County of Monterey to host a public forum on county’s budget priorities Wednesday

MONTEREY COUNTY, Calif. (KION-TV) -- The County of Monterey is hosting an online public forum to discuss the county's budget priorities and different financial challenges that are facing the county.

This is after the county supervisors approves a county hiring freeze unanimously to address a projected budget deficit of $20 million over the next fiscal year.

The county says that a varierty of topics will be discussed during the meeting:

Defensible Space Efforts paying off locally – Luis Perez, CAL FIRE

In the last week we have seen some wildfires coming dangerously near homes in our area. While these were very dangerous situations, there was a silver lining.

Firefighters who were on the lines are complementing property owners for their work done creating defensible space around their properties. They say this is the result of years of effort and it’s really paying off.

Body Art Inspections – Angelina Hsu - Health Department

Body Art services are very popular, but for consumers - if you are looking to get a tattoo, piercing or permanent cosmetic service - what about safety?

Each year, our Environmental Health staff inspects body art providers and publicizes a list of those who meet state safety requirements. This year’s list is out!

Vacation Rental ordinances information – Taylor Price, Housing and Community Development

This past Monday, the county’s Housing and Community development Department held a first informational webinar about the county’s new Vacation Rental ordinances which are now in effect in the county’s inland areas.

What are the new requirements and what were the most asked questions by those operating rentals to be able to comply with the new rules?

The meeting will take place on Zoom from 6 until 7:30 p.m. The password is 162580.