About Us
Welcome to the Mendocino LAFCo website.
The Local Agency Formation Commission (LAFCo) was created by State law in 1963 to provide assistance to local agencies in overseeing jurisdictional boundary changes. Each of the 58 counties in California has a LAFCo Commission.
The objectives of LAFCo are to:
- Encourage the orderly formation of local government agencies and promote the efficient provision of public services
- Preserve agricultural land and open-space resources
- Promote orderly growth and discourage urban sprawl
LAFCo’s oversight includes the following duties:
- Boundary changes (annexations and detachments) of cities and special districts
- Incorporation of new cities and districts
- Consolidation or reorganization of special districts and cities
- Formation of new agencies
- Municipal Service Reviews (MSRs)
- Spheres of Influence Updates (SOIs)
Mendocino LAFCo is a seven-member Commission comprised of two city council members, two county supervisor members, two special district members, and one public member. The Commission also includes four alternates, one for each category.
As a public agency, LAFCo discusses and acts upon its business monthly in open public meetings in accordance with the Brown Act. Agendas for the Commission and its standing committees can be found on the Meeting page.
For those interested in learning more about LAFCo, its duties, functions, and powers, please refer to the following presentation:
LAFCo 101: An Introduction to Mendocino Local Agency Formation CommissionKZYX interview with Citizen U host Mari Rodin and LAFCo's Executive Officer, July 13, 2021More information can be found on the California Association of Local Agency Formation Commissions (CALAFCO) website.
