Board of Supervisors - County of Santa Barbara - 11/10/26

The Santa Barbara County Board of Supervisors’ regular meeting on November 10, 2026, included a correction to the outside-counsel agreement with Jarvis Fay LLP: Administrative Item 20’s term was corrected to October 12, 2026, through no later than June 30, 2027. The Board approved the administrative agenda with Items A3 and A21 held for separate action. It also approved countywide Parks fee adjustments, projected to generate about $425,000 annually, effective January 1, 2027. Changes included resident/nonresident RV fees, revised camping and wedding fees, and a new planning pre-application fee limited to housing-element projects. The Board kept film-permit fees from increasing for one year, set differentiated courthouse wedding rates for county and non-county residents, provided veterans a discount matching the nonprofit rate at the Veterans Memorial Building, and retained the $50 rate for day-use groups of 25 or fewer. Staff will report back in about a year on resident/nonresident use and film-permit activity. These actions passed unanimously. The Board also approved a fire-code fee-schedule correction: the minor fire protection certificate fee is $576 and the major fee is $1,151; it directed a $575 refund to affected major-certificate applicants and no adjustment for minor-certificate applicants. The ordinance’s second reading was continued to November 17, 2026.

Other significant actions included unanimously approving a comment letter on the Santa Ynez Band of Chumash Indians’ San Carlos fee-to-trust application, with additions recognizing the tribe’s completed commitments and sustainability work, requesting a tribal liaison, and assigning Vice Chair Hartman to sign. The Board approved a remote-meeting access disruption policy and, by a 3–0–1 vote, amended the inclusionary housing ordinance to support nonprofit and housing-authority providers’ affordable-homeownership models. The Board also approved Maria Gardner’s appointment as Social Services director (announced salary: approximately $9,983.38 biweekly) and authorized a retirement-waiver arrangement to support the Victim Witness Assistance Program transition. No major capital contract award or competitive solicitation was considered.