Gardena, CA Fire Regulations: Fireworks (2026)

Section 8.08.035 amends the Los Angeles County Fire Code, adopted by Gardena under Section 8.08.010, to prohibit the storage, use and handling of fireworks in the city except as permitted under Chapter 8.16 for safe and sane fireworks. Chapter 8.16 defines dangerous fireworks and safe and sane fireworks by reference to California Health and Safety Code Sections 12505, 12561, 12529 and 12562. Section 8.16.020 makes it unlawful to offer for sale or sell safe and sane fireworks at retail without first obtaining a permit, and restricts permits to nonprofit organizations that have a principal and permanent meeting place in the city, have operated in Gardena continuously for at least one year, and count at least twenty-five members, a majority of whom are city residents, per Section 8.16.040.

No more than eight permits may be outstanding at one time. Applications run from March 1 through March 31 each year through the community development department, with a fee set by council resolution, proof of a State Fire Marshal retail license, and one million dollars of liability, property damage and product liability insurance naming the city as an additional insured. Sales stands must be pre-assembled metal structures no larger than 256 square feet, set back twenty-five feet from other buildings and any weeds or combustibles, one hundred feet from gasoline pumps, and staffed at all times by someone who completed a Los Angeles County Fire Department safety seminar, with all unsold stock removed by 5:00 p.m. on July 5.