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LAKE COUNTY, Calif. – The Board of Supervisors is seeking applicants to fill vacancies on the newly formed Lake County Agriculture Advisory Committee.

The purpose of this board is to focus on the county’s agricultural industry for the purposes of advising the board regarding the needs and interests of all local ag stakeholders.

Interested parties must fall under the categories of crop owner, organic farmer or ag processor.

Applications are online at www.lakecountyca.gov on the Board of Supervisors’ page or at the Lake County Courthouse, Clerk of the Board Office, Room 109, 255 North Forbes St., Lakeport.

Please note that membership on the committee is voluntary.
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Gov. Gavin Newsom has announced a series of improvements to the state’s vaccination plan. Incorporating lessons learned from efforts to increase the pace of vaccination, these new steps will make it easier for people to know when they are eligible for vaccination and how to make an appointment, accelerate the administration of vaccines on hand and improve the state’s ability to track vaccination data.

California has tripled the pace of vaccinations from 43,459 per day on Jan. 4 to 131,620 on Jan. 15, the state reported.

The 10-day effort to ramp up vaccinations exposed key improvements needed to administer even more vaccines when increased supply becomes available.

On Monday, Gov. Newsom announced actions to address these challenges by simplifying the eligibility framework, standardizing vaccine information and data and ensuring the available supply of vaccine is administered as quickly as possible.

“Vaccines are the light at the end of the tunnel, and I am focused on taking the steps needed to get Californians safely vaccinated as quickly as possible,” said Newsom. “Our public health and health care systems have done heroic work administering more than 2.4 million vaccinations thus far. To reach the pace needed to vaccinate all Californians in a timely manner, we are simplifying and standardizing the process statewide.”

Moving forward, there will be a single statewide standard and movement through the tiers. The state will continue through 65+, health care workers, and prioritize emergency services, food and agriculture workers, teachers and school staff.

From there, the state will transition to age-based eligibility, allowing California to scale up and down quickly, while ensuring vaccine goes to disproportionately impacted communities.

Leveraging California’s spirit of innovation and technology, the state is also launching My Turn, a new system for Californians to learn when they are eligible to be vaccinated and a place to make an appointment when eligible as well as a mechanism to easily track vaccination data.

Through My Turn, individuals will be able to sign up for a notification when they are eligible to make an appointment and schedule one when it is their turn. Providers will be able to use My Turn to automatically share data on vaccines received and administered with the state, reducing lag times.

Technology from California companies Salesforce and Skedulo, and implementation by Accenture, are the foundation for My Turn. It is currently being piloted in Los Angeles and San Diego counties and is expected to be available statewide in early February.

Based on recent learnings, the governor has also directed his administration’s vaccine team to move to a unified statewide network that aligns the health care system, providers and counties with the strengths of each part of the health care system and ensures equitable and efficient vaccine administration, with a focus on communities disproportionately affected by COVID-19.

This effort will be implemented in partnership with counties and local health districts. It will control variability and maintain consistency and accountability. The details of the system will be forthcoming this week.

To increase available supply based on existing in-state vaccines, the Department of Public Health announced a process that will allow for the reallocation of vaccines from providers who have not used at least 65 percent of their available supply on hand for a week and have not submitted a plan for administering the remaining vaccine to prioritized populations within four days of notice.

Increasing the vaccine supply is the state’s top priority for the federal government as California accelerates the pace of vaccination.

To date, California has received more than four million doses of COVID-19 vaccine, roughly enough for two million people at two doses each.

California has 3 million health care workers and nursing home residents, 6 million people 65+, and 2.5 million Californians who work in education and child care, emergency services and food and agriculture.

In a Jan. 19 letter to President Biden, the governor named vaccines as California’s paramount priority with the Biden Administration.

At the ramped-up pace, California vaccinates about 120,000 Californians a day and is on pace to deliver toward President Biden’s goal of 100 million vaccines in 100 days, if supply persists, and the Newsom Administration said it is committed to striving to vaccinate even more.
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Caltrans reported that it is installing reflective backplates at more than 5,500 signalized intersections across California.

