Legal Fireworks In CA: ‘Safe & Sane’ Cities, Sales

CALIFORNIA — Despite the historic drought and risk of wildfire, there are still hundreds of California cities that allow residents to set off “safe and sane fireworks.”

In sweltering summertime California, a single stray spark can trigger a massive wildfire. The National Fire Protection Association recently reported that fireworks start an average of 18,500 fires per year.

For thousands of nonprofits ranging from little league teams to high school booster clubs, the sale of fireworks every summer is a primary source of fundraising in California.

Starting Tuesday, 296 California communities are allowing authorized vendors to sell fireworks authorized by the State Fire Marshal, known colloquially as “safe and sane fireworks.” Approved retailers will sell the fireworks from June 28 until July 6, though individual cities can limit sales to shorter time windows.Sales will often be found in local shopping centers and parking lots. Contact your local city government to find out when and where they'll be sold.

“Safe and sane” fireworks are usually benign sparklers, but generally they are more defined by what they’re not than what they are. They are any type that the Fire Marshal does not categorize as “dangerous,” and all display an official Fire Marshal seal of approval. To be ruled “safe and sane,” fireworks:

• Cannot explode or fly into the air
• Cannot contain arsenic sulfide, chlorates, magnesium, and many other chemicals.
• Cannot be larger than 10 inches in length or a quarter-inch in diameter.

Illegal fireworks include skyrockets, bottle rockets, aerial missiles and spinners, Roman candles, aerial shells, firecrackers and more.

Penalties for selling, possessing or transporting illegal fireworks that do not carry the official seal can be as high as $50,000 and include up to a year in jail, according to Daniel Berlant, Cal Fire’s Deputy Director of Community Wildlife Preparedness and Mitigation. Many California cities are slapping several thousand-dollar misdemeanor citations to anyone possessing even state-approved fireworks.

Most of California’s major cities ban fireworks, including Los Angeles, San Francisco, all of San Diego County, all of San Mateo County, and San Jose. Somewhat surprisingly, approved fireworks are permitted in Sacramento.

While many more California cities ban all fireworks, there are still several that permit them, particularly in rural areas. Here CalFire's latest list of cities that allow them. Asterisks indicate unincorporated areas.

Southern California

Imperial County

• Brawley
• Calexico
• Calipatria
• El Centro
• Holtville
• Imperial
• Westmorland

Los Angeles County

• Alhambra
• Artesia
• Azusa
• Baldwin Park
• Bellflower
• Carson
• Commerce
• Compton
• Cudahy
• Downey
• El Monte
• Gardena
• Hawaiian Gardens
• Hawthorne
• Huntington Park
• Industry
• Inglewood
• Irwindale
• La Mirada
• La Puente
• Lakewood
• Lawndale
• Lynwood
• Maywood
• Montebello
• Monterey Park
• Norwalk
• Palmdale
• Paramount
• Pico Rivera
• Rosemead
• Santa Fe Springs
• South El Monte
• South Gate
• Temple City
• Vernon

Orange County

• Anaheim
• Buena Park
• Costa Mesa
• Fullerton
• Garden Grove
• Huntington Beach
• Santa Ana
• Stanton
• Villa Park
• Westminster

Riverside County

• Blythe
• Coachella
• Desert Hot Springs
• Indio

San Bernardino County

• Adelanto
• Barstow
• Chino
• Colton
• Fontana
• Grand Terrace
• Needles
• Rialto
• San Bernardino
• Ventura County
• Fillmore

Central California

Fresno County

• Clovis
• Coalinga
• Easton*
• Firebaugh
• Fowler
• Fresno
• Fresno County*
• Huron
• Kerman
• Kingsburg
• Laton*
• Mendota
• Orange Cove
• Parlier
• Reedley
• Riverdale*
• Sanger
• San Joaquin
• Selma
• Inyo County
• Big Pine*
• Bishop
• Independence*
• Lone Pine*
• Inyo County*
• Kern County
• Arvin
• Bakersfield
• California City
• Delano
• Kern County*
• Lamont*
• Maricopa
• McFarland
• Mojave*
• Oildale*
• Ridgecrest
• Rosamond*
• Shafter
• Taft
• Wasco
• Kings County
• Armona*
• Avenal
• Corcoran
• Kings County*
• Hanford
• Kettleman City*
• Lemoore
• Stratford*
• Madera County
• Chowchilla
• Madera
• Madera County*

