Local Rules Near Downtown Fresno

Fresno Municipal Code section 10-105(a) treats radios, instruments, phonographs, and amplification devices as regulated noise sources, and section 10-108 requires anyone using a loudspeaker or sound amplifying equipment in a public place to file a registration statement and obtain approval. Amplified sound may operate only 7 AM-10 PM, must not exceed 15 dB above ambient at any property line, and is barred within 200 feet of churches, schools, or hospitals.

Fresno does not impose a citywide ban on gas-powered leaf blowers, but operation is restricted under the general noise nuisance provisions of FMC Chapter 10. Landscape maintenance is practically limited to daytime hours to stay under the 60 dBA residential daytime cap, and statewide CARB rules phase out new sales of gas-powered small off-road engines.

Fresno Municipal Code section 10-109(a) exempts permitted construction, remodeling, site preparation, and grading from the Noise Ordinance only when the work takes place between 7:00 a.m. and 10:00 p.m. on any day except Sunday. Construction equipment such as pile drivers, hammers, saws, and drills is otherwise listed among the regulated noise sources in section 10-105(d).

Fresno's Noise Ordinance (Municipal Code Chapter 10, Article 1) sets zone- and time-based exterior sound limits. In residential districts the limit is 50 dBA from 10 PM to 7 AM, 55 dBA from 7 PM to 10 PM, and 60 dBA from 7 AM to 7 PM; any noise exceeding the ambient level at a neighbor's property line by more than 5 decibels is prima facie unlawful.

Fresno Municipal Code section 9-2701(a) makes it unlawful to keep any dog which by habitual and continual barking, howling, or whining disturbs the peace and comfort of any neighborhood. Violation is an infraction, and the Noise Ordinance separately lists animal noise (section 10-105(b)) among regulated sources.

Fresno cannot regulate in-flight aircraft noise (federally preempted), so the controlling standards are California's. Public Utilities Code section 21669 directs the state to adopt aircraft noise standards, and Title 21 CCR section 5012 sets the acceptable level at a 65-decibel community noise equivalent level (CNEL). At Fresno Yosemite International Airport (FAT), large-aircraft touch-and-go activity is prohibited from 10 PM to 7 AM.

Fresno's short-term rental ordinance runs on a strike system: FMC § 7-1249(g) requires a written warning for a permit holder's first nuisance violation, while "all subsequent violations" expose the permit to suspension or revocation under subsection (h), with the City Attorney handling revocation proceedings.

The City of Fresno's published STR requirements do not set a specific overnight-guest or per-bedroom cap. Allowable occupancy is governed by the zone clearance and the underlying residential use under the Citywide Development Code, plus building and fire code occupant-load limits and the City's nuisance prohibition.

Fresno STR operators must register twice with the City: by obtaining a Short Term Rental Permit (after zone clearance) and by applying for a Transient Occupancy Tax Certificate so they can collect and remit the 12% TOT and 2% TBID. The STR permit renews annually.

Fresno STR permits require one off-street parking space per bedroom, with a minimum of two spaces for whole-house rentals. Guest vehicles may not block driveways, sidewalks, or fire hydrants, and overnight parking on residential streets is generally allowed but subject to standard FMC parking rules.

Fresno's short-term rental chapter makes TOT collection a condition of the permit itself: owners must collect and remit Transient Occupancy Tax under Article 6, with that revenue earmarked for STR code enforcement, and permits run one year, renewable only on payment of the renewal fee and a clean compliance record.

Fresno generally treats stays of 30 days or more as long-term tenancies rather than short-term rentals. Hosts shifting to extended home-share arrangements escape STR permit requirements but assume California landlord-tenant obligations.

Fresno conditions every short-term rental permit on compliance with the city's noise rules. FMC § 7-1249(d)(6) requires an STR owner to comply "with all applicable laws, including the Noise Ordinance of the City of Fresno, all health, safety, building, and fire protection laws" as one of the enumerated conditions the Finance Department checks before authorizing the rental.

Fresno's local Fire Code amendments require a construction permit before anyone installs or modifies an LP-gas system or tank once it holds more than 124 gallons, and require full construction documents submitted to the fire code official once a single tank or combined tank capacity tops 125 gallons.

Open burning is prohibited within the City of Fresno except with an operational permit issued under the Fresno Municipal Code and San Joaquin Valley Air District rules, or for limited cooking, campfire and religious-ceremonial fires using clean dry wood or charcoal. Burning trash is always illegal. Company officers may extinguish any non-compliant fire on the spot.

Fresno Fire Department policy authorizes officers to halt any otherwise-allowed outdoor fire when atmospheric conditions or local circumstances make it hazardous, providing a local wildfire/red-flag safeguard. The San Joaquin Valley Air District separately ties wood-burning restrictions to forecast PM2.5 levels, with Fresno County facing the strictest hot-spot thresholds.

California Health and Safety Code §13113.7 and FMC Chapter 15 require smoke alarms in every bedroom, outside each sleeping area, and on every story of dwellings. Fresno Fire enforces installation and maintenance at resale, rental, and at STR permit inspection. Alarms must be 10-year sealed lithium or hardwired with battery backup for alarms installed since 2014.

Backyard fire pits, fire rings, burn bowls and chimineas are legal in Fresno for cooking or recreation, but the San Joaquin Valley Air Pollution Control District (SJVAPCD) Rule 4901 prohibits operating any outdoor wood-burning device on declared 'Check Before You Burn' curtailment days from November 1 through February. Fresno is a Rule 4901 'hot spot' county with the strictest curtailment thresholds.

Within the City of Fresno, fruit stands, retail sales lots and Christmas tree lots are not allowed to burn for any reason and may not use wood stoves, portable fireplaces, chimineas, burn barrels or incinerators; propane-fired or electric heaters are recommended instead. This complements the citywide open-burning ban that protects against fire spread to dry vegetation.

Unlike most California cities, Fresno permits state-approved 'Safe and Sane' fireworks bearing the State Fire Marshal seal. They may be used year-round between 7:00 a.m. and 10:00 p.m., with extended hours to midnight from June 28 through July 6. All other (dangerous) fireworks are illegal and carry escalating administrative fines starting at $2,000.

Fresno lets residential blocks petition for a permit parking district when commuter vehicles from a nearby hospital or university crowd out on-street spaces; the Council designates the area by resolution, and only vehicles with a valid, annually-renewed permit are exempt from the posted time limit.