These retroreflective bordered backplates – yellow reflective strips placed around the perimeter of traffic signals – increase traffic signal visibility during morning hours, at night, or during a loss of power.

Caltrans began installing the backplates in 2019 following an increase in power outages due to weather and wildland fire danger.

So far they have installed the backplates at nearly 900 intersections along state highways.

The backplates also make it easier to see the signals during the day.

The U.S. Department of Transportation’s Federal Highway Administration reports that reflective backplates have reduced late night and early morning collisions at intersections by 50 percent.
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LAKE COUNTY, Calif. – The National Weather Service said a “significant” storm system is on its way to Northern California, bringing with it the expectation of rain into next week and the potential for snow in higher elevations across the North Coast region.

Forecasters issued a winter storm warning that will be in effect from 2 p.m. Tuesday through noon on Wednesday.

It warns of a strong and cold storm system that will move across the region, bringing heavy snow above the 1,500-foot elevation level, along with wind gusts of up to 50 miles per hour.

More specifically, the forecast calls for snowfall above the 2,500- to 3,000-foot elevation level in both Lake and Mendocino counties.

The National Weather Service has issued an additional winter weather advisory above 2,500 feet for southern Lake County to account for more minor snow accumulations along Highway 175.

Additional rain and snow is expected into the weekend, with the forecast calling for rainfall amounts of 2 to 4 inches in lower elevations just through Thursday.

The specific Lake County forecast calls for rain and snow after 10 a.m. Tuesday, with little or no snow accumulation and wind gusts of above 20 miles per hour.

On Tuesday night, rain is expected to be heavy, with between 1 and 2 inches in the forecast. Winds are forecast to be nearly 40 miles per hour in some higher elevations.

Up to an inch of rain is anticipated over the course of Wednesday during the day and at night, with more than a quarter of an inch possible on Thursday.

Chances of rain are forecast from Friday through Monday.

Temperatures overnight Tuesday were forecast to be in the mid-20s, with nighttime temperatures in the 30s and the high 40s through the end of the week, and daytime temperatures expected to edge into the low 50s early next week.

Email Elizabeth Larson at This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.. Follow her on Twitter, @ERLarson, or Lake County News, @LakeCoNews.
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LAKE COUNTY, Calif. – A Ukiah man died early Sunday in a solo vehicle crash near Lakeport.

Lt. Corey Paulich of the Lake County Sheriff’s Office identified the man who died as Quinn Williams, 22.

The California Highway Patrol’s Clear Lake Area office said in a Monday report that at 12:05 a.m. Sunday Williams was driving his black 2014 Jeep Cherokee southbound on Highway 29 north of 11th St. in Lakeport at an unknown speed.

Williams’ Jeep veered left into the dirt center median, then veered back to the right, crossing the southbound lanes of Highway 29, the CHP said.

The CHP said the Jeep continued to the right, traveling onto the dirt shoulder where it hit a tree. It then hit a fence before overturning and coming to rest on Mountview Road.

Firefighters responding to the scene early Sunday found the Jeep in the 1500 block of Mountview Road, near the intersection with Scotts Valley Road, according to reports from the scene. The crash had been reported by someone who heard it.

Williams was ejected from the Jeep and succumbed to his injuries at the scene, the CHP said.

An inspection of the Jeep revealed that Williams’ seatbelt was not worn during the collision, according to the CHP report.

It is unknown if drugs or alcohol contributed to this collision, the CHP said.

Email Elizabeth Larson at This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.. Follow her on Twitter, @ERLarson, or Lake County News, @LakeCoNews.
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LAKE COUNTY, Calif. – Lake County Animal Care and Control has two young male cats ready to be adopted this week.

The following cats at the shelter have been cleared for adoption.

Call Lake County Animal Care and Control at 707-263-0278 or visit the shelter online at http://www.co.lake.ca.us/Government/Directory/Animal_Care_And_Control.htm for information on visiting or adopting.

