San Bernardino County, CA Gambling & Gaming: Card Room Licensing (2026)
Key Facts
- Governing section
- § 26.0101 (participants: § 26.0102)
- Scope
- Unincorporated area only
- Rule
- Outright ban, no license path
- Covers
- Keeping, hosting, or merely being present
- Violation type
- Misdemeanor
- Base fine
- $500-$1,000 (§ 11.0206(a)(1))
- Adopted
- Ord. 3653 (1996)
Summary
San Bernardino County Code § 26.0101 makes it unlawful, in the unincorporated area, to keep, maintain, conduct, control, have charge of, or even be present at or visit any house, room, place or apartment where cards, dice or similar games are played for money, checks, chips, credit or anything of value. There is no card-room licensing path; the activity is banned outright.
It shall be unlawful for any person within the County of San Bernardino, outside of any municipal corporation, to keep, maintain, conduct, control, have charge of, be present at or visit any house, room, place or apartment where any game is played, conducted, dealt or carried on with cards, dice, or other device or contrivance for money, checks, chips, credit or any other representative or thing of value.
Full Breakdown
0101, in Division 6 (Gambling), Chapter 1 (Cards, Dice and Similar Games), forecloses card rooms and poker rooms in the unincorporated County rather than licensing them. It is unlawful for any person within the County of San Bernardino, outside of any municipal corporation, to keep, maintain, conduct, control, have charge of, be present at or visit any house, room, place or apartment where any game is played, conducted, dealt or carried on with cards, dice, or other device or contrivance for money, checks, chips, credit or any other representative or thing of value.
0102 adds a mirror-image participant offense: it is unlawful for any person, again outside any municipal corporation, to deal, play, carry on, participate in or bet at or against any such card or dice game for value. 0101. 0206(a)(1): a base fine of $500 to $1,000, up to six months in County jail, or both.
Violations & Fines
Violating either § 26.0101 or § 26.0102 is a misdemeanor under the County's default criminal penalty at § 11.0206(a)(1): a base fine of not less than $500 and not more than $1,000, up to six months in County jail, or both, plus required court costs. Each day an illegal card game operates can be charged as a separate offense under § 11.0204(d).
Frequently Asked Questions
Can I open a licensed poker room in unincorporated San Bernardino County?
Can I get cited just for watching a private card game for money?
Do San Bernardino's incorporated cities follow this same ban?
Sources & Official References
Other rules in San Bernardino County
California rules heatmap·Compare San Bernardino County to another location·View the California gambling & gaming overview
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