Recreational vehicles, boats and trailers may only be stored on private residential property if fully enclosed in a legal structure or kept in a side or rear yard behind a solid wall or fence 5 to 6 feet high, and they may not be lived in while parked. On the public street, RVs, motorhomes, trailers and boats must be moved 1,000 feet every 24 hours or they are deemed abandoned.

Fresno follows California CALGreen Tier 1 EV charging requirements for new residential and non-residential construction and allows single-family EV charger installations under a simplified permit per AB 1236. New single-family homes require one Level 2 EV-ready outlet in the garage; new multifamily must provide 10% EV capable spaces.

Fresno bars anyone but the city from painting a street or curb surface under FMC § 14-409, protecting the curb-color system the City Traffic Engineer uses to mark parking and loading restrictions. The only carve-out is for curb address numbers painted by someone who has complied with the Code's separate rules for that practice.

Fresno has no blanket citywide overnight on-street parking ban; instead vehicles are limited by the 72-hour storage rule (FMC 14-1006), so a passenger vehicle may legally remain overnight as long as it is moved before 72 consecutive hours pass. Posted time-limit and permit zones and the recreational-vehicle 24-hour movement rule are the main overnight restrictions.

Fresno Municipal Code section 14-1006 prohibits storing any vehicle on a city street for longer than 72 consecutive hours, regardless of whether a sign is posted. The Parking Division and the Fresno Police Department both enforce the limit, chalking tires and leaving a notice before towing under the California Vehicle Code.

Fresno Municipal Code Section 10-605(h) makes it a public nuisance to park or store a vehicle on an unpaved surface anywhere on a property, and the ordinance presumes the property owner, the occupant and the vehicle's registered owner are all responsible unless the parking was expressly authorized by law.

Fresno manages curb space through a five-color paint system, red, yellow, white, green, and blue, each with its own time limit and purpose, set under city code and enforceable the moment the paint or matching sign is in place.

Broken-down, inoperable or non-functional vehicles may not remain on city streets or private property in Fresno unless fully enclosed in a garage; a car cover does not satisfy the requirement. The Parking Division identifies abandoned vehicles by signs such as extended non-movement, flat tires, missing windshields, or accumulated weeds and trash, and tows them after notice under FMC 14-1006 and the California Vehicle Code.

Fresno's Parking Division specifically lists commercial vehicles parked in residential areas as a regulated neighborhood-preservation issue, alongside vehicles blocking sidewalks and immobilized vehicles, and these may be reported through the FresGO app or 311. Larger trucks, transport trailers, semis and buses are also captured by the FMC 14-1006 72-hour street-storage prohibition.

Fresno's official fence handout for Section 15-2006 lists allowed materials (wrought iron, tubular steel, wood, masonry, stucco, decorative concrete, hedges, and chain link in limited cases) and bans improvised, hazardous, and salvage materials such as plywood, chicken wire, corrugated products, piping, doors, mattresses, tarps, and chain link along major streets unless 3 feet or less.

A standard residential fence not over 7 feet does not require a building permit in Fresno, but it must still meet the zoning standards of Section 15-2006; fences in the public right-of-way need an encroachment permit, and security/barbed-wire fencing requires a separate permit under Section 15-2009.

California Civil Code §841 (the Good Neighbor Fence Act) presumes shared boundary fences are a mutual benefit and requires neighbors to split reasonable costs of construction and maintenance. Fresno does not override this; disputes go to small claims court. Written 30-day notice to the neighbor is required before any cost-share project.

Fresno measures a retaining wall's height from the ground on its highest side and caps a fence-on-wall combination at 7 feet unless the Director signs off on a taller stack. Retaining walls visible from the street must be decorative concrete, masonry, stone, or brick, not plain block.

Fresno limits fences in the required front yard to 3 feet (4 feet if 80% open wrought iron/tubular steel), allows up to 6 feet in interior side, rear, and street-side yards, and caps overall fence height at 7 feet, all governed by Fresno Municipal Code Section 15-2006.

Fresno lets residential parcels larger than 36,000 square feet keep horses, cows, goats, sheep, and other large animals. The Development Code caps large animals at two per acre, poultry at 12 per gross acre, bars pigs outright, and requires 40-foot setbacks from property lines and 50 feet from neighboring homes for any animal enclosure.

Fresno confines by-right veterinary clinics to just two of its six commercial districts, CC and CR, under Development Code Table 15-1202; the CMS, CG, CH, and CRC columns permit none at all. In Employment districts a clinic needs a Conditional Use Permit in the Office (O) zone but is permitted outright in BP, RBP, IL, and IH, with parking set at one space per 350 square feet.

Unlike dogs, cats in Fresno are explicitly carved out of the City's 'at large' enforcement scheme. Municipal Code Section 10-308(a) makes it unlawful for an owner to let 'any animal, except a cat' roam loose, meaning the poundmaster does not cite, impound, or pursue habitual-at-large hearings against free-roaming cats the way it does for dogs.

California AB 485 requires Fresno pet stores selling dogs, cats, or rabbits to source only from public shelters or rescue organizations. Retail sale of breeder-supplied puppies, kittens, or rabbits is banned statewide, with local enforcement supporting state inspections and sourcing audits.

Fresno's Pet Responsibility Act, Section 10-329, escalates penalties every time the same dog is caught at large: a warning first, a $100 citation second, a $200 citation third, and on that third citation the poundmaster can also order the owner to spay or neuter the dog, implant a microchip, or both.

Under Fresno Municipal Code section 15-2707, residential properties smaller than 36,000 square feet may keep no more than 4 animals (any combination of dogs and cats over 4 months old); properties larger than 36,000 square feet may keep no more than 6.

California Fish and Game Code §251.3 prohibits feeding big game, furbearing mammals, and non-game mammals statewide. FMC §9-2810 also prohibits feeding of feral cats, pigeons, rodents, and wildlife where it creates a public nuisance. Bird feeders for songbirds are allowed unless they attract rats or create sanitation issues.

Fresno doesn't require spaying or neutering on day one, but its 'Pet Responsibility Act' (Municipal Code Section 10-329) makes it mandatory for repeat offenders: an owner whose dog is caught at large a third time faces an order to spay or neuter every dog they own within 60 days, on top of escalating fines.