“Simon” is a young male domestic medium hair cat in cat room kennel No. 111, ID No. 14302. Photo courtesy of Lake County Animal Care and Control.

‘Simon’

“Simon” is a young male domestic medium hair cat with a gray and black tabby coat.

He is in cat room kennel No. 111, ID No. 14302.

“Alvin” is a young male domestic medium hair cat in cat room kennel No. 111, ID No. 14304. Photo courtesy of Lake County Animal Care and Control.

‘Alvin’

“Alvin” is a young male domestic medium hair cat with a black and brown tabby coat.

He is in cat room kennel No. 111, ID No. 14304.

Email Elizabeth Larson at This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.. Follow her on Twitter, @ERLarson, or Lake County News, @LakeCoNews.
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LAKE COUNTY, Calif. – On Monday, the California Employment Development Department provided an update on its efforts to get unemployment benefits to those struggling due to the COVID-19 pandemic while stopping a multibillion-dollar wave of fraud against the unemployment system that has increased over the past year.

Investigations across the state – including in Lake County – have uncovered tens of thousands of cases of unemployment benefit fraud that state officials are estimating total at least $11 billion, and could be as much as $30 billion.

In November, the California District Attorneys Association wrote to Gov. Gavin Newsom to ask him to become personally involved “in halting what appears to be the most significant fraud on taxpayer funds in California history.”

The group reported that district attorneys and federal prosecutors, along with local, state and federal law enforcement, “have discovered that there is rampant and large-scale pandemic unemployment assistance fraud occurring in our communities, in the jails and in state and federal prison.”

The Lake County District Attorney’s Office has confirmed to Lake County News that it is investigating numerous EDD fraud cases that emanated from the Lake County Jail.

In its Monday report, the EDD said that between March 2020 and January 16, 2021, it processed 19.5 million claims and paid out $114 billion in unemployment benefits.

EDD confirmed that 9.7 percent of payments – or more than $11 billion – have been made to fraudulent claims.

It also identified that up to an additional 17 percent of payments – totaling $19 billion – made during this time have been made to potentially fraudulent claims. The EDD said these claims are under investigation.

The state said the estimates it provided on Monday “are likely to shift as new claims come in and as older claims that have been flagged as suspicious are either validated or confirmed as
fraudulent.”

EDD estimated that the department’s existing fraud screening measures and new security protections put into place last fall prevented up to $60 billion in payments to fraudulent claims.

“EDD is now working with some of the country’s most successful fraud prevention businesses and law enforcement agencies to protect the state’s unemployment benefit system,” said California Labor and Workforce Development Agency Secretary Julie Su. “We know that many Californians are waiting on payments, and EDD is working quickly to validate their claims and get their benefits to them.”

EDD said it experienced more than five times as many unemployment claims in 2020 than in 2010, the worst full year of the Great Recession, and processed as many claims within the first eight weeks of the pandemic shut down as it did during all of 2010.

Nationally, unemployment systems paid more than $500 billion to unemployment benefits in 2020, according to a draft report by the National Association of State Workforce Agencies.

The EDD said California processed a record amount of unemployment benefit claims in 2020, primarily driven by the COVID-19 pandemic. “This flood of activity provided a window of opportunity for thieves.

California has been hit hard by fraud from international and national crime syndicates particularly targeting the federal Pandemic Unemployment Assistance, or PUA, program.

“EDD was clearly under-prepared for the type and magnitude of criminal attacks and the sheer quantity of claims,” said Rita Saenz, the state’s new EDD director, who Gov. Newsom appointed in December. “We are focused on making the changes necessary to provide benefits to eligible Californians as quickly as possible and stopping fraud before it enters the system.”

Nationally, 35 percent of unemployment applications are fraudulent, according to ID.me.

The U.S. Department of Labor said California’s PUA program was particularly susceptible to fraud because it did not require income or employment verification upfront and allowed claimants to back-date their claim to February.

