Bradenton Beach) and the City of Bradenton already have their own vacation rental rules and would keep them. The City of Bradenton, for example, adopted Ordinance 3093 back in February 2022 requiring registration, off-street parking based on occupancy, and a 12-guest cap; the City of Anna Maria requires annual registration, bedroom-based occupancy limits, and 24/7 owner or agent availability. If your rental is inside one of those city limits, the city ordinance governs you, not this county draft. If you are not sure whether your address is in a city or unincorporated, check your property record with the Manatee County Property Appraiser. For island-specific rules see /vacation-rental-rules/anna-maria-island.

What is being proposed

The draft, reintroduced by Commissioner McCann and developed with input from the County Attorney's Office and the Sheriff's Office, includes: registration with Manatee County Code Enforcement carrying an initial fee around 250 dollars and annual renewals around 150 dollars; a Tourist Development Tax (bed tax) account with the Manatee County Tax Collector for local tax remittance; a maximum overnight occupancy of two people per bedroom capped at 12 occupants per home regardless of size; off-street parking limits (parking in the driveway and garage only, no street parking) requiring at least one off-street space per four guests; a 24/7 responsive local contact (owner or property manager) who must respond to complaints within one hour; and a Life-Safety Inspection, reportedly within 30 days of application, to confirm the property meets the Florida Building and Fire Prevention Codes. Exact figures may change as staff revise the draft.

Proposed fines and enforcement

Under the draft, violations of occupancy, noise, or parking rules could draw fines ranging from 250 dollars to 5,000 dollars, with enforcement tied to the registration and the 24/7 local-contact requirement. Commissioners discussed a license-style model in which a county registration could be issued and then rescinded for repeated non-compliance. None of this is in force yet; the penalty structure, like the fees and inspection timing, is part of what staff are revising before the ordinance returns to the board. Treat the numbers on this page as the proposal on the table in June 2026, not settled law.

How Florida state law shapes what the county can do

Florida preempts a lot of local vacation rental regulation under Section 509.032(7), Florida Statutes. Local governments generally cannot prohibit vacation rentals outright or regulate their duration or frequency unless a qualifying ordinance was in place on or before June 1, 2011. What counties and cities CAN do is regulate operations on a neutral basis: registration, occupancy caps, parking, noise, inspections, and a responsive local contact. That is exactly the lane Manatee County's draft is staying in, which is why it focuses on registration, occupancy, parking, and a 24/7 contact rather than caps on how often you can rent. Separately, the state still requires most hosts to hold a Florida DBPR vacation rental license (renting a dwelling for under 30 days more than three times a year triggers it), and that requirement exists regardless of what the county does.

What hosts in unincorporated Manatee should do now

If your rental sits in unincorporated Manatee County, monitor this ordinance through summer 2026. Practical steps you can take today without waiting: make sure your Florida DBPR vacation rental license is active; confirm your Tourist Development Tax account with the Manatee County Tax Collector and that bed tax is being remitted; line up a local contact who can respond within an hour; and review your parking so you can meet a one-space-per-four-guests style standard. Doing these now means that if the ordinance passes in roughly its proposed form, compliance is mostly a registration form rather than a scramble. We will update this tracker as the draft moves. For the regional overview and links to each area's rules, start at /vacation-rental-rules; for nearby Sarasota County beach rules see /vacation-rental-rules/siesta-key.

Common questions

Is the Manatee County vacation rental ordinance in effect yet?

No. As of June 2026 it is a proposal, not law. Commissioners discussed a draft at the mid-June 2026 meeting and sent it back to staff for revision. It had not been adopted, and a revised version was not expected to return to the board before late July 2026, after which a public-hearing process would still apply.

Who does the proposed ordinance apply to?

It would apply to short-term rentals in unincorporated Manatee County only. The Anna Maria Island cities (Anna Maria, Holmes Beach, Bradenton Beach) and the City of Bradenton keep their own existing rules. If your property is inside one of those city limits, the city ordinance governs, not this county draft.

What fees and limits are being proposed?

The draft proposes registration with county Code Enforcement at roughly a 250 dollar initial fee and about 150 dollars to renew, a 12-occupant cap (two per bedroom), off-street parking of about one space per four guests with no street parking, a 24/7 local contact who responds within one hour, a Life-Safety Inspection, and a Tourist Development Tax account. These figures are proposed and may change.

What are the proposed fines for violations?

The draft sets fines from 250 dollars to 5,000 dollars for violations of occupancy, noise, or parking rules, with a registration that could be rescinded for repeated non-compliance. The penalty details are still subject to revision before the ordinance returns to the board.

Can Manatee County ban my short-term rental or cap how often I rent?

Generally no. Florida Statute 509.032(7) preempts local governments from prohibiting vacation rentals or regulating their duration or frequency, unless a qualifying ordinance predates June 1, 2011. Counties can still regulate operations such as registration, occupancy, parking, noise, inspections, and requiring a responsive local contact, which is what this draft does.

What should I do now as a host in unincorporated Manatee County?

Monitor this tracker, keep your Florida DBPR vacation rental license current, confirm your Tourist Development Tax account with the Manatee County Tax Collector, arrange a local contact who can respond within an hour, and check that your parking could meet a one-space-per-four-guests standard. That keeps you ahead if the ordinance passes near its proposed form.