Fresno does not impose breed-specific dog bans. California Food and Agricultural Code Section 31683 preempts breed-specific dog regulation statewide, providing that 'no program regulating any dog shall be specific as to breed,' except spay/neuter ordinances authorized by Health and Safety Code Section 122331.

Fresno Municipal Code Section 10-308 bars any animal except a cat from being at large anywhere in the city, and Section 10-301(b) defines that as roaming a public street, alley or unenclosed lot without a leash strong enough to keep it under control. Owners face an infraction citation the first time a loose dog is caught, with steeper consequences for repeat cases.

Fresno's Development Code bars bee keeping entirely in residential districts, regardless of lot size: both the Household Pets rules for lots up to 36,000 square feet and the Large Animal rules for bigger residential lots say 'Not permitted.' Hives are allowed only in Buffer Districts, capped at one hive per two acres.

Fresno's Development Code classifies dog-bathing salons, pet-grooming shops, and pet stores as "Grooming and Pet Stores" and permits the use by right in four of six commercial districts, CMS, CC, CR, and CG, under Table 15-1202. The CH and CRC districts allow none at all, and every location must supply one parking space per 500 square feet of floor area.

Fresno's solid waste code normally requires every collection container to stay closed with no odor or vermin, but home composting gets a carve-out. Under FMC § 6-205(c)(6), a residential composting operation is exempt from that closed-lid, no-nuisance rule as long as only vegetation grown on your own property goes into the pile and the Director finds it aerated enough that neighbors never smell it.

Fresno bans outdoor watering outside the city's official schedule. FMC § 6-520(a)(6) prohibits sprinkling or irrigating 'any yard, ground, premise, or vegetation except as set forth in the City's Outdoor Water Use Schedule,' with violations tracked monthly and billed as water-waste fines on the utility bill.

Fresno Municipal Code Section 10-605(d) declares six categories of weeds a public nuisance on any property, from downy seed-bearing weeds and tumbleweed to dry grass that has become a fire hazard, clearing the way for the city to order abatement or issue an administrative citation to the owner.

Fresno encourages native and drought-tolerant plantings under its Water Efficient Landscape Ordinance (WELO) adopted from state Model Water Efficient Landscape Ordinance. New landscaping over 500 square feet must meet water budget targets favoring native and low-water plants. HOAs cannot prohibit drought-tolerant landscaping under Civil Code §§4735 and 4739.

Rainwater harvesting from rooftops is legal in Fresno under California Water Code §10574 and AB 1750 (Rainwater Capture Act of 2012). No permit is required for simple rain barrels or cisterns used to irrigate landscaping. Storage tanks over 5,000 gallons or integrated with potable plumbing require Plumbing Code permits and backflow prevention.

Street trees in the Fresno public right-of-way are jointly the responsibility of the property owner and the city Urban Forestry division. Property owners must maintain 14-foot clearance over streets and 8 feet over sidewalks under FMC §13-605. Removal or major pruning of street trees and protected trees requires a permit from Urban Forestry.

Artificial turf is legal in Fresno front and back yards. California Civil Code §4735 prohibits HOAs from banning artificial turf, and AB 349 (2015) further protects the right to install. Installations over 500 square feet need WELO documentation. Permeable base and proper drainage are required to prevent stormwater issues.

Removing or trimming a city street tree in Fresno requires a Director-issued permit under FMC § 13-305(d), with work performed under a certified arborist and completed by a city-licensed contractor. The city posts door-hanger notice to homeowners within two hundred feet of a proposed removal, who then have fourteen days to protest, and trees on the city's Special Tree List cannot be removed under this permit at all.

Fresno Citywide Development Code Section 15-2735(E) requires that the residential appearance of the unit be maintained and that no exterior indication of a home occupation is permitted, effectively prohibiting any business sign on the property. Section 15-2735(G) refers signage to Article 26, Signs, but the no-exterior-indication standard means home-occupation signs are not allowed.

Fresno Citywide Development Code Section 15-2735(E) generally bars customer visits except for personal instruction (musical, art, tutoring), which is capped at eight clients/students per day and no more than three at one time. Client/employee hours are limited to 7 a.m.-7 p.m., only one operator-owned vehicle (one ton or less) may be used for the business, and direct on-site sales are prohibited except by mail, phone, or internet.

Fresno Citywide Development Code Section 15-2735(E)(14) permits Cottage Food Preparation as a home occupation, subject to California Government Code 51035 and Health and Safety Code 113758, with preparation and storage inside the primary residence and no outdoor storage. Section 15-2735(H) lists 27 specific businesses that are prohibited as home occupations, including auto repair, restaurants, retail sales, and commercial food handling other than cottage food.

Fresno Citywide Development Code Section 15-2735 allows home occupations in all residential units citywide regardless of zoning, but limits the business to 25 percent of the dwelling's floor area, requires the residential appearance to be maintained with no exterior indication of the business, confines activity to the dwelling or an enclosed garage, and permits no more than one non-resident employee.

A small family child care home (up to 8 kids) is a by-right residential use in Fresno with no permit or business tax certificate required, while a large home (7 to 14 kids) needs a Conditional Use Permit and must sit 300 feet from another large home. Both need a state license.

Every residential swimming pool, spa, or hot tub in Fresno that holds more than 18 inches of water must be surrounded by an enclosure at least 60 inches high, with self-closing, self-latching gates that open away from the pool. The City enforces the California Swimming Pool Safety Act (Health & Safety Code 115920-115929) through the 2022 California Residential Code, and the City's own Consumer Notice reproduces the barrier standard verbatim.

Building a swimming pool or spa in Fresno requires a construction permit, and whenever that permit is issued for a new or remodeled pool the pool must be equipped with at least two of seven specified drowning-prevention safety features under Health & Safety Code 115922. Only small prefabricated above-ground pools accessory to a single-family home that are less than 24 inches deep and hold no more than 5,000 gallons are exempt from the building permit.

Fresno does not require the owner to live on-site for a standard Accessory Dwelling Unit, but a Junior ADU is different: FMC § 15-2754(F)(1) requires the owner to reside in either the primary residence or the JADU itself, unless the owner is a government agency, land trust, or housing organization.