As of Monday, the EDD estimated that roughly 95 percent of the known fraudulent payments in California were made to PUA claims. The remaining 5 percent is associated with California’s existing Unemployment Insurance, or UI, program.

By comparison, in 2019, fraud accounted for about 6 percent of California’s total UI payments, the EDD said.

California has become one of the first five states to implement ID.me to prevent fraud in the unemployment system, said Blake Hall, CEO of ID.me.

Hall said the fraud targeting PUA programs is a national problem, calling it a crisis that “transcends any one state.”

On Monday, Hall said 21 states are either live with ID.me or in the final stages of implementation, noting that the program is blocking about $1 billion in fraud per week across the states it serves.

“The fraud rate for new claims is at least 35 percent and over ten times what we see at federal agencies,” Hall said.

The Newsom administration has come under fire due to the fraud issue. However, on Monday, the EDD maintained that last summer Newsom had set up a task force led by California’s Office of Emergency Services and law enforcement agencies to investigate fraud.

The agency said that beginning in October it instituted secure measures to verify claimants’ identity through the ID.me program to increase both claim efficiency and fraud detection, and expanded its contract with security firm Thomson Reuters to provide industry best practices to identify fraud.

In a legislative approach to ending the fraud, last month, State Senate Republican Leader Shannon Grove (R-Bakersfield) introduced a bill to mandate that EDD make it a standard practice to regularly cross check unemployment claims against records in state prisons.

Grove, who accused Newsom’s administration of allowing fraud to run rampant in state prisons, also at that time delivered a letter supporting the California District Attorneys Association letter to the governor weeks earlier, and demanded that Newsom provide them adequate resources to investigate and prosecute EDD fraud cases.

Grove’s bill, SB 39, was introduced in the State Senate on Dec. 7. It cites an estimated 35,000 Pandemic Unemployment Assistance claims that were filed on behalf of inmates between March and August of 2020, noting that half of those claims were paid despite the individuals being ineligible under current law.

State Senate records show that the bill has been sent to committee to be referred for assignment.

Email Elizabeth Larson at This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.. Follow her on Twitter, @ERLarson, or Lake County News, @LakeCoNews.
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LAKE COUNTY, Calif. – The Board of Supervisors this week will get updates on a program to help local businesses, hear a report from the county’s Economic Development Task Force and consider if it should keep its chambers closed for in-person meetings due to COVID-19 case numbers.

The‌ ‌meeting‌ ‌will‌ ‌begin‌ ‌at‌ ‌9‌ ‌a.m.‌ ‌Tuesday,‌ ‌Jan. 26, and will be available to the public virtually only.
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The‌ ‌meeting‌ ‌can‌ ‌be‌ ‌watched‌ ‌live‌ ‌on‌ ‌Channel‌ ‌8,‌ ‌online‌ ‌at‌ ‌https://countyoflake.legistar.com/Calendar.aspx‌‌ ‌and‌ ‌on‌ ‌the‌ ‌county’s‌ ‌Facebook‌ ‌page.‌ ‌Accompanying‌ ‌board‌ ‌documents,‌ ‌the‌ ‌agenda‌ ‌and‌ ‌archived‌ ‌board‌ ‌meeting‌ ‌videos‌ ‌also‌ ‌are‌ ‌available‌ ‌at‌ ‌that‌ ‌link.‌ ‌

To‌ ‌participate‌ ‌in‌ ‌real-time,‌ ‌join‌ ‌the‌ ‌Zoom‌ ‌meeting‌ ‌by‌ ‌clicking‌ ‌this‌ ‌link‌ ‌at‌ ‌9‌ ‌a.m.‌ ‌The‌ ‌meeting‌ ‌ID‌ ‌is‌ ‌970 3380 5090,‌ ‌password‌ 365441.‌ ‌The meeting also can be accessed via on tap mobile at +16699006833,,97033805090#,,,,*365441# US (San Jose).

