Oakland, CA Gambling & Gaming: Card Room Licensing (2026)

24 (Gambling), makes it unlawful for any person, social club or other club to conduct or participate in any card game in a public place, or one to which an admission fee is charged, without first obtaining a permit from the Chief of Police. The applicant must submit a written application, and the Chief must grant the permit within seven days unless it appears the applicant is not a fit and proper person to hold it, or the moral conditions associated with the applicant are detrimental to public morals; those are the only two stated grounds for denial.

A granted permit runs for one year from issuance and can be revoked for good cause by the Chief before then. The section also lets the Chief issue a temporary permit effective for a seven-day period. 040 is the specific local licensing mechanism for card games, distinct from the state-level Gambling Control Act framework that governs full commercial card rooms. 11) and functions as a police-permit gate rather than a formal gaming-commission license, meaning any card game open to the public or charging admission in the city, from a club tournament to a fundraiser, needs the Chief's sign-off first, while purely private, no-fee games in a residence fall outside the definition of a covered public place.