Fresno bars short-term rental of Accessory Dwelling Units: FMC § 15-2754(F)(3) requires any Second Dwelling Unit that is rented to be leased for 30 consecutive days or longer, closing off nightly or weekend rentals of ADUs and JADUs city-wide.

Fresno processes Accessory Dwelling Units ministerially under FMC § 15-2754, allowing up to two ADUs plus one JADU on a single-unit lot. ADUs can reach 50% of the primary home's floor area or 1,400 square feet, stand up to 30 feet tall, and need no additional off-street parking.

Fresno permits a Tiny House on Wheels as an Accessory Dwelling Unit under FMC § 15-2754(C)(1)(a), but only if it meets every ADU standard in the section plus three extra conditions: ANSI certification, an engineered foundation system, and skirting enclosing the gap between the home and the ground.

Converting a garage to living space in Fresno generally means creating an Accessory Dwelling Unit under Fresno Municipal Code Section 15-2754, and California Government Code Section 66314 bars the City from requiring replacement of the parking spaces lost when a garage is converted to or demolished for an ADU.

In Fresno a one-story detached tool/storage shed of 120 square feet or less, no more than 12 feet high, and at least 3 feet from property lines needs no building permit; accessory structures on residential parcels of 10,000 sq ft or less are capped at 12 feet high and must comply with Fresno Municipal Code Section 15-2004.

Below the San Joaquin River bluff edge, Fresno's Bluff Protection Initiative bans lighting any fire or open flame -- including cooking fires and barbecues -- except in designated areas, a misdemeanor under Section 10-1508, though the same rule expressly exempts cooking fires and barbecues on private property within that zone.

Fresno lets homeowners in Single-Unit Districts add an outdoor, enclosed, or second kitchen under FMC § 15-2753, but an enclosed cooking area over 110 square feet must instead meet the city's full Accessory Dwelling Unit standards. The kitchen must stay subordinate to the house, respect yard setbacks, and serve only non-commercial cooking for residents and their guests.

Fresno Municipal Code § 10-1510 requires owners of parcels along the San Joaquin River bluffs to maintain a 30-foot firebreak around inhabited dwellings from April 15 through September 30 each year, clearing flammable vegetation and keeping brush at least ten feet from propane tanks, enforced as a public nuisance.

New or substantially improved homes in a Fresno flood hazard area must have their lowest floor built to the elevation set by the California Residential Building Code's flood provision, R322.2.1. Nonresidential buildings must either match that elevation or be certified watertight (floodproofed) below it, under Municipal Code §§ 11-627 and 11-628.

Fresno requires loading docks next to commercial, office, or residential-adjacent sites to post signage capping truck idling at five minutes, and separately requires drive-through lanes to be designed and signed to discourage idling. Both rules sit in the Development Code's site-design standards rather than a standalone anti-idling ordinance.

Fresno folds erosion and sediment control into its storm water ordinance rather than a separate grading code: new development and redevelopment projects must use Best Management Practices to control runoff volume, rate, and pollutant load, and the city writes those BMPs directly into land-use entitlements and building or construction permits.

Fresno's Urban Storm Water Quality Management and Discharge Control Ordinance bans non-storm-water discharges into the city's storm drain system and requires everyone who might pollute runoff to follow Best Management Practices. The City Manager, acting as Authorized Enforcement Agent, administers the program citywide under the region's Clean Water Act permit.

Fresno requires a building permit before any construction, fill, or alteration begins within a mapped area of special flood hazard. The rule covers all FEMA-mapped Special Flood Hazard Areas from the February 18, 2009 Flood Insurance Study, and building without approval is both a public nuisance and a misdemeanor under Municipal Code § 11-608.

Licensed cannabis retailers may deliver to Fresno addresses under California Business and Professions Code §26090 and 16 CCR §5416, with required vehicle GPS tracking, $5,000 cash limits, and adult-recipient ID checks.

Fresno requires commercial cannabis retailers to maintain at least 800-foot buffers from schools, daycare centers, youth centers, and other cannabis retailers under FMC §9-3309 and California Business & Professions Code §26054.

California Proposition 64 and Health & Safety Code §11362.2 allow Fresno residents 21+ to cultivate up to six cannabis plants indoors per private residence, but outdoor home cultivation is banned under FMC §9-3320.

Under California Proposition 64 and Health & Safety Code Section 11362.2, adults 21 and older may cultivate up to six cannabis plants per household for personal use. Fresno follows state law without imposing additional local restrictions beyond standard nuisance and odor provisions. Plants must be grown in a locked space not visible from a public place. Indoor cultivation is permitted in any zone; outdoor cultivation must comply with setback and screening requirements.

Fresno confines cannabis retail to ten commercial and mixed-use zones under FMC 15-2739(B): DTN, DTG, CMS, CC, CR, CG, CH, NMX, CMX, and RMX. Every retail building must sit at least 800 feet from another dispensary, a K-12 school, a licensed day care, or a youth center, while cultivation and manufacturing uses need a 1,000-foot residential buffer plus industrial zoning.

Fresno requires building permits for solar panel installations per FMC Chapter 11 and the California Building Code. Under AB 2188 (California Solar Permitting Act), the City must offer a streamlined, expedited permitting process for small residential rooftop solar systems. Permits for standard residential systems (up to 10 kW) are processed ministerially without discretionary review. Inspections are required to verify electrical and structural compliance.

California's Solar Rights Act (Civil Code §714) strongly protects homeowners' right to install solar energy systems. HOAs in Fresno cannot prohibit solar panel installations and may only impose reasonable restrictions that do not increase system cost by more than $1,000 or reduce efficiency by more than 10%. AB 1410 further strengthened protections by preventing HOAs from requiring pre-approval that unreasonably delays installation.

Fresno limits ground-floor window signs to one per window and requires storefronts to keep at least 75 percent of the glass transparent and free of signage. A narrower category of small, information-only window signs, hours, address, occupancy, emergency info, is exempt from permitting if it stays under 3 square feet.

Fresno bans new billboards outright, but a replacement billboard swapped in for an existing legal one under Business and Professions Code § 5412 may feature electronic copy at the City Manager's discretion. Any electronic-copy sign approved elsewhere in the city must hold each image for at least 8 seconds and cap brightness at 100-500 foot-Lamberts depending on ambient street lighting.