All interested members of the public that do not have internet access or a Mediacom cable subscription are encouraged to call 669-900-6833, and enter the Zoom meeting ID and passcode information above.
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To‌ ‌submit‌ ‌a‌ ‌written‌ ‌comment‌ ‌on‌ ‌any‌ ‌agenda‌ ‌item‌ ‌please‌ ‌visit‌ ‌https://countyoflake.legistar.com/Calendar.aspx‌‌ ‌and‌ ‌click‌ ‌on‌ ‌the‌ ‌eComment‌ ‌feature‌ ‌linked‌ ‌to‌ ‌the‌ ‌meeting‌ ‌date.‌ ‌If‌ ‌a‌ ‌comment‌ ‌is‌ ‌submitted‌ ‌after‌ ‌the‌ ‌meeting‌ ‌begins,‌ ‌it‌ ‌may‌ ‌not‌ ‌be‌ ‌read‌ ‌during‌ ‌the‌ ‌meeting‌ ‌but‌ ‌will‌ ‌become‌ ‌a‌ ‌part‌ ‌of‌ ‌the‌ ‌record.‌ ‌

At 9:06 a.m., Public Health Officer Dr. Gary Pace will give the board an update on COVID-19.

At 10 a.m., the board will receive a report on the Lake County CARES Small Business Grant Program and at 11 a.m. will hold a public hearing on the appeal of a vicious animal abatement case.

In untimed items, the board will get an update on the upcoming sale of tax-defaulted properties and get the first-quarter report from the Economic Development Task Force.

Also on Tuesday, the board will reconsider the temporary closure of the Board of Supervisors Chambers for in-person meetings, an action it took earlier this month due to the COVID-19 cas surge.

The full meeting agenda follows.

CONSENT AGENDA

5.1: (a) Waive the formal bidding process, pursuant to Lake County Code Section 38.2, as it is not in the public interest due to the unique nature of goods or services; and (b) approve the first amendment to the agreement between the county of Lake and North Valley Behavioral Health LLC for Fiscal Year 2020-21 to increase the contract maximum to $800,000 and authorize the board chair to sign the agreement.

5.2: (a) Waive the formal bidding process, pursuant to Lake County Code Section 38.2, as it is not in the public interest due to the unique nature of goods or services; and (b) approve the agreement between the county of Lake and Redwood Community Services Inc. for the MHSA Transitional Age Youth Drop-In Center for Fiscal Year 2020-21 for compensation for services provided in Fiscal Year 2019-20 for a contract maximum of $165,000 and authorize the board chair to sign the agreement.

5.3: (a) Waive the formal bidding process pursuant to Lake County Code Section 38.2, as it is not in the public interest due to the unique nature of goods or services; and (b) approve the agreement between the county of Lake and Sutter Center for Psychiatry for Acute Inpatient Psychiatric Hospital Services and Professional Services associated with acute inpatient psychiatric hospitalizations for Fiscal Year 2020-21 for a contract maximum of $250,000 and authorize the board chair to sign the agreement.

5.4: (a) Waive the formal bidding process, pursuant to Lake County Code Section 38.2, as it is not in the public interest due to the unique nature of goods or services; and (b) approve the agreement between the county of Lake and Redwood Community Services Inc. for the Family Stabilization Program provided at The Nest for Fiscal Year 2020-21 for coverage of services provided during Fiscal Year 2019-20 for a contract maximum of $132,400.00 and authorize the board chair to sign the agreement.

5.5: Adopt resolution authorizing amendment to the agreement between Lake County Behavioral Health Services and California Department of Health Care Services for substance use disorder services and authorize the Behavioral Health Services director to sign the amendment.

5.6: Approve minutes of the Board of Supervisors meetings on Sept. 22, Nov. 17, Dec. 1, Dec. 8, Dec. 15 and Jan. 19.

5.7: Adopt resolution approving right of way certification for middletown multi-use path project, State project no. ATPL-5914(102) and authorizing the Public Works director to sign the certification.

