Sonora, CA — In January, the Tuolumne County Board of Supervisors voted 3-2 to direct staff to plan for the closure of the Mono Vista Fire Station 56 for the upcoming budget year beginning this July 1st.
It would eliminate six positions and reduce the county’s CAL Fire contract by $2.3 million. The action, with Supervisors Mike Holland, Steve Griefer, and Anaiah Kirk in favor, came in response to expiring Federal Safer Grant dollars that allowed for expanded fire services in recent years.
The board will vote whether to officially reduce the contract (and move forward with the closure) at Tuesday’s 9 am meeting.
Another item is direction on the allocation of the Fiscal Year 2026-27 Transient Occupancy Tax (TOT) spending.
TOT is a 12% tax placed on visitors to hotels and other guest lodging. Of the money collected, 16% goes to Visit Tuolumne County. The remaining dollars currently go to a General Revenue cost center in the General Fund.
A new proposal for the next budget year proposes to keep the Visitor’s Bureau at 16% ($1.57 million), and designate 27% to Sheriff ($2.65 million), 27% to Fire ($2.65 million), 27% to Roads ($2.65 million), and 3% to Library and Parks ($293,900). It is noted in the meeting documents that the 27% for roads would be tentatively phased in over a four year-period.
A legal complication is that TOT is a general tax and cannot be allocated to a specific item on a permanent basis, so the board needs to approve the allocation (percentages) each year.
The meeting will also have some closed session aspects, including more discussion on the hiring of a new Community Development Director.
There will also be a vote on amending the 2026 board meeting calendar.
The regular session starts at 9 am the closed sessions are planned for 10 am.
