Who We Are

Although the Placer Mosquito and Vector Control District is one of the newest districts in the Sacramento region, Placer County has a rich history in mosquito control, having one of the first organized mosquito control campaigns in the state.

Gordon Patterson’s book, The Mosquito Crusades, details the beginning of the organized mosquito control effort in California.  According to Patterson, it all began when local Penryn clergyman Fred Morgan wrote a letter to William Herms, an entomologist at the University of California.

In his December 1909 letter, Morgan requested Herms’ aid in fighting the “malaria mosquito”.  Herms’ response to Morgan explained how the whole effort needed to begin with a comprehensive educational movement. After a series of Herms’ lectures and demonstrations that were presented in Loomis, Penryn, Auburn, Newcastle and Roseville, a permanent “anti-malaria-mosquito organization” was established in a small office donated by the Penryn Fruit Company. It was February 12, 1910.

In 1915, the California Legislature adopted the “Mosquito Abatement Act” to help protect people from health risks associated with mosquitoes. This provided the basis for creating Mosquito Abatement Districts throughout the state.

The original Placer Mosquito and Vector Control District, then known as the “Placer County Mosquito Abatement District”,” was originally formed in 1996 to provide mosquito abatement services within the original District boundaries in western Placer County.

The City of Lincoln passed a special tax measure to fund mosquito control services in 1998.

In July 2000, the county conducted an assessment ballot proceeding. The authority granted by the ballot proceedings established a funding mechanism to provide services within West County beginning July 2001.

In 2004, the District annexed the area of Sheridan from Sutter-Yuba Mosquito and Vector Control District and absorbed the portion of property tax allocations attributed to Sheridan to fund these services. That same year, the District authorized proceedings for a proposed special assessment for the East County area to provide services within east Placer County beginning in July 2005.

The Placer Mosquito and Vector Control District staff works hard to protect public health in Placer County. To do this most effectively, our staff are assigned to the following departments: administration, public information and outreach, field operations, technical services and applied research. The District employs 23 regular full-time staff members and hires seasonal temporary staff during the peak mosquito season. The staff serves almost 400,000 Placer County residents in five cities, one town and unincorporated areas of Placer County. Our main office is located in Roseville and we have a substation in Truckee to support east Placer operations.  Our main office is open Monday through Friday 7 a.m. to 3:30 p.m. Staff can be reached at (916) 380-5444.