The Lake County Board of Supervisors on a split 3–2 vote approved the first reading of an ordinance to implement a low-value property tax exemption and voted to advance the draft to the next meeting for possible adoption.

County staff told the board the procedural move is needed now so an expected vendor (identified in the transcript as 'Megabyte') can schedule software changes and so the ordinance could take effect for the current tax roll. A county staff presenter said the proposal would take low-value parcels — generally those assessed at $5,000 or less — off future tax billing, and that about 13,000 parcels across the county meet that threshold, with roughly 3,000–4,000 currently in tax default. The staff estimate for continuing delinquent noticing and auction activity ran to an "estimated $2 million–$2.5 million," and staff said initial mailing costs are roughly $1 per parcel, while delinquent certified letters and related steps produce much higher per-parcel costs.

The board debate centered on two trade-offs: reducing recurring administrative costs for the county and the potential loss of parcels as tools for future land-use or stewardship projects. Supervisor Owen asked whether removing parcels from the roll would prevent the county from later combining lots for parks or trails; county staff responded that, if the ordinance passes, those lots "will fall off the roll" and would not receive tax bills (staff comments). Finance staff cautioned they lacked authority to carry out land-use or consolidation remedies and said repeated auctioning of small parcels imposes general-fund costs.

Supervisor Sabatier, who opposed advancing the ordinance today, presented GIS maps and said the measure would have concentrated effects in specific communities. "We are going to give up on almost 14,000 properties in some of the lowest income communities," Sabatier said, framing the proposal as an environmental-justice and community-impact concern and urging the board to seek upstream solutions and targeted stewardship instead.

Alan Flora, city manager of Clear Lake, told the board he hopes the county will not move forward with the first reading and said his data show about 3,380 city parcels would qualify under the $5,000 threshold — roughly 23.3% of Clear Lake's parcels. "That's 23.3% of the parcels in the city would be taken off the tax roll," Flora said, warning of "ripple effects of negative impacts" if the county advances countywide rules without city-specific options.

Elizabeth Larson, a Lucerne resident, described 'paper lots' as a long-standing regional problem and urged public-private partnerships, zoning approaches or agreements with cities so that affected parcels could be stewarded as green space or consolidated rather than simply allowed to drop off the tax roll.

County counsel read the ordinance title aloud before the vote: "An ordinance amending Article 8 of Chapter 18 of the Lake County Code to implement a low-value property tax exemption." A procedural motion to approve the first reading (title-only) passed 3–2. A second motion to advance the draft ordinance to the next Board of Supervisors meeting for consideration and possible adoption also passed 3–2.

The board did not record individual member roll-call votes in the portion of the transcript provided; the audio and minutes logged the tally as "motion carries 3–2." The item will return for a second reading at the board's next scheduled meeting, when supervisors will have another opportunity to consider alternate proposals that staff said are being developed in coordination with the City of Clear Lake.

What happens next: County staff said they will present any developed alternatives before the second reading so the board can question and consider them; staff also noted a separate discharge mechanism may address existing tax-defaulted parcels but that such a pathway was not part of the ordinance before the board at this meeting.