In her recent letter captioned “An end run around the Kelseyville community,” Carolyn Jarrett states that, at the suggestion of a retired lawyer, the Citizens for Healing, C4H, filed a proposal to the Board of Geographic Names, or BGN, to change the name of Kelseyville to “Konocti” as an end run around Kelseyville citizens deciding the issue for themselves.

That assertion by Ms. Jarrett is incorrect. I am that lawyer, retired after 50 years of practicing law in Lake County, and here are the facts.

Last fall I learned that C4H, based on information provided by the Lake County Registrar of Voters, planned to circulate a county-wide initiative petition this spring to change the name of Kelseyville. At the same time, a local group of citizens was organizing as Save the Name to oppose the petition.

I also learned that the procedure they were following was based on an opinion issued a few years before by the Office of the Lake County Counsel.

I questioned whether that opinion was legally correct. I was concerned that, if it were wrong, citizens throughout the county would be embroiled in a controversy they had no legal authority to decide.

I then conducted legal research on the question of who has the legal authority to approve, or disapprove, a petition to change the name of Kelseyville.

I found that authority rests with the United States Board on Geographic Names, or BGN.

According to its website, that agency was formed in 1890 to bring uniformity throughout the United States to the names of geographic features, including unincorporated populations like Kelseyville, for the purposes of the federal government. I also found that any person can file a petition with BGN to change an existing name.

I sent to the Lake County Counsel’s Office a report on the results of my research. I received a reply that my research was correct and that the prior memorandum issued by the office was mistaken.

I then gave the leaders of C4H, and the leaders of the Save the Name the information I had obtained. I referred them to the BGN website at https://www.usgs.gov/us-board-on-geographic-names, which states:

“The BGN Domestic Names Committee makes decisions only after receiving recommendations from the local and county governments, Tribal governments, the State Names Authority and appropriate land management agencies.  The public is also given the opportunity to provide input. Recommendations from local organizations, like historical societies and conservation groups, are welcomed but not required.”

The State Names Authority for California is the California Advisory Committee on Geographic Names, or CACGN.

That agency describes its role at cacgn.ca.gov as follows:

“If the proposal [to change the name] fits their criteria, the BGN then forwards those related to California to the CACGN for an initial review. The CACGN reviews and researches each proposal, then solicits input from a diverse array of interested community members, and then votes at a public meeting on whether to recommend that BGN approve or disapprove the proposal. Based on the committee vote, the CACGN provides its recommendation to the BGN, which has the ultimate authority for determining each name change proposal.”

According to the BGN website, any person who wishes to comment on the proposed name change for Kelseyville should send their comments:

By mail to:
Executive Secretary
U.S. Board on Geographic Names
Domestic Names Committee
523 National Center, Reston, VA 20192-0523

Or, by email to:
This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it..

The information I obtained is intended to inform everyone on the legal steps to approve or disapprove the change in the name of Kelseyville and was never intended to do an end run around anyone.

Peter Windrem is a retired attorney. He lives in Kelseyville, California.