LAKE COUNTY, Calif. – The COVID-19 pandemic has challenged and inspired all levels of government to find new ways to engage people in matters of public import.

The county of Lake quickly instituted ZOOM meetings, allowing members of the public to participate in meetings in real-time, even while staying safe at home.

While written comments have long been accepted, enhanced calls for this type of input have resulted in many quality emailed contributions to the discourse surrounding the pandemic and other Board items of broad community interest.

“There is some lack of immediacy with email, however, and we have had to implement a cutoff time of 4 p.m. the day before our meetings for written comments using that platform,” said County Administrative Officer Carol J. Huchingson. “We wanted to be even more inclusive, and starting this week, we will be adding a feature that is embedded directly in our Board Agenda Management System, eComment by Granicus.”

Once an agenda is posted (no fewer than 72 hours prior to the start of a Board of Supervisors or Planning Commission Meeting), an eComment link will be active in the right-most column of Legistar Meeting Calendar, at https://countyoflake.legistar.com/Calendar.aspx .

When members of the public click on “eComment,” a subpage will be launched, with a list of Agenda Item titles.

Select the “Comment” icon to begin a submittal. Then, Select a Position, “Oppose,” “Neutral,” or “Support,” and add your written comment. Once finished composing a comment, select “Submit Comment,” and it will be added to the Public Record.

To help board members and county of Lake staff serve you better, please include your name and district of residence with your comment.

The first time you make a comment, you will be asked to create an account and validate your email address, or connect to eComment via Facebook. Thereafter, you just sign in, and commenting is easy.

“We are a representative government, and public input is essential to everything we do,” said Moke Simon, chair of the Lake County Board of Supervisors. “The remote engagement tools we have been able to implement have been game changing, and eComment is just the next step in our efforts to bring new voices into the process.”

“We need your concerns, your ideas,” said Simon. “Your feedback will help us set policies that are right for Lake County. Check out eComment today, and get involved.”

eComment is now available for the Board of Supervisors’ Tuesday, July 14, agenda. Visit https://countyoflake.legistar.com/Calendar.aspx now to participate.