In Radio Ads, Airbnb Says It Wants To Pay Massachusetts Tax

(AP Photo/Bebeto Matthews)

BOSTON (AP) — Airbnb is urging lawmakers in Massachusetts to support a measure that would require it and other online lodging services to pay the same taxes as traditional hotels and motels.

The company is running radio ads as the Legislature prepares to wrap up formal sessions in the coming days.

Will Burns, a senior adviser for San Francisco-based Airbnb, said Thursday the company wants Massachusetts residents and policymakers to know it supports collecting state and local taxes on behalf of its hosts, as it does in many other jurisdictions.

The proposal is included in a Senate-passed economic development bill.

Republican Gov. Charlie Baker has criticized the measure as too broad because it could also apply to vacation rentals. But he’s expressed support for what he calls a level playing field for the lodging industry.