The El Dorado County Board of Supervisors took a series of votes on Oct. 20 that will send multiple items to follow‑up work, adopt fee schedules, and direct staff to return with revised documents.

The board approved collective administrative and regulatory steps that included forwarding an emissions rule change to the state, adopting a new county film‑permit fee schedule, rescinding a local tobacco licensing fee resolution and beginning the process to amend zoning language, and directing staff to work with the Historical Museum Commission on replacement governance documents.

Several of the items drew limited discussion; others prompted public comment or sustained debate. The meeting opened with a closed‑session report: the board reported a combined settlement of $177,500 for three claims and, on a 5‑0 vote, approved a one‑step salary increase for the director of library services relating to a performance evaluation. Those closed‑session outcomes were announced at the start of the public meeting.

Votes and formal outcomes at a glance
- Continue contested agenda item 41 to Nov. 4 — motion passed (vote recorded in the meeting as 4‑1). The board took public comment before adopting the agenda and then voted to continue item 41 to the Nov. 4 meeting. The subject drew multiple public speakers urging either removal or delay and drew objections from at least one supervisor who preferred to remove the matter entirely from the calendar.

- Consent calendar — approved with one recusal on item 27; board action to approve the consent calendar carried (vote recorded as passing). Multiple public speakers had asked to pull items 5 and 6 for further discussion; staff and members then discussed the surplus‑land process before the consent motion was made and seconded.

- Closed‑session report (items 51–54) — board announced settlement of three claims for a combined $177,500 and reported approval, 5‑0, of an increase from step 3 to step 4 on the salary schedule for the director of library services, effective with the next full pay period.

- AQMD Rule 239 (natural‑gas water heaters, <1,000,000 BTU/hr) — after an AQMD presentation explaining the rule’s role in regional ozone planning, the board adopted the resolution directing staff to forward the amended rule to the California Air Resources Board for submission to U.S. EPA (motion passed; vote recorded in the meeting as passing).

- Film permitting fee schedule (planning & building) — the board adopted a new fee schedule for film permits (application, daily filming, prep/strike) intended to recover county costs for a newly organized film permitting function and to support the county/Chamber film office partnership (motion passed; vote recorded in the meeting as passing).

- Resolution / ordinance steps for tobacco retailer regulation — the board approved introduction of an ordinance to repeal a tobacco retail ordinance, adopted a resolution of intention to initiate zoning changes related to tobacco retailers, and ordered refunds to affected applicants (motion carried 3‑2; board comments recorded opposing full repeal and urging modification rather than a repeal).

- Historical Museum Commission governance (item 46) — following extended public comment and testimony from the museum chair and commissioners, the board gave conceptual direction to staff to proceed with review (the motion was amended during discussion and approved: staff was directed to work with the commission on a replacement approach and return with a proposed resolution or ordinance language for further board consideration).

- Vacation home rental (VHR) ad hoc (West Slope) — the board established and appointed two supervisors to a VHR ad hoc committee to consider West Slope VHR issues (motion and appointment carried). The ad hoc’s expected scope was discussed on the record: buffers (attached and detached), detached guest‑space rules, code‑enforcement data (violations and types), and ensuring VHR rules do not conflict with related ordinances such as ADU provisions, ag‑lodging, and ranch‑marketing rules.

What’s next
Staff were directed in several cases to return with revised documents, reports or ordinance language for final consideration: the AQMD rule will be forwarded for state and federal review; the museum governance language will be drafted with the commission and returned for future board action; planning staff will implement the adopted film fees and provide tracking; and the VHR ad hoc will report back after stakeholder outreach.

The board recorded vote totals or passed measures when indicated in the public proceedings. Several measures passed with narrow margins and drew public comment, and the county reported it will continue to track and report findings back to the board before changes that would be implemented in policy or ordinance.

This summary lists outcomes recorded in the Oct. 20 meeting; details and documentary references are expected when staff return with the documents requested by the board.