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Redding, CA Business Licensing & Operations: Tobacco Retail License (2026)

Significant Restrictions
Compiled from the official code textEditor Martyn O'NeillLast verified September 2026

Key Facts

License required
Separate tobacco retail license, § 6.13.030
School buffer
600 feet for new locations
Grandfather window
60 days to apply if operating before 8-19-2025
License term
1 year, renew 30-60 days ahead
Cannabis exclusion
No license at a licensed cannabis site
False application penalty
Misdemeanor, up to 1 year jail/$1,000

Summary

Every tobacco retailer in Redding must hold a city-issued tobacco retail license under Municipal Code Section 6.13.030, separate from the general business license. Section 6.13.040(H) also bars a new tobacco retail location from opening within six hundred feet of a K-12 school, though a store already operating lawfully there before the 2025 ordinance can keep its license.

6.13.030 - License required. It shall be unlawful for any person to engage in tobacco retailing unless under and by authority of a valid, unexpired, unsuspended, unrevoked tobacco retailer License issued pursuant to this chapter for each location at which tobacco retailing is to occur. ... H.Limits on eligibility for a tobacco retailer license.(1)No tobacco retailer shall be located within six hundred feet of a school providing instruction in kindergarten or any grade levels one through twelve, as measured in a straight line between the boundary lines of the parcel of the school and the boundary lines of the parcel of the License applicant's proposed business location.

View official code

Official source re-checked September 7, 2026: no newer edition of the code had been published (publisher’s edition: Code of Ordinances: Supplement 48).

Full Breakdown

040(G)). 050(C)(7)). 070). 040(H)(1)-(2)). 080).

Violations & Fines

Operating without the required tobacco retail license, or at a location this chapter bars from eligibility, is grounds for denial or revocation of the license under Section 6.13.060. Chapter violations bring an administrative penalty of at least one thousand dollars, escalating with repeat offenses, and can also be prosecuted as an infraction or misdemeanor at the city attorney's discretion (§ 6.13.130(C), (E)).

Frequently Asked Questions

Do Redding tobacco shops need a separate city license?
Yes. Section 6.13.030 requires a tobacco retailer license for each location selling tobacco products, on top of the general business license every business must hold under Title 6 of the Municipal Code (§ 6.13.040(G)). The license must be displayed publicly at all times.
Can a new tobacco store open next to a school in Redding?
Not within six hundred feet. Section 6.13.040(H)(1) bars a new tobacco retailer from locating within six hundred feet of a K-12 school, measured from parcel boundary to parcel boundary, though a store lawfully operating there before the chapter's August 2025 adoption can be grandfathered in.
How long does a Redding tobacco retail license last?
One year. Section 6.13.070 requires renewal no later than thirty days before expiration, though the license stays valid while a timely renewal application is pending, and a license that lapses without a timely renewal cannot simply be revived.

Sources & Official References

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