“Airbnb, you’re no good. Pay your taxes like you should. Airbnb, you’re no good. Pay your taxes like you should,” protestors chanted outside of Airbnb on Wednesday.
Airbnb sued San Francisco last year to recover 120 million dollars in back taxes. They say they overpaid in 2019 because the city taxed them incorrectly.
A coalition of over 20 groups, including several unions, organized the protest. They’ve been pressuring Airbnb to drop the suit for months. They see the company as contributing to the city’s housing crisis and say dropping the lawsuit would help the city’s deficit, and protect important community services.
One of the organizers, Theresa Rutherford, President of SEIU 1021 says, “ Our goal also is to guide Airbnb into doing the right thing and to remember that you're a business and your business only thrives because of the people who participate in that business.”
Airbnb insists that they are paying their fair share of taxes. In a written statement, the company said they’ve contributed more than 3.8 billion dollars in total tax revenue to the state last year alone.
