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LAKEPORT, Calif. – Last week, more than a year after it approved a tobacco retailer licensing ordinance, the Lakeport City Council gave the go-ahead to an agreement with the county of Lake to enforce the ordinance’s requirements.
The council took the unanimous vote on the memorandum of understanding on Tuesday, March 3, following a lengthy discussion with representatives from Lake County Public Health and Environmental Health.
In December of 2024, the council approved the tobacco retailer licensing ordinance with a 4-1 vote, with Councilmember Kenny Parlet voting against it.
During last week’s meeting, City Manager Kevin Ingram asked the council to approve the memorandum of understanding, or MOU, which the council had directed staff to develop during the ordinance adoption process.
That MOU, he explained in his written report, will allow the county “to carry out licensing administration, compliance monitoring, inspections, and enforcement activities on behalf of the City.”
Liberty Francis of Lake County Public Health explained that county teams visited all retailers in the county that have a state tobacco retail license.
“We gave them not only the state regulations but a copy of the ordinance that was passed in each jurisdiction,” which Francis said is part of showing retailers “a united front” by the county’s governments.
“We gave them tools to better understand the flavor ban,” she said, referring to the state’s ban on the retail sale of flavored tobacco products, resulting from Senate Bill 793, which went into effect Jan. 1, 2023.
Last year, Health Services staff conducted what Francis called a store “observation” process that mimicked compliance checks. “A lot of our retailers were out of compliance at that time.”
Craig Wetherbee, director of Lake County Environmental Health, said the county’s ordinance went into effect on Jan. 1, 2025, with enforcement set to begin on July 1.
He said the goal was not to come in heavy-handed and begin giving fines to retailers. “It was all about education on the front end.”
Wetherbee confirmed there were “dozens of violations across multiple facilities” in the county’s unincorporated areas, but noted, “no formal enforcement has been conducted so far.”
Council members had questions about the process. Councilmember Stacey Mattina noted that after six months of training, some businesses still failed the initial compliance checks.
“There were violations. It’s not surprising. Education gets you so far,” said Wetherbee.
A first notice of violation tends to get people’s attention, he said, adding that there were not yet any fees or penalties being assessed. That’s due to a tiered system of enforcement that works to get compliance voluntarily.
“We don’t go to fines and penalties unless we have to,” Wetherbee said.
Parlet, who said he has been a tobacco retailer for 55 years, maintained his concerns about the impact on businesses and what he considers “onerous” rules.
He said he doesn’t want to run tobacco sellers out of business. “If they’re a problem, they need to go. I get that.”
Parlet wanted to make minor changes to the ordinance, turning instances of the word “shall” in enforcement to “may,” which he said would “soften the blow” and make it less heavy-handed.
However, Wetherbee said changes to the city ordinance would set up a completely separate inspection process. “The way we do enforcement would change,” and create an uneven playing field for businesses across the county, he said.
“It’s a very challenging ordinance to enforce as it sits, but it has teeth for a reason,” said Wetherbee, explaining that it mimics other jurisdictions around the state.
Lake County Health Services Director Anthony Arton said he and Wetherbee have been working on the ordinance for over two years. They got the cities and county together in order to have a unified approach. “That is why all the ordinances are very similar.”
To change it would add administrative expense and drive up licensing costs. Arton said it’s about improving health outcomes and enforcing flavor bans.
There were no inspections happening before the ordinances passed and now the county is getting state support, Arton said. “The county of Lake has been a model for the state of California. How cool is that?”
Councilmember Kim Costa said she wanted to see how enforcement rolls out. “I see the problem with just this one jurisdiction changing.”
“This is what I’m going to ask of you guys: Don’t change the ordinance,” said Arton, asking the council to give the county two years to work with retailers on culture change, with the goal of improving health outcomes for communities while ensuring tobacco isn’t sold to children.
“At the end of the day, I’m a scientist,” said Wetherbee, who is a biologist. In any scientific study you have to have data, he said. “That’s what our first year has been all about.”
Every time they do an inspection, they get more data. “Today we know more about what the businesses are doing,” he said, adding that he has learned a lot from the county’s retailers.
Arton said they will continue to use discretion with retailers, and will do enforcement with repeat violations after we have made the regulations clear. “I want businesses to be successful. That is our approach.”
Ingram said the MOU requires a yearly report, which will give the city an opportunity to evaluate it. He said the city will have the ability to change its ordinance if necessary.
Mattina said she and Councilmember Christina Price recently met with the Lakeport Unified School Board and Superintendent Matt Bullard, and the first thing that came up was the rampant use of vapes and the district’s challenges in getting a handle on that problem.
While students can still get the vapes in other places besides local retailers, “That motivates me to see this forward, keeping it consistent for now,” Mattina said of the MOU.
“Let’s see how it goes,” she said.
Parlet said he was “willing to go along for the ride” and Mayor Brandon Disney said he liked keeping the ordinance the way it is for now to keep consistency for how it’s rolled out, knowing they can revisit the ordinance.
Mattina moved to approve the MOU, with Costa seconding and the council voting 5-0.
Email Elizabeth Larson at elarson@lakeconews.com. Follow her on Twitter, @ERLarson, and on Bluesky, @erlarson.bsky.social. Find Lake County News on the following platforms: Facebook, @LakeCoNews; X, @LakeCoNews; Threads, @lakeconews, and on Bluesky, @lakeconews.bsky.social.
