The Lake County Board voted unanimously on Dec. 1 to authorize a short-term loan of $390,000 to the Community Development Department's Building Division to cover payroll and operating needs after a sharp drop in building-permit revenue.

Community Development Director Maria Turner said the division had seen a significant decline in permits and that salaries and expenses combined left the division "just barely in the black." She told the board the loan was a temporary bridge to be repaid within the fiscal year as permit activity recovers: "We are requesting this temporary loan because the increase in, wages has made it necessary to address this prior to midyear budget," Turner said.

Multiple supervisors pressed for more clarity on what "other expenses" included and questioned the repayment plan and legality of using future permit revenues to repay current shortfalls. Deputy County Administrative Officer Myrna proposed that, if the loan were approved, the administrative office assume full signature authority over the Building Division budgets, require monthly or bimonthly budget meetings, and prohibit overtime until repayment is achieved or an alternative agreement is in place.

Public commenters urged caution and transparency. Tom Lasik said oversight was appropriate but said unanswered questions about repayment merited further review. Margo Kambara asked that the updated spreadsheet used by staff be posted with the agenda materials so the public could review it.

After discussion the board offered the resolution and approved it by unanimous roll call. Staff were directed to return to the Dec. 9 meeting with a detailed plan on repayment, oversight steps and any legal considerations raised during the hearing.

What the loan does: The short-term loan provides immediate liquidity to cover salaries and operating costs while the county works on a mid-year budget adjustment and oversight plan; administrative staff will have temporary budget authority to monitor spending and repayment.

Next steps: Staff will post the updated spreadsheet used in the hearing, implement the proposed administrative oversight steps if the loan is distributed, and bring back a detailed repayment and oversight plan to the Dec. 9 meeting.

Sources: Remarks by Maria Turner, Myrna (deputy county administrative officer) and public comments during the Dec. 1 Lake County Board meeting.