San Jose, CA Fire Regulations: Outdoor Burning (2026)

Unincorporated Santa Clara County lies almost entirely within a State Responsibility Area (SRA) - defined as anywhere in the county that is not within an incorporated city or town - where CAL FIRE (Santa Clara Unit) and the county fire agencies have wildfire jurisdiction. To conduct residential pile burning of yard vegetation, a property owner must hold a CAL FIRE residential burn permit (free, applied for at burnpermit.fire.ca.gov, valid for the calendar year and renewed annually) AND a Bay Area Air Quality Management District (BAAQMD) Regulation 5 open-burning permit, which charges a fee based on the volume of material. Burning is allowed only on 'permissive burn days' declared by BAAQMD when atmospheric conditions allow smoke to disperse; the FireSafe Council notes burns are usually allowed roughly between November and May, generally 9 a.m. to 3 p.m. with full extinguishment by sunset. Recommended practice limits piles to about 4 ft by 4 ft, spaced 15-20 feet apart, with at least 10 feet of clearance to bare soil and a water source on hand; treated wood, poison oak, and trash may not be burned. During declared CAL FIRE or county burn bans, all outdoor burning - open fires, campfires, and charcoal fires - is prohibited, though propane/gas stoves and fire pits remain allowed. Burning landscape or construction debris in a barrel or pile without permits is prohibited.