Lassen County, CA Property Maintenance: Property Blight (2026)

Lassen County does not publish a single 'property maintenance' code; instead, blighting conditions in the unincorporated area are reached through Chapter 1.18 (Public Nuisances) of the County Code. Section 1.18.020 defines a public nuisance to include anything injurious to health or offensive to the senses, or any accumulation of trash, refuse, waste, junk (except as otherwise permitted), debris, garbage, rubbish and related matter, which by reason of its character and location is unsightly and interferes with the reasonable enjoyment of property by neighbors, or which detrimentally affects property value in the surrounding neighborhood, or which would hamper the prevention or suppression of fire. No person may cause, permit, or maintain such a public nuisance within the unincorporated territory of the county. Abandoned, wrecked, dismantled, or inoperative vehicles are handled separately under Chapter 1.19. Enforcement is administered by the Director of Planning and Building Services (Code Enforcement) and is largely complaint-driven. The chapter authorizes administrative penalties of up to one thousand dollars per day, abatement through a civil action by County Counsel including injunctive relief, and recovery of abatement and administrative costs as a priority lien placed on the County tax roll against the parcel. These rules apply only in the unincorporated county; the City of Susanville (the county's only incorporated city) enforces its own municipal code.