Fresno's sign code draws a hard line along its freeways: no pole sign may stand within 660 feet of the nearest travel lane of Freeway 41, 180, or 168 if visible from the road, and monument signs face an identical 660-foot buffer from Freeway 41. The Planning Division checks this setback before issuing the required Zone Clearance.

Fresno's Temporary Uses standards limit garage sale signs to the actual hours of the sale: FMC § 15-2760(A)(1)(e) requires signs to come down when the sale ends and bars placing them on utility poles, utility cabinets, or anywhere in the public right-of-way.

Fresno's Blighted Vacant Building Ordinance, Section 10-617, forces owners to actively maintain, monitor and secure any vacant building, trimmed yards, secured openings, graffiti removal within 48 hours, or face a public-nuisance finding with administrative citations that climb from $2,500 to $10,000 per 30-day period.

Fresno Municipal Code § 10-605 declares overgrown weeds, dry grass, sagebrush, tumbleweed, and neglected yard landscaping a public nuisance on any lot, vacant or occupied. Code Enforcement can order an owner to clear the growth, and unabated lots face a notice and order, administrative citation, or summary abatement at the owner's expense.

Fresno's Development Code regulates outdoor artificial light under Municipal Code Section 15-2015 to protect the night sky and keep glare off neighboring parcels. New lighting, additions expanding floor area by 20 percent or 2,500 square feet, and any Discretionary Permit trigger review. Spillover is capped at one foot-candle onto a public street and half a foot-candle onto residential property, and mercury vapor lamps, drop-down lenses, and lasers are banned outright.

Fresno does not have a local rent control ordinance. However, the statewide California Tenant Protection Act (AB 1482) applies to most residential rental properties in Fresno. AB 1482 caps annual rent increases at 5% plus the local Consumer Price Index (CPI) change, or 10%, whichever is lower. The law applies to buildings 15 or more years old and exempts single-family homes owned by individuals (with proper notice), duplexes where the owner occupies one unit, and properties built within the last 15 years.

California caps Fresno security deposits at one month's rent for most residential tenancies under AB 12, effective July 2024. Landlords must itemize deductions and return the balance within twenty-one days of move-out.

Fresno landlords invoking AB 1482 no-fault eviction must pay the tenant one month's rent in relocation assistance or waive the final month's rent. Payment is due at notice service for displaced households.

California law protects Fresno tenants from landlord harassment intended to force them out, including utility shut-offs, lockouts, and threats based on immigration status. Violations expose landlords to civil damages and criminal liability.

California Government Code prohibits Fresno landlords from refusing tenants because they pay rent with Section 8 vouchers or other lawful subsidies. Source of income is a protected characteristic under state fair-housing law.

California AB 1482 requires Fresno landlords to give tenants a written notice explaining statewide rent-cap and just-cause protections. The disclosure must appear in the lease or as a standalone document signed by the tenant.

Fresno's Rental Housing Improvement Act (FMC Sec. 10-1601 et seq.) makes maintaining a habitable rental unit a citywide code requirement, not just a private landlord-tenant dispute. Sec. 10-1604(c) locks each unit to the building-code standard in force when it was built, altered, or converted, layered on top of any additional health and safety rules the city or state later adopts.

AB 1482 limits Fresno no-fault evictions to specific reasons including owner move-in, substantial remodel, withdrawal from rental market, or government order. Landlords must give written notice and pay one month's relocation assistance.

Fresno Housing Authority administers federal Section 8 housing-choice vouchers in Fresno. Landlords accepting vouchers enter a Housing Assistance Payments contract and submit to inspections under HUD's Housing Quality Standards.

Fresno requires all residential rental properties to be registered with the City under the Rental Housing Improvement Act (FMC Chapter 10, Article 11). Registration must be completed within 30 days of receiving initial notice. The program was established to address substandard rental housing conditions and promote compliance with health and safety standards. There is no fee to register, but failure to register results in penalties.

Fresno does not have a local just-cause eviction ordinance, but the statewide AB 1482 provides just-cause eviction protections for tenants who have occupied a unit for 12 or more months. Landlords of covered properties cannot terminate tenancies without a legally recognized reason, categorized as at-fault (lease violations, nonpayment) or no-fault (owner move-in, substantial renovation, withdrawal from rental market). No-fault evictions require relocation assistance equal to one month's rent.

Fresno's blue-cart recycling program isn't a suggestion: it's written into the Municipal Code as a sorting mandate. FMC § 6-205(c)(3)(ii) requires customers to place organics in the green container, recyclables in the blue container, and everything else in gray, and bars putting gray-container material into either of the other two carts.

Every Fresno resident and business must subscribe to organics collection alongside trash and recycling: it isn't optional. FMC § 6-206(a) requires every person owning or occupying a residence or commercial establishment to subscribe to solid waste, segregated recyclable materials, and organic materials collection service, with a state-recognized community composting site as the only built-in carve-out.

Fresno Municipal Code § 10-611 makes unauthorized dumping and illegal storage of junk, rubbish, or vehicles on land a public nuisance, punishable by escalating administrative citations of $1,000, $1,500, then $3,000 per violation plus the city's abatement costs, with the dumper's vehicle subject to impoundment.

Fresno Municipal Code § 6-202(ll) defines "green waste material" as decomposable landscape debris, clippings, leaves, brush, and prunings under 4 inches in diameter, that must go in the green organics container under the city's Waste Collection and Disposal Ordinance rather than the trash or recycling cart.

You can't just call any hauler for a construction dumpster in Fresno. FMC § 6-222(a) requires roll-off collection service to come from a company holding a non-exclusive franchise from the city, effective since September 1, 2011, and containers placed on a property must carry the collector's name, phone number, and ID number under § 6-204(e).

Fresno requires every residence and business to put waste out at least once a week, and it sets a strict clock for the cart itself: FMC § 6-205(c)(11) bars setting an automated container out any earlier than 6:00 p.m. the night before pickup and requires it back off the curb by 8:00 p.m. the day it's emptied.

Fresno Municipal Code § 6-205(c)(10) bars storing a trash, recycling, or organics container in a front or side yard facing the street unless it's screened from view, though the Director can waive that for hardship and temporary roll-off boxes get a 30-day exemption.

Fresno Municipal Code § 6-206(a) makes trash, recycling, and organics collection service mandatory for every residence and business, and § 6-205(b) requires accumulated material to be set out for pickup at least once a week through an authorized city hauler only.

