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To Whom It May Concern:

Pursuant to the Louisiana Public Records Law, I hereby request the following records:

To Whom It May Concern,

I am a student and Tulane University conducting research. Under the Louisiana Public Records Act, I am requesting an opportunity to obtain the records of communications between city officials and representatives of Airbnb rental homes from March 1, 2020 to the date of this request. With specific regards to the agreement referred to in the New York Times article titles: “New Orleans Becomes New Model for Airbnb to Work With Cities.” The said article acknowledges how Airbnb reached a deal with the City of New Orleans to legalize short-term rentals. I am requesting documents that support the terms of the deal presented in the article.

One excerpt of the article that we request documents for emphasizes the statement “In New Orleans specifically, Airbnb agreed to share data — such as the names and addresses of its hosts — with the city, something the company has balked at doing elsewhere. Airbnb also agreed that its hosts must operate with a permit, with hosts automatically being registered with the city when they sign up to the service. In a nod to the local hotel industry, Airbnb will also ban almost all listings in the city’s historic French Quarter and set a 90-day annual cap for hosts who rent out entire homes.”
If there are any fees for searching or copying these records onto a compact disc, please inform me if the cost will exceed $50 (including any associated delivery/postage fees). This information is not being sought for commercial purposes.

Section 44:32(D) of the Louisiana Public Records Act requires a response within three business days. If access to the records I am requesting will take longer than that time period, please contact me with information about when I might expect electronic copies of the requested records.

If you deny any or all of this request, please cite each specific exemption you feel justifies the refusal to release the information and notify me of the appeal procedures available to me under the law.
Please feel free to call or email me with any questions on this request.

The requested documents will be made available to the general public, and this request is not being made for commercial purposes.

In the event that there are fees, I would be grateful if you would inform me of the total charges in advance of fulfilling my request. I would prefer the request filled electronically, by e-mail attachment if available or CD-ROM if not.

Thank you in advance for your anticipated cooperation in this matter. I look forward to receiving your response to this request within 3 business days, as the statute requires.

Sincerely,

Alexandra Kahn