Santa Barbara County, CA Property Maintenance: Vacant Lot Maintenance (2026)

Sec. 17-9(a) requires the owner or responsible party in control of any commercial or residential premises or private property in the unincorporated area to "at all times maintain the premises or private property free of litter or solid waste," with an exception in 17-9(b) for genuinely rural parcels where the litter clearly blew in from a public roadway, was dumped by someone else, was not produced on-site, and the county was given reasonable access to abate it. Sec. " The abatement path runs through Sec.

17-67: the Director of Public Works posts a notice on the lot at least ten days before a Board of Supervisors hearing, mails notice to the assessed owner, and the Board can then order the Director to remove the waste. If the Director finds the nuisance an immediate danger to health, safety or welfare, up to $5,000 in abatement can be authorized without waiting for a full hearing (Sec. 17-67(e)). Once the Board confirms an accounting of expenses under Sec. 17-71, the cleanup cost becomes a special assessment lien collected on the property tax bill, forwarded to the auditor-controller by August 1 following confirmation. The whole article, per Sec. 17-65, applies countywide across the unincorporated territory and controls over any conflicting, less restrictive provision.