5.8: Approve memorandum of understanding between Social Services and Behavioral Health Services, from July 1, 2020, to June 30, 2021, for CalWORKs mental health and substance abuse services, and authorize the chair to sign.

5.9: A) Approve the FY 2020 Emergency Management Performance Grant application in the amount of $138,093, (B) authorize Sheriff Brian Martin to sign the grant subaward face sheet, the authorized agent document and the subrecipient grants management assessment form; (C) authorize County Administrative Officer Carol J. Huchingson to act as the authorized agent on behalf of the county to sign the standard assurances and initial each page, the lobbying certification and the FFATA financial disclosure document and (D) authorize the chairperson of the Board of Supervisors to sign the certification of the governing body resolution.

5.10: (a) Approve letter of agreement between the Lake County Sheriff's Office and the Drug Enforcement Administration of the United States Department of Justice in the amount of $275,000 for the period Oct. 1, 2020, to Sept. 30, 2021; and (b) authorize sheriff to sign the agreement and (c) authorize the chairman to sign workplace certifications and grant assurances.

5.11: (A) Approve the FY 2020 Homeland Security application in the amount of $141,753, (B) authorize Sheriff Brian Martin to sign the grant subaward face sheet, the authorized agent document and the subrecipient grants management assessment form; (C) authorize County Administrative Officer Carol J. Huchingson to act as the authorized agent on behalf of the county to sign the standard assurances and initial each page, the lobbying certification and the FFATA financial disclosure document and (D) authorize the chairperson of the Board of Supervisors to sign the certification of the governing body resolution.

5.12: Approval of background investigation contract with Robert Nishiyama.

5.13: (a) Waive the competitive bid process under Ordinance #2406, Section 38.2 as it is not in the public interest due to the unique nature of the goods; and (b) approve the Special Districts Administrator acting as the assistant purchasing agent to issue and sign a purchase order in the amount not to exceed $65,000 to Carbon Activated Corp, USA for the removal and replacement of 32,000 pounds spent media from two GAC filter systems in CSA #20 Soda Bay Water.

5.14: (a) Adopt resolution revising the Fiscal Year 2020-2021 Adopted Budget of the County of Lake by cancelling reserves in Fund 253 Middletown Sewer O&M Reserve Designation, in the amount of $5,000 to make appropriations in the Budget Unit 8353, Object Code 62-74 to pay for generators for Middletown Sewer Lift Stations No. 1 and No. 2.

TIMED ITEMS

6.2, 9:06 a.m.: Consideration of update on COVID-19.

6.3, 9:30 a.m.: Consideration of resolution adopting a Lake County cannabis equity assessment and adopting the Lake Local Equity Program and Program Manual .

6.4, 10 a.m.: Consideration of a report on the Lake County CARES Small Business Grant Program.

6.5, 11 a.m.: Public hearing, appeal of Vicious Animal Abatement Case Number #223, located at 9003 Fairway Kelseyville, CA 95451 (Diana Peterson).

UNTIMED ITEMS

7.2: Consideration of update on upcoming sale of tax defaulted properties.

7.3: Sitting as the Lake County Air Quality Management District Board of Directors: Request re-appointment of nancy perrin to the Lake County Air Quality Management District Hearing Board pursuant to Health and Safety Code.

7.4: Consideration of first quarter report from Economic Development Task Force.

7.5: Reconsideration of temporary closure of the Board of Supervisors Chambers for in-person meetings.

7.6: Consideration of the following advisory board appointments: Fish and Wildlife Advisory Committee, East Region Town Hall.

CLOSED SESSION

8.1: Conference with legal counsel: Existing litigation pursuant to Government Code section 54956.9(d)(1) – City of Clearlake v. County of Lake, et al.

8.2: Conference with legal counsel: Decision whether to initiate litigation pursuant to Government Code section 54956.9 (d)(4) – One potential case.

8.3: Conference with legal counsel: Significant exposure to litigation pursuant to Government Code section 54956.9 (d)2), (e)(3) – One potential case.

