Sonoma County is approving a new set of rules governing vacation rentals. The county Board of Supervisors okayed the rules during a special meeting on Monday. The rules regulate about 23 to 24-hundred vacation rentals and time shares outside of city limits. They limit where vacation rentals can be located and regulate fractional ownership of a property, which is when homes are owned by multiple people. The board also approved a business license program for vacation rental owners. Through the program, vacation rentals are required to stick to quiet hours, limits on outdoor amplified noise, parking caps, adhere to lighting requirements, and maintain a defensible space against wildfires, among other things. The board also approved escalating fines for violations that start at $15-hundred-dollars for the first violation and increase to $5-thousand-dollars for a third violation within a year.
Sonoma County Supervisors Approve New Vacation Rental Rules
