The proposed cap on short-term rentals in West Marin goes before the California Coastal Commission next week, with the county’s self-imposed deadline for getting new rules on the books fast approaching. If the commission does not endorse the rules promptly, a surge of new rentals is likely to be registered after the county’s moratorium on new S.T.R.s expires on May 23. The regulations emerged after a year of hearings and community meetings that sharply divided communities across West Marin. Under the county’s new rules, the caps would be phased in gradually and would vary from community to community. In West Marin villages outside of Dillon Beach and Seadrift, the overall number of short-term rentals could eventually fall by 14 percent. But across those two vacation communities, the number of S.T.R.s could eventually rise by nearly 80 percent. The reductions, which would be achieved by attrition, would range from 4 percent in Marshall to 14 percent in Bolinas, but overall, the regulations would essentially maintain the status quo. Advocates of tighter limits argued that S.T.R.s were shrinking the supply of workforce housing, driving out long-term residents and fraying the community fabric. According to a county analysis, 79 percent of West Marin workers commute from outside the area, compared to 63 percent elsewhere in Marin. Nearly 48 percent of workers on the coast earn less than $40,000 a year and 23 percent spend more than half their income on housing. Opponents of tight restrictions said they depend on S.T.R.s to cover their mortgages and maintenance costs. Many were second-home owners who said they would be unlikely to rent their homes year-round if they could not rent them as Airbnbs. The commission is charged with ensuring access to the coast while protecting the environment. For its part, the commission staff concluded that the proposed regulations struck a reasonable balance between those goals and recommended that the commissioners approve them without changes. “STR regulation is not in staff’s view an all or nothing proposition, and the key is finding a balance that makes sense for both a community and visitors to it,” states a staff report prepared in advance of the April 11 meeting. “Ultimately, finding that balance can be an incredibly difficult process.” Public comments can be sent to the commission before 5 p.m. this Friday, April 5 at [email protected].