Updated Lake Tahoe vacation home ordinance passed by El Dorado County

EL DORADO COUNTY, Calif. - The El Dorado County Board of Supervisors have passed an updated vacation home rental (VHR) ordinance for the Lake Tahoe portion of the county.

In a unanimous vote Wednesday, the second reading of the ordinance passed, one that adds a ceiling on the number of permits allowed. Supervisor Sue Novasel had to recuse herself because of a resident's request that she do so due to her husband's investment company.

The new ordinance will limit the number of VHR permits to 900. The first draft of the ordinance had 1,050 as the recommended number but the supervisors thought a lower number would give more relief to local residents.

There are currently about 750 permits for VHRs either approved or pending in the county portion of Lake Tahoe. When it was first announced that the Board would be implementing a cap, twenty new applications were submitted. Should all permits be issued a waiting list will be created.

With numberous suspected unpermitted rentals currently operating, the county is working to get them on board by obtaining a permit. The new ordinance will not allow them to operate for one year (if permits are still available) and payment of past TOT and fees.

Enforcement of the rules continues to be stressed as the key to a successful VHR ordination. Falling under the Planning Department, a plan is being created on getting better enforcement. A new staff member is on board to spearhead this, but all enforcement employees are based in Placerville, sixty miles away from the rentals. The City of SLT has assisted them with their processes and Host Compliance, the company hired to get all rentals permitted and truthful with their status, can support on their end.

Currently, El Dorado County deputies respond to a phone call of noise and parking complaints. They then forward their reports to Planning.

"Enforcement is absolutely the key," Deputy Director of Tahoe Planning & Stormwater Division Brendan Ferry told the board. He said Planning is working on enforcement plans.

Supervisor John Hidahl agreed, saying, "the real issue is enforcement."

The Tahoe Regional Planning Agency (TRPA) has introduced new neighborhood
compatibility criteria in its Performance Review System to local jurisdictions
within the Tahoe Basin, including El Dorado County. They will use the methods and practices of a jurisdiction when giving out their annual building allotments. TRPA added this in order to address the effects of vacation home rentals on achieving the goals of the Regional Plan.

The Board asked that staff look into the clustering of VHRs and bring that back to them in 90 days.

New points of the ordinance:

Property owners that have a valid vacation home rental permit from the County
must demonstrate at the time of renewal that the property was rented in the prior
year if it’s not obvious in the associated Transient Occupancy Tax (TOT) returns.
Failure to demonstrate this may result in the permit not being renewed. This is to
prevent vacation home rental permits from being obtained with no intent to rent the property.

Renewals of existing permitted vacation home rentals in the Tahoe Basin, for
which a vacation rental permit was granted based on an application submitted on
or before November 1, 2020, shall not be limited based on the cap requirements.
An application to renew a permit for a vacation rental shall be submitted no sooner than 180 days before the expiration date of the existing permit, and no later than the date of expiration of that permit. Upon receipt of a complete application, the expiration of the existing permit shall be stayed until final action is taken on the renewal application.

Children five years of age or younger are not counted towards the occupancy limits. Occupancy may be lowered pursuant to the outcome of the fire and life safety inspection.

A bedroom shall only be recognized as such for purposes of this ordinance if it has been approved and inspected by the Building Official, and can be verified by
reference to the Assessor’s office.

Operation of a vacation home rental without a valid certified local contact, or without a valid contact phone number, or the failure to report a complaint and resolution shall be considered a violation.

Any vacation home rental found to be operating without a permit will not be permitted to obtain a permit until all past due transient occupancy taxes, penalties and interest are paid in full and will be precluded from applying for a vacation home rental permit or from being added to the waiting list for a one year period.

Other details, phone numbers and rules can be found here - https://www.edcgov.us/Government/planning/vhr.