Email Elizabeth Larson at This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.. Follow her on Twitter, @ERLarson, or Lake County News, @LakeCoNews.
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A pile burning operation. Photo courtesy of the Bureau of Land Management.

LAKE COUNTY, Calif. – The Bureau of Land Management Ukiah Field Office, in cooperation with Cal Fire Sonoma Lake Napa Unit, plans to conduct prescribed fire operations in the Black Forest along Soda Bay Road, on the northeast side of Mount Konocti in Kelseyville.

Pile burn operations are scheduled to start the week of Jan. 24 and may continue periodically through the winter and spring.

Burning will take place only when weather and fuel moisture allow for safe and successful burning.

The prescribed fire is part of a shaded fuel break initiated in 2008 and is designed to improve landscape health and to remove hazardous fuels that could feed wildland fires within this wildland-urban interface, where public lands meet urban development.

Approximately 18 acres of undergrowth and small trees were hand-thinned by firefighters and piled last summer.

The Black Forest encompasses approximately 200 acres of BLM-managed public lands and supports many sensitive plants and animals as well as important watershed ecosystems, including a pristine Douglas fir forest.

The BLM is committed to keeping public landscapes healthy and productive. More information is available from the BLM Ukiah Field Office at 707-468-4000.
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Officials with the California Department of Public Health on Monday ended the regional stay at home order, lifting the order for all regions statewide, including the three regions that had still been under the order – San Joaquin Valley, Bay Area and Southern California.

Four-week ICU capacity projections for these three regions are above 15 percent, the threshold that allows regions to exit the order. The Sacramento Region exited the order on Jan. 12 and the Northern California region, which includes Lake County, never entered the order.

State officials said this action allows all counties statewide to return to the rules and framework of the Blueprint for a Safer Economy and color-coded tiers that indicate which activities and businesses are open based on local case rates and test positivity.

The majority of the counties are in the strictest, or purple tier. Tier updates are provided weekly on Tuesdays. Individual counties could choose to impose stricter rules.

Lake County Public Health Officer Dr. Gary Pace said the action offers “no change for us.”

He said that Lake and the northern counties have had fewer restrictions than the southern areas.

Pace said Lake County remains in the purple tier.

“Californians heard the urgent message to stay home as much as possible and accepted that challenge to slow the surge and save lives,” said Dr. Tomás Aragón, CDPH director and state public health officer. “Together, we changed our activities knowing our short-term sacrifices would lead to longer-term gains. COVID-19 is still here and still deadly, so our work is not over, but it’s important to recognize our collective actions saved lives and we are turning a critical corner.”

While there are positive signs that the virus is spreading at a slower rate across the state, the COVID-19 pandemic is far from over. It is still critical that Californians continue to wear masks when they leave their homes, maintain physical distance of at least 6 feet, wash their hands frequently, avoid gatherings and mixing with other households, follow all state and local health department guidance and get the vaccine when it’s their turn.

The state, in collaboration with local health departments and health care facilities statewide, took a long list of actions to support California’s hospitals and slow the surge in cases and hospitalizations.

The Regional Stay at Home Order urged Californians to stay home except for essential activities, which helped lower disease transmission levels and reduce burden on the hospital system.

California deployed more than 4,100 medical professionals to facilities across the state to ease the burden on frontline health care workers.

The state provided assistance within hospitals in the form of personal protective equipment, ventilators and help with oxygen supply.

California also helped hospitals expand their capacity by opening 16 alternate care sites, lower-acuity facilities where COVID-19 patients get a bridge from hospital to home as they are recovering.

Public health leaders implemented a statewide order to make it easier to transfer patients from over-crowded hospitals to those with more space and staff.

The administration of vaccines to health care workers has meant that fewer health care workers are falling ill to the virus, which helps keep staffing levels more stable.

