San Leandro, CA Gambling & Gaming: Card Room Licensing (2026)
Key Facts
- Governing article
- SLMC Ch. 4-1, Article 2
- Gambling for value
- Prohibited citywide, no license path
- Minimum age at card venues
- 21
- Required posted sign height
- 1.5 inches minimum
- Original ordinance
- Ord. No. 65-80, 10/18/65
- Max misdemeanor penalty
- $1,000 fine / 6 months jail
Summary
San Leandro has no card-room licensing scheme: SLMC § 4-1-200 makes it unlawful for anyone to deal, play, open, or conduct any card, dice, or device game for money or anything of value anywhere in the incorporated city, and § 4-1-205 separately bars anyone under 21 from even entering a public card-playing venue.
It shall be unlawful for any person, within the incorporated area of the City, to deal, play, carry on, open, cause to be opened, or conduct, either as owner or employee, whether for hire or not, any game played with cards, dice or any device, for money, checks, credit or representative of value as the result of any such game.
Official source re-checked September 7, 2026: no newer edition of the code had been published (publisher’s edition: rev 4967405; v8 updated 2026-07-06).
Full Breakdown
Article 2 of Chapter 4-1, in place since Ordinance No. , allows cities to do for card rooms. Section 4-1-200 covers dealing, playing, carrying on, opening, or conducting any card, dice, or device game, whether as an owner or a hired employee, for money, checks, credit, or anything of representative value, anywhere within the incorporated area of the City. " Section 4-1-210 clarifies the City's intent that Article 2 supplements, rather than conflicts with or overrides, Chapter 10 of Title 9, Part 1 of the state Penal Code, which contains California's own gambling offenses.
Violations & Fines
Because Article 2 sits within Chapter 4-1, any violation is expressly declared a public nuisance under § 4-1-100 and can be abated through the procedures in Chapter 1-12. That Code Enforcement Ordinance lets the City pursue criminal, civil, or administrative remedies concurrently: under § 1-12-200 an unspecified violation defaults to a misdemeanor punishable by up to $1,000 and six months in County Jail, or the City can instead cite it as an infraction, at up to $100 for a first offense and $200 for a second within a year, with a third becoming a misdemeanor.
Frequently Asked Questions
Can a card room legally operate in San Leandro?
Can a minor go into a place where cards are played?
Does this ban override state gambling law?
What happens if I'm caught running an illegal card game?
Sources & Official References
Other rules in San Leandro
California rules heatmap·Compare San Leandro to another location·View the California gambling & gaming overview
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Card Room Licensing in Nearby Cities
How other cities in Alameda County handle card room licensing.