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The Sonoma County Democrat’s takeover was part of a wider change — both legislative houses were led by lawmakers from Northern California this year, leaving Southern California legislators with limited control.

Three residents filed a lawsuit this week against Sonoma County seeking to block code enforcement from using drones to take aerial images of their homes in what the American Civil Liberties Union is calling a “runaway spying operation.”

A spokesperson for Sonoma County said the county is reviewing the complaint and takes “the allegations very seriously.”

In 2024, nearly half of Sonoma County’s drone flights involved non-cannabis violations, including construction without a permit, junkyard conditions and zoning violations, according to data included in the complaint.

Other major projects statewide that stand to lose money include $29.7 million for climate change resiliency in Yuba County, $32 million for wildfire retrofitting in Nevada County, $35 million for wildfire mitigation in Napa County, $37 million for wildfire resiliency in Sonoma County, $37.9 million for wildfire resiliency in Mendocino County.