“California is slowly starting to emerge from the most dangerous surge of this pandemic yet, which is the light at the end of the tunnel we’ve been hoping for,” said California Health and Human Services Secretary Dr. Mark Ghaly. “Seven weeks ago, our hospitals and front-line medical workers were stretched to their limits, but Californians heard the urgent message to stay home when possible and our surge after the December holidays did not overwhelm the health care system to the degree we had feared.”

Nearly all the counties exiting the Regional Stay at Home Order today are in the Purple or widespread (most restrictive) tier. Services and activities, such as outdoor dining and personal services, may resume immediately with required modifications, subject to any additional restrictions required by local jurisdictions. See the county map to find the status of activities open in each county.

Because case rates remain high across most of the state, the state’s Hospital Surge Order remains in place to prevent hospitals from becoming overwhelmed. The Limited Stay at Home Order, which limits non-essential activities between the hours of 10 p.m. and 5 a.m., expires with the Regional Stay At Home Order ending.
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LAKE COUNTY, Calif. – The Clearlake Planning Commission is set this week to discuss a property donation to the city, a proposal for the county to swap a property it owns in the city limits to the state for a development project and committee appointments.

The commission will meet virtually beginning at 6 p.m. Tuesday, Jan. 26.

The agenda can be found here.

Submit comments and questions in writing for commission consideration by sending them to This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.. Identify the subject you wish to comment on in your email’s subject line.

Community members also can participate via Zoom.

To give the planning commission adequate time to review your questions and comments, please submit written comments prior to 6 p.m. Tuesday, Jan. 26.

The meet will be broadcast live on the Youtube channels for the city of Clearlake or Lake County PEG TV.

The commission is set to determine general plan consistency and determine whether environmental review is necessary for the conveyance of two properties.

The first is 0.120 acres located at 16564 Fourth Ave. which is being donated to the city by the only surviving owner who is part of Crown Holding Co., according to the staff report from City Manager Alan Flora. The city intends to include the property in its new Homestead property, in which it will be used for residential development.

The second property is 16.28 acres of county-owned property located at 15837 18th Ave.

The property is part of a proposed land swap between the county of Lake and the state of California. The county will receive the state-owned Lakeport Armory, which it intends to use for the new headquarters for the Lake County Sheriff’s Office.

In turn, Flora said the state will use the 18th Avenue property to facilitate the “City of Clearlake Affordable Housing and Economic Development Project.”

“This mixed-use development would potentially include multilevel income housing, recreational/open space areas, and commercial retail/medical offices (but will ultimately go through its own entitlement process),” Flora said in his report.

Also on the agenda is the consideration of appointments to fill the vacant positions on the Zoning Code Update Ad Hoc and Burns Valley Park Committees.

The commission’s members are Chair Kathryn Davis, Vice Chair Robert Coker and commissioners Lisa Wilson, Erin McCarrick and Fawn Williams.

Email Elizabeth Larson at This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.. Follow her on Twitter, @ERLarson, or Lake County News, @LakeCoNews.
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LAKE COUNTY, Calif. – One person was reported to have died early Sunday morning following a vehicle rollover near Lakeport.

The solo-vehicle wreck was reported shortly after 12 a.m. by someone who said they heard a loud crash, according to the California Highway Patrol.

The CHP said the crash was reported in the 1500 block of Mountview Road, near the intersection with Scotts Valley Road.

Firefighters arriving at the scene at around 12:15 a.m. found an overturned SUV with an unconscious male subject who had been ejected from the vehicle, according to radio reports.

An air ambulance was requested but a few minutes later the medic unit on scene reported that the patient had died, with the CHP’s online report confirming a fatality shortly thereafter.

The sheriff’s department was dispatched to respond to the scene because of the fatality, radio traffic indicated.

Additional details about the wreck were not immediately available early Sunday.

Email Elizabeth Larson at This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.. Follow her on Twitter, @ERLarson, or Lake County News, @LakeCoNews.

Email Elizabeth Larson at This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.. Follow her on Twitter, @ERLarson, or Lake County News, @LakeCoNews.

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