Modoc County, CA Short-Term Rentals: Registration Rules (2026)

Modoc County operates no vacation-rental registry, no rental-unit certificate, and no host-contact filing requirement for short-term rentals in the unincorporated area. The single registration obligation that touches transient lodging is tax-based: the County Tax Collector's published guidance states that when a lodging establishment opens for business in the unincorporated (outside Alturas City limits) area of Modoc County, the operator is required to register with the Tax Collector and collect the transient occupancy tax. This registration is what links the operator to the quarterly remittance schedule for the 4% TOT. The county does not publish a separate short-term rental application form, and the Planning Department's role is confined to zoning and discretionary Use Permit review rather than rental registration. Operators with questions about registering can reach the Tax Collector's office (ttc@co.modoc.ca.us). Because the county has not codified an STR ordinance, registration here means TOT registration only, not a land-use or safety registration of the kind larger California counties impose.