Merced County

• Atwater
• Dos Palos
• Gustine
• Merced
• Merced County
• Livingston
• Los Banos

Mono County

• Bridgeport*
• Mono County*

San Joaquin County

• Lodi
• Ripon
• Tracy
• Vernalis*
• Escalon
• Manteca
• Lathrop
• Stockton

San Luis Obispo County

• Arroyo Grande
• Grover Beach
• Oceano*
• San Miguel*
• Templeton*

Santa Barbara County

• Guadalupe
• Lompoc
• Santa Maria

Stanislaus County

• Ceres
• Crows Landing
• Denair*
• Empire*
• Hughson
• Keyes*
• Modesto
• Newman
• Oakdale
• Patterson
• Riverbank
• Salida*
• Stanislaus County*
• Turlock
• Waterford
• Westley*

Tulare County

• Dinuba
• Earlimart*
• Exeter
• Farmersville
• Goshen*
• Lindsay
• Pixley*
• Porterville
• Strathmore*
• Terra Bella*
• Tulare
• Tulare County*
• Visalia
• Woodlake
• Orosi*
• Ivanhoe*

Northern California

Alameda County

• Dublin
• Newark
• Union City

Amador County

• Ione
• Jackson
• Plymouth
• Sutter Creek

Butte County

• Gridley
• Oroville

Calaveras County

• Angels Camp
• Burson*
• Calaveras County*
• Murphys*
• San Andreas*
• Valley Springs*
• Copperopolis*
• Mokelumne Hill*

Colusa County

• Arbuckle*
• Colusa
• Maxwell*
• Williams

Del Norte County

• Crescent City
• Fort Dicks*
• Klamath*
• Del Norte County*
• Glenn County
• Hamilton City*
• Orland
• Willows

Humboldt County

• Alder Point*
• Arcata
• Blue Lake
• Carlotta*
• Eureka
• Ferndale
• Fieldbrook*
• Hydesville*
• Fortuna
• Garberville*
• Hoopa*
• Humboldt County*
• McKinleyville*
• Miranda
• Orick*
• Redway*
• Rio Dell
• Trinidad

Lake County

• Lakeport

Lassen County

• Susanville

Modoc County

• Adin*
• Alturas

Monterey County

• Gonzales
• Greenfield
• King City
• Marina
• Salinas
• Seaside
• Soledad

Placer County

• Lincoln
• Rocklin
• Roseville

Sacramento County

• Citrus Heights
• Elk Grove
• Elverta*
• Folsom
• Galt
• Hood
• Isleton
• Rancho Cordova
• North Highlands*
• Carmichael*
• Fair Oaks*
• Antelope*
• Rio Linda*
• Sacramento
• Walnut Grove*

San Benito County

• Hollister
• San Juan Bautista
• San Benito County*
• San Mateo County
• Pacifica
• San Bruno

Santa Clara County

• Gilroy

Santa Cruz County

• Watsonville

Siskiyou County

• Dorris
• Dunsmuir
• Fort Jones
• McCloud*
• Mount Shasta

Siskiyou County*

• Tulelake
• Weed
• Yreka
• Montague

Solano County

• Dixon
• Rio Vista
• Suisun City

Sonoma County

• Cloverdale

Sutter County

• East Nicholaus*
• Live Oak
• Sutter*
• Sutter County*
• Yuba City

Tehama County

• Corning
• Gerber*
• Los Molinos*
• Proberta*
• Red Bluff
• Tehama County*

Yolo County

• Esparto*
• Knights Landing*
• Madison*
• West Sacramento
• Willow Oak*
• Winters
• Woodland
• Yolo County*

Yuba County

• Linda*
• Marysville
• Olivehurst*
• Plumas Lake
• Wheatland
• Yuba County*

*Indicates unincorporated areas