Santa Ana, CA Fire Regulations: Brush Clearance (2026)
Key Facts
- Clearance width
- 10 ft each side of roadway
- Measured from
- Flow-line or improved roadway edge
- Exempt
- Single ornamental trees/shrubs/ground covers
- Authority
- Fire code official (OCFA)
- Waiver grounds
- Terrain, erosion, protected species, heritage trees
Summary
Santa Ana's fire code official can require flammable vegetation and combustible growth cleared for 10 feet on each side of highways and private streets used for vehicular traffic, measured from the roadway's flow-line or improved edge. Single ornamental trees, shrubs, and ground covers like ivy are exempt if they don't readily carry fire.
SECTION 325 CLEARANCE OF BRUSH OR VEGETATION GROWTH FROM ROADWAYS is hereby added as follows: 325.1 Clearance of brush or vegetation growth from roadways. The fire code official is authorized to cause areas within 10 feet (3048 mm) on each side of portions of highways and private streets which are improved, designed or ordinarily used for vehicular traffic, to be cleared of flammable vegetation and other combustible growth. Measurement shall be from the flow-line or the end of the improved edge of the roadway surfaces. Exception: Single specimens of trees, ornamental shrubbery or cultivated ground cover such as green grass, ivy, succulents or similar plants used as ground covers, provided that they do not form a means of readily transmitting fire.
Official source re-checked September 7, 2026: no newer edition of the code had been published (publisher’s edition: Code of Ordinances: Supplement 32).
Full Breakdown
1, added to the adopted California Fire Code by Santa Ana Municipal Code § 14-18 (Ord. No. NS-3088, § 18, adopted January 20, 2026), authorizes the fire code official to require flammable vegetation and other combustible growth cleared within 10 feet on each side of any improved, designed, or ordinarily-used vehicular portion of a highway or private street, with the 10-foot measurement running from the flow-line or the edge of the improved roadway surface. The rule exempts single specimens of trees, ornamental shrubbery, or cultivated ground cover such as green grass, ivy, succulents, or similar plants, so long as they don't form a means of readily transmitting fire.
" Section 326 gives the fire code official discretion to suspend vegetation-management requirements and instead require reasonable alternative measures where difficult terrain, danger of erosion, the presence of state- or county-listed rare, endangered, or threatened plant species, or stands of heritage trees are involved.
Violations & Fines
Failing to clear brush or vegetation as directed by the fire code official under § 325.1 is enforced through the citywide general penalty, Municipal Code § 1-8: a misdemeanor punishable by up to a $1,000 fine, up to six months in jail, or both, with the city attorney able to cite it as an infraction, and each day the hazard continues counts as a separate offense.
Frequently Asked Questions
How much brush does Santa Ana require cleared along a private street?
Are ornamental plants exempt from Santa Ana's brush clearance rule?
Can the fire official waive brush clearance in Santa Ana?
Do new developments have separate vegetation clearance duties?
Sources & Official References
Other rules in Santa Ana
California rules heatmap·Compare Santa Ana to another location·View the California fire regulations overview
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Brush Clearance in Nearby Cities
How other cities in Orange County handle brush clearance.