Fresno Municipal Code § 6-205(c)(5) requires customers with more waste than their carts can hold to order and pay for a "special haul" at the Master Fee Schedule rate, or transport the abnormal accumulation to a lawful disposal site themselves.

Fresno mandates recycling participation under state laws including AB 341, AB 1826, and SB 1383. All residents must use the blue recycling cart for paper, cardboard, plastics (#1-7), glass, and metals. SB 1383 requires organic waste diversion through the green cart for food scraps, food-soiled paper, and yard trimmings. Commercial generators producing four or more cubic yards of waste per week must have recycling service.

Fresno requires every sidewalk food vendor to hold a Business License and County health permit under FMC Sec. 10-2604(a), then layers on numeric buffer rules, no stationary food vendor within 100 feet of a residence or 50 feet of an operating restaurant's entrance, plus a total nighttime vending ban in the Tower District from 12:30 a.m. to 8:00 a.m., Thursday through Sunday.

Fresno bans sidewalk vending within set distances of freeway ramps, other vendors, homes, and business kitchens, and shuts down vending entirely in the Tower District overnight Thursday through Sunday. Municipal Code § 10-2604(e) and (n) spell out the exact footage and hours vendors must stay clear of.

Under the Mobile Vendor Ordinance, no one may sell food, drinks, or merchandise from a truck, trailer, or cart in Fresno without a Mobile Vendor Permit from the City Manager, plus a business license and County Health Department clearance for food sales.

Fresno honors no-solicitation signs posted by residents. Under FMC Chapter 9 and California Penal Code Section 602.8, solicitors must respect posted 'No Soliciting' signs and immediately leave when asked by the occupant. Ignoring a no-solicitation sign and knocking or ringing the doorbell constitutes a violation. The City encourages residents to post clear no-solicitation signage to reduce unwanted door-to-door contact.

Anyone who solicits orders or peddles goods door-to-door in Fresno must first obtain a business license under FMC § 7-1002 before commencing the activity, and Section 7-1004(c) treats a peddler with no fixed address as needing a fresh license every license period. Section 7-1006 requires solicitors to carry that license at all times and produce it on any police officer's demand.

Fresno Municipal Code Section 9-2508 bars anyone under 18 from loitering, wandering or playing on public streets, parks, playgrounds and other public places between 10:00 p.m. and 5:00 a.m. Exceptions cover minors accompanied by a parent or guardian, running an emergency errand, or heading straight home from a meeting, dance or recreational activity.

Fresno Municipal Code § 5-502(p) bars anyone from entering, remaining, loitering in, or leaving a parked vehicle inside any city park between midnight and 5 a.m. the following day. The PARCS Director can issue written permission for an exception, but without it every city park is off-limits overnight.

Fresno's Development Code sets minimum front, side, and rear setbacks by residential zone district, from a 35-foot front setback in the RE estate district down to 13 feet in RS-4/RS-5, with separate interior-side, street-side, rear, alley, and freeway/railroad minimums for each.

Fresno caps residential buildings at 35 feet across every Residential Single-Unit district, from the half-acre RE district down to the compact RS-5 lots. The Citywide Development Code sets the number in Table 15-903-2 and tells builders exactly how to measure it in Section 15-305.

Fresno's lot coverage cap runs from 30 percent on the largest residential lots (RE through RS-2) up to 60 percent on the smallest RS-5 lots, scaling coverage to lot size. Coverage counts every building footprint but excludes decks, patios, pools, and one small accessory structure.

Fresno's Citywide Development Code protects specific trees from removal: Heritage Trees, multi-trunk trees with a 12-inch-plus trunk, any tree 12 inches or more in diameter, and all parkway and public-property trees. Cutting, pruning materially, or removing one requires a City Tree Removal Permit under FMC § 15-2308, reviewed by the Director or, for heritage trees, the Planning Commission.

New development in Fresno must plant at least one parkway tree per lot, spaced no more than forty feet apart, from a minimum five-gallon container, under FMC § 13-304(c). Only species on the city's Master Tree List-Parkway may go into the parkway strip, and residential owners can request a front-yard tree instead through a recorded public tree easement under § 13-304(d).

Fresno designates exceptional trees as Heritage Trees under Municipal Code Section 15-2308(B), and once listed a tree cannot be removed, pruned, or materially altered without a Tree Removal Permit heard by the Planning Commission. Anyone may nominate a tree on private or public land, but private-property nominations need the owner's written consent.

Fresno homeowners can hold up to four garage sales a year at one address under Fresno Municipal Code Section 15-2760(A)(1). Each sale event runs no more than two consecutive days, spans at most two consecutive weekends, and stays within 7 a.m. to 7 p.m. hours. A nonprofit gets one extra sale a year that doesn't count against that cap.

Fresno Municipal Code Section 15-4003 lists the minimum provisions every homeowners association's CC&Rs must contain -- from maintaining shared utilities to letting the City into common areas -- and blocks the association from amending any of it without the City's prior written consent.

Fresno adopts the 2025 California Plumbing Code by reference as the "Fresno Plumbing Code" under Municipal Code § 11-107, effective October 31, 2025. Chapter 1 of the Fresno Building Code governs permit administration, and a local amendment bans galvanized iron or steel water piping citywide, both underground and inside buildings.

Fresno enforces electrical work under the 2025 California Electrical Code, which itself incorporates the 2023 National Electrical Code with state amendments. Municipal Code § 11-104 adopts it by reference as the 'Fresno Electrical Code,' administered by the same Building Official who runs the rest of the building code.

Fresno's only local elevator provision applies when an existing commercial or industrial building in central Fresno is converted to Joint Living and Work Quarters: existing elevators must keep complying with the State Elevator Safety Order, and freight elevators can never be used to carry passengers, under Municipal Code § 11-735.

Fresno's local fire code amendment requires an automatic sprinkler system in every new building or structure once its fire area reaches 4,999 square feet, in any occupancy group including residential Group R, on top of the standard sprinkler triggers already listed in Sections 903.2.1 through 903.2.21.

Every Fresno building permit fee is set by the City's Master Fee Resolution, with an added charge when plans are unusually complex or get changed enough to need extra review time. Municipal Code § 11-102 also blocks utility hookups, and any temporary construction power, until the Building Official signs off.

