Memorandum
Date: February 10, 2026
To: The Honorable Lake County Board of Supervisors
From: Luke Bingham, Director of Emergency Services (Lake County Sheriff)
Stephen L. Carter, Jr., Assistant County Administrative Officer
Subject: Consideration of a Resolution Increasing Reserve Cancelation Making Additional Funding Available for Robin Lane Sewage Release Event Response and Streamlining Processes, by Amending Resolution 2026-08 Amending Resolution 2025-118 Adopting Final Budget for Fiscal Year 2025-2026 to Cancel $500,000 in Reserve Designations in Disaster Response and Recovery (Fund 110) and Transfer to LACOSAN SE Regional System (Fund 254) to Increase Reserve Cancelation by $1,000,000 and Remove Transfer to LACOSAN SE Regional System
Executive Summary:
On Sunday, January 11, 2026, Lake County Special Districts was made aware of a sewer spill coming from a compromised force main pipeline near Robin Lane and Pond Road in the City of Clearlake. Once the affected area was repaired and cleaned up, water tests from 151 sites were collected to understand the status of the water in the wells of affected properties and gain greater understanding of the water table (approximately 517 total water samples completed as of February 5). As data was gathered, the footprint of the emergency was adjusted to promote public health and safety.
The Incident Command team has been active in seeking mid-and-long term solutions to ensure community members have access to safe water. The Incident Command team has engaged in a number of strategies including installing water tanks, providing water, and seeking filtration systems.
In an effort to streamline processes and effectively track costs, we are seeking your Board’s concurrence to alter the payment structure, making payments for these activities out of the Disaster Response and Recovery fund (Fund 110), rather than the LACOSAN SE fund (Fund 254).
To facilitate this change, we are asking that your Board reverse the transfer originally approved on January 21st and appropriate those funds in Disaster Response and Recovery (Fund 110). Additionally, to ensure funds are available for long-term recovery options, we are seeking to increase the overall amount made available via Fund 110 from $750,000 to $1,750,000.
Therefore, we are requesting your Board authorize Cancelling an additional $1,000,000 in reserves from Fund 110 (Budget Unit 1920 Disaster Response and Recovery) and increase appropriations into account 719.28-30 (special departmental expense / supplies and services) by $1,750,000.
If not budgeted, fill in the blanks below only:
Estimated Cost: $1,750,000 Amount Budgeted: ________ Additional Requested: $1,000,000 Future Annual Cost: ________
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☐ Well-being of Residents ☐ Public Safety ☒ Disaster Prevention, Preparedness, Recovery
☐ Economic Development ☐ Infrastructure ☐ County Workforce
☐ Community Collaboration ☐ Business Process Efficiency ☐ Clear Lake
Recommended Action: Adopt Resolution Amending Resolution 2026-08 Amending Resolution 2025-118 Adopting Final Budget for Fiscal Year 2025-2026 to Cancel $500,000 in Reserve Designations in Disaster Response and Recovery (Fund 110) and Transfer to LACOSAN SE Regional System (Fund 254) to Increase Reserve Cancelation by $1,000,000 and Remove Transfer to LACOSAN SE Regional System.