Short-term rentals help many Clallam County families cover rising property taxes and costs. Commissioner Mike French backed last year’s failed multi-million-dollar levy lid lift and continues pushing higher tax limits, while his own housing policy paper advocates caps on STRs. The new Comprehensive Plan language creating a countywide registry and life-safety inspections aligns directly with his agenda — and would give the County the tools to regulate private property owners more heavily.

A Lifeline for Working Families

Short-term rentals (STRs) — stays of 30 days or less, the kind listed on Airbnb and similar platforms — provide essential income for many Clallam County households.

Full disclosure: I operate one on my property. My mother opened it in 1994 to cover property taxes and fund modest home improvements. When my husband and I took over in 2020, our goal was to pay the taxes plus our health-insurance premiums. Rising costs outpaced revenue a few years ago; today the cottage covers the taxes and only part of our healthcare premiums.

In a county that struggles economically, with climbing expenses and a Board of County Commissioners that has supported nearly every tax increase placed before it, residents must get creative. STRs are one practical tool.

More Taxes on the Way

Last year the Board placed a one-year levy lid lift on the November 2025 ballot. It would have raised the county’s general-fund levy rate from approximately 76 cents to 95 cents per $1,000 of assessed value — generating roughly $3.25 million more annually from property owners. Voters rejected it decisively (59.4 % no). Commissioner Mike French, then serving as Board Chair, was part of the leadership that advanced the measure to the ballot.

The Washington State Association of Counties (WSAC), an Olympia-based lobbyist NGO, has made raising the annual property-tax limit from 1% to 3% a legislative priority.

French, a WSAC member who sits on its legislative steering committee, has actively backed that push. Throughout his term, he has voted for property-tax increases in every budget cycle and approved permit fee hikes — some of which quadrupled. Additional tax and fee pressure appears inevitable.

Restricting How Owners Use Their Own Property

While French works to expand the county’s ability to raise property taxes, he also wants to restrict how private owners generate income from their own land. In his housing-affordability policy paper he writes:

“Balance is the key — I’m not interested in punitive policy that punishes our residents for engaging in the highest use of their property, but the County should consider policies that create reasonable boundaries such as a cap on short-term rentals in certain areas that have been highly impacted (like Clallam Bay/Sekiu).”

“Reasonable boundaries” is undefined. It could mean Clallam Bay/Sekiu today and any other neighborhood tomorrow. That is a clear expansion of government control over private property rights.

At the same time, Commissioner French has enthusiastically supported and directed substantial public resources toward North View, a 36-unit permanent supportive housing project in Port Angeles that cost approximately $12.5 million — or roughly $350,000 per unit. This is his version of “housing affordability” and he’s made it a cornerstone of his campaign.

This project is designed primarily for chronically homeless individuals with addiction and criminal-justice involvement. French has publicly celebrated these investments while advancing policies that make it more expensive and bureaucratic for hard-working residents to use their own private property to generate the income they need just to stay in Clallam County.

At the same time, the Jamestown Corporation continues to expand its portfolio of short-term rentals on land held in tribal trust status. Because trust land is exempt from county zoning, registries, and inspections, those tribal STRs would not be subject to the new rules being written into the Comprehensive Plan — giving the Tribe yet another competitive advantage over private property owners who must comply.

What’s Actually in the Comprehensive Plan

A close review of the proposed Comprehensive Plan Update and accompanying zoning amendments shows that vacation rentals remain allowed in every zone that permits single-family dwellings. The main changes affect accessory dwelling units: outside Urban Growth Areas an owner-occupancy requirement continues, and only one unit (primary or ADU) may operate as a vacation rental.

However, one new policy deserves special attention. Under the affordable-housing goals, the Plan includes this language:

(l) Establish a registry or similar mechanism to monitor and track the number of short-term rental units operating in Clallam County. Said registry could include key data points concerning short-term rentals and a requirement for life-safety inspections to ensure that designated short-term rental units meet minimum habitation requirements and are approved for the use indicated. Information obtained from the registry could be used to evaluate the impact of short-term rentals on the local housing market in balance with their contribution to the tourism industry.

This is not harmless data gathering. By writing a registry and mandatory life-safety inspections into the County’s 20-year policy roadmap, the Board is opening the door to future regulation, registration fees, and costly inspections. Once this language is adopted, it becomes the official justification for expanding bureaucratic control over private property that many residents rely on simply to cover rising taxes and stay in their homes.

These Comprehensive Plan changes line up directly with the approach Commissioner French outlined in his policy paper. The registry and inspection requirement give the County the monitoring system and data pipeline needed to impose the “reasonable boundaries” and area-specific caps he has already endorsed.

Make Your Voice Heard

The Planning Commission has already forwarded its recommendation. A public hearing before the Board of County Commissioners is scheduled for Tuesday, September 8, 2026, at 10:30 a.m. in the Commissioners’ Meeting Room at the Clallam County Courthouse. Written comments are accepted until the hearing and any continuances.

If you have concerns, put them in writing and send them to the entire Board of County Commissioners through the Clerk of the Board at [email protected].Copy the Director of the Department of Community Development, Bruce Emery, at [email protected].

Once the Board adopts the language, it becomes the County’s official policy roadmap. The window to be heard is open — but it will not stay open long.

“What is called economic power is nothing more than the power to produce. What is called political power is the power to confiscate the production of others.”— Ayn Rand

GET ENGAGED: Board of Health Meeting Today

Today at 1:30 p.m., the Clallam County Board of Health — chaired by Commissioner Mike French — will present the 2025 Harm Reduction Health Center summary, celebrating the 25th year of the county’s Syringe Service Program.

The meeting takes place in the Commissioners’ Boardroom at the Clallam County Courthouse in Port Angeles and can be attended in person or online. For virtual access instructions and the agenda packet, click here.

Local Indivisible members, backed by the League of Women Voters, are urging supporters to show up, declaring that “good science must not be bullied.” In their call to action, they warn that the “usual ignorant & verbally abusive s**t-stirrers will be there to harass staff about ‘harm reduction’” and claim that Health Officer Allison Berry has been receiving death threats.

Public comment may be delivered in person or online. Those who agree with Health Officer Allison Berry and Commissioner Mike French may be permitted a two-way dialogue with Board of Health members.

On Your Calendar:

* Today, 7:30 a.m., Port Angeles Business Association pro/con statements for proposed Charter Review amendments at Jazzy Joshua’s restaurant in Port Angeles. Attend or watch it live on their Facebook page here.

* Today, 10:00 a.m., weekly Board of Commissioners meeting with monthly Commissioners’ Forum Q&A.

* Today, 1:30 p.m., Board of Health meeting.

* Wednesday, 6:00 p.m., Seegers/French debate Sekiu Community Center

* Thursday-Sunday, Clallam County Fair!

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