Fresno's Building Official can combine multiple trades' inspections into one visit, in the same chronological order they'd normally happen, under a local amendment to the California Building Code. Anyone who disagrees with an inspection-related order can appeal to the City's Building Standards Appeals Board.

Fresno adopts the 2025 California Green Building Standards Code (CALGreen) by reference under Municipal Code § 11-109 as the "Fresno CALGreen Code." A separate local amendment, Section 6-225, layers construction-and-demolition recycling conditions onto every covered building permit, with specific triggers for multi-family and commercial projects.

State law sets the rule for Fresno: California Health and Safety Code Section 17926 requires every owner of a Fresno dwelling with a gas heater, fireplace, or attached garage to install a State Fire Marshal-approved carbon monoxide alarm. Fresno's own Development Code layers on the same requirement for condominium conversion projects.

A true sidewalk cafe in Fresno's public right-of-way needs its own Zone Clearance plus a City Engineer-approved encroachment permit under FMC 15-2744(C), and the operator must keep six feet of sidewalk clear for pedestrians, carry liability insurance naming the city, and pay a use fee the City sets for the space.

Fresno requires a special event permit from the Controller for any parade, marked out in advance with a route, and must finish moving from start to end point in three hours or less, filed at least 30 days ahead on a pre-established parade route.

Fresno Municipal Code § 5-509 requires prior permission from the PARCS Director before any group of more than 25 people uses a park area, and requires a written application at least 15 days ahead for designated Special Activity Areas like Roeding Park's Lisenby Bandstand or Woodward Park's outdoor theatre.

Fresno doesn't set a blanket rule for patio heaters. FMC 15-2744(A)(3) leaves misters and heaters at outdoor dining areas up to the Review Authority's discretion, approved case by case on aesthetics, safety, and resource efficiency rather than a fixed seasonal calendar.

Fresno classifies a street fair as an 'Other Special Event' under its parade and special events ordinance, requiring a Controller-issued permit whenever the fair occupies a city street, sidewalk, alley, or right-of-way, or needs police deployment for crowd or traffic control.

Fresno lets a project satisfy its 12-foot sidewalk-width requirement by expanding the sidewalk into the roadway on a metal or wood deck instead of setting back the building or rebuilding the curb. The applicant must sign a City encroachment agreement accepting full maintenance and insurance responsibility.

Fresno defines a block party as a festive residential-street gathering that requires closing the street to traffic, and treats it as a special event needing a Controller-issued permit: one the city can specifically condition on getting sign-off from half the affected neighbors first.

Fresno requires an encroachment permit from the Public Works Director before anyone occupies or uses the public right-of-way for a private purpose. FMC § 13-219 conditions approval on a recorded indemnity covenant, a complete application, paid fees, a finding that the encroachment serves a legitimate purpose with no feasible alternative, and a finding that it will not harm public health, safety, or welfare.

Fresno property owners whose lots front a public street must maintain and repair the abutting sidewalk under FMC § 13-217, following the standards in Streets and Highways Code Chapter 22, Part 3, Division 7. The city itself repairs sidewalk damage caused by street trees or monolithic curb-and-gutter, but the owner stays on the hook for any damage the owner, an agent, or someone under the owner's control causes.

Fresno bans standing or sitting in any street in a way that blocks or annoys people passing by, and bans blocking the entrance to a church, hall, theatre, or other place of public assembly. FMC § 13-109 covers streets generally, including sidewalks within the public right-of-way, and violators face the Code's general misdemeanor penalty.

Fresno's Noise Ordinance names generators, motors and compressors as regulated machinery under Municipal Code Section 10-105(c). Running one loud enough to disturb neighbors is unlawful whenever it pushes sound above the zone's decibel ceiling set in Section 10-102: 50-60 dB in residential areas depending on the hour, 60-65 dB commercial, 70 dB industrial around the clock.

Fresno bars and nightclubs must keep doors and windows closed after 10 p.m. to contain noise and self-monitor decibel levels under FMC 15-2751(L), though the closed-door rule drops away entirely for any establishment sited at least 400 feet from a Residential District.

Fresno's Public Safety Alarm System Ordinance regulates burglary, robbery, fire, and medical alarm systems in buildings, but Section 10-814(a) expressly states the article does not apply to audible alarms affixed to automobiles, so car alarms fall outside the city's alarm-registration and false-alarm scheme entirely.

Under the Rental Housing Improvement Act, Fresno's City Attorney inspects a randomly selected percentage of units at every registered rental property for state Civil Code health and safety violations, escalating to full-property inspection where problems are pervasive, with a self-certification option for properties with clean annual inspection records.

California SB 793, upheld by 2022 voter referendum Proposition 31, bans the sale of most flavored tobacco products statewide, including in Fresno, with limited exceptions for premium cigars, loose-leaf tobacco, and hookah.

California Senate Bill 7 (Business and Professions Code §22963) bans tobacco and vape sales to anyone under 21 in Fresno, requiring photo ID checks for purchasers who appear under 30.

California AB 1276 (Public Resources Code §42271) requires Fresno restaurants and food delivery platforms to provide single-use utensils, condiments, and napkins only upon customer request.

California Assembly Bill 1884 (Public Resources Code §42270) prohibits Fresno full-service restaurants from automatically providing single-use plastic straws; customers must specifically request one.

Fresno does not ban expanded polystyrene foam foodware, unlike many California coastal cities. State law SB 54 phases down all single-use plastic foodware by 2032, indirectly limiting polystyrene use.

Fresno bans camping on any public property and on private property, with narrow exceptions, under FMC Sec. 10-1702, treating it, and washing in public fountains, as a public nuisance aimed at keeping streets, parks, and sidewalks 'clean, sanitary and accessible.' A violation is a misdemeanor carrying up to a year in jail and a $1,000 fine per violation.

Fresno bars motor vehicles from driving or parking in a marked bike lane except for a short list of reasons: entering or leaving the roadway, a right turn within 200 feet of the intersection, or authorized parking, street work, and public-utility vehicles.

Fresno Municipal Code Article 34 requires any operator renting out shared e-scooters, e-bikes or similar devices in the public right-of-way to first obtain a City permit and franchise, label every device that sidewalk riding is prohibited, and geofence no-parking zones such as Fashion Fair Mall and Fresno State. The article was written as a pilot capped at six months or June 30, 2020, and its own text says it 'is hereby repealed' once that pilot ends.

