After nearly half a century of public service, including 30 years as the elected Assessor of Santa Clara County, Lawrence E. “Larry” Stone, 84, announced he will not seek re-election in 2026 and will leave office on July 6, 2025, well before his term ends in December 2026. A special election will ensue for his successor.
Stone, the longest-serving elected official in the county, said the decision comes at a pivotal moment in his tenure. He said he remained in office to finalize the County’s transition to a modern assessment management system. The Board of Supervisors approved the vendor contract for a replacement system on June 17, and with the 30th assessment roll completed under his leadership, Stone believes the timing is right to step down.
“I knew I just couldn’t leave until this critical project was moving forward,” Stone said. “Now, with the new system ready to implement and the successful completion of my 30th assessment roll close, the timing feels right to step down.”
First elected to Sunnyvale City Council in 1975, Stone was initially elected Assessor in 1994. He’s had the longest tenure as Santa Clara County Assessor since Lewis Spitzer left office in 1912.
Under Stone’s leadership — guided by his motto, “What gets measured gets done” — the assessed value of roughly 500,000 properties in the County surged 500 percent to about $700 billion, all while Stone kept staff headcount virtually flat. The office underspent its budget in 29 of 30 years, returning $35 million to the general fund. His real estate expertise—from Wall Street to Silicon Valley—was credited with ensuring accurate valuations of complex assets like Apple’s “spaceship” campus. His office is also credited with handling 9,000 appeal cases totaling $130 billion, and upholding 92 percent of initial assessments.
Stone says he has been fortunate to have had staff who are skilled, knowledgeable, and hard-working, consistently going above and beyond to achieve the goals of the office.
“I am incredibly proud of what we’ve accomplished, modernizing our systems, supporting property owners, and upholding fairness in every assessment,” Stone said. “This office has always been about service—service to the property owner and commitment to the rule of law.”