The City of Fresno's own Noise Ordinance (Municipal Code Chapter 10, Article 1) sets sound levels by district: 60 dBA daytime, 55 evening, and 50 dBA overnight in residential areas, and 70 dBA anytime in industrial areas. Data-center cooling and generators must comply.

The City of Fresno has no data-center ordinance and no "data center" use category. Data centers site in the IL Light Industrial and IH Heavy Industrial districts, permitted by right as a Communication Facility or industrial use under Development Code Table 15-1302.

Fresno's Recycled Water Ordinance requires a signed user agreement before anyone can receive or use recycled water, conditions certain new developments in the Recycled Water Project Area to dual-plumb for it, and mandates recycled water for construction dust control where a fill station is reasonably close.

Fresno doesn't run a leak hotline mandate, but the code makes leaks a legal problem for the owner regardless: FMC § 6-520(a)(2) bars keeping any 'water connection...which is not tight and free from leakage,' and § 6-522(g)(2) lets the city order irrigation-system repairs within fourteen days of notice.

Article 15's Downtown Districts (DTN, DTG, DTC) carry their own façade and streetscape rulebook implementing the Downtown Neighborhoods Community Plan. Section 15-1505 dictates building articulation, banned exterior materials, and exact awning and canopy dimensions for every storefront in the district.

Fresno applies California's State Density Bonus Law, granting up to 50 percent extra units, height waivers, and parking concessions for projects that include affordable, senior, or supportive housing, regardless of base zoning.

California Civil Code §1954.603 requires Fresno landlords to give written bed bug disclosures to tenants, prohibits renting infested units, and obligates pest control. Local enforcement runs through Fresno Code Enforcement and Public Health.

California Senate Bill 602 requires all Fresno restaurant food handlers to obtain an ANSI-accredited food handler card within 30 days of hire and keep it current every three years.

California Health and Safety Code §118286 prohibits placing home-generated sharps in trash or recycling bins. Fresno residents must use approved sharps containers and drop them at designated collection sites.

Fresno Municipal Code § 11-305 makes property owners responsible for furnishing and maintaining devices, equipment, or facilities that prevent insect and rodent infestation, and for exterminating any pests once infestation occurs, unless that duty is placed on the occupant by law or ruling.

Fresno's Transient Room Tax Ordinance taxes anyone occupying a hotel room, motel, or similar lodging for 30 consecutive days or less; the rate itself is fixed by the Council's Master Fee Resolution rather than the code text, but the collection machinery, exemptions, and penalties are all spelled out in Chapter 7, Article 6.

Fresno designates buildings, structures, objects, sites, and districts as Historic Resources or Local Historic Districts under FMC § 12-1607 when they carry distinctive historic, architectural, aesthetic, or cultural value and are at least fifty years old. The Historic Preservation Commission reviews nominations and the City Council makes the final designation by resolution, triggering permit review for any alteration, demolition, or relocation.

Fresno limits Smoke Shops to seven per City Council District and requires every new one to win a Conditional Use Permit under Fresno Municipal Code Section 15-2761. New shops also can't sit within 1,000 feet of another Smoke Shop or within 1,000 feet of a park, school, or drug-treatment facility.

Fresno requires a Conditional Use Permit for any Adult-Oriented Business and keeps them at least 1,000 feet from residential districts, schools, parks, religious institutions, and other adult businesses. Operating hours are capped at 8 a.m.-10 p.m. Sunday through Thursday and 8 a.m.-11 p.m. Friday and Saturday.

Fresno bars anyone from operating as a pawnbroker or secondhand dealer without a Police Chief-issued permit under FMC § 9-607, and Article 6 layers on strict operating rules: a mandatory 15-day resale hold on every item, a daily written report to the Chief of Police, and fixed business hours that close the shop on Sundays and most legal holidays.

Fresno regulates tattoo and body modification businesses under FMC § 15-2758, requiring registration with the Fresno County Department of Health and a posted notice barring anyone under 18 from the premises unless accompanied by a parent or documented legal guardian.

Fresno requires a Police Chief-issued permit before anyone buys, sells, or trades secondhand goods, or operates as a pawnbroker, under FMC § 9-607. Dealers must file daily transaction reports, hold merchandise fifteen days, and close during set hours: controls built to trace stolen property moving through resale channels.

Fresno bars anyone from practicing massage for compensation, or operating a massage business, without CAMTC certification and a City Registration Certificate, under FMC Sec. 9-1603. Landlords who knowingly host an unregistered massage business are also liable.

Fresno dispatches tow trucks for police-ordered tows strictly from a rotation list capped at 20 companies under FMC Sec. 9-1707, with companies vetted by background investigation, bound to charge only reasonable fees, and subject to suspension for violating the Non-Professional Tow Agreement.

Fresno Municipal Code § 14-1805 bans roller skating, skateboarding, and any metal-tread-wheel device on streets the city has designated as "mall streets": the pedestrian business corridors around the historic Fulton Mall. The ban runs the full length of each listed mall street, not just a plaza area.

Fresno Municipal Code Sections 9-2501 and 9-2502 make it a misdemeanor to loiter in any public place, or any place visible from the public, in a manner and under circumstances manifesting an intent to solicit prostitution or engage in unlawful drug activity. Officers weigh specific statutory factors -- known-offender history, beckoning, lookout behavior, evasive conduct -- before an arrest holds up under either section.

Fresno's Social Host Ordinance, Municipal Code Article 30, makes it a misdemeanor to knowingly host or allow a party on private property under your control where anyone under 21 is served or consumes alcohol. A 'party' is any gathering of two or more people who aren't all members of the same household, and each emergency response to the same party is a separate offense.

Fresno's smoking ban is written for enclosed spaces, so parks and open patios aren't covered -- except at the city's two airports, where Section 10-1105(m) expressly extends the "public place" smoking prohibition to named open-air zones like terminal sidewalks and curb areas, regardless of whether they're enclosed.

Fresno makes it 'unlawful and a public nuisance to urinate or defecate in public' under FMC Sec. 10-1702(c), which incorporates the citywide 'committing a nuisance' offense defined in Sec. 9-2512 as evacuating the bowels or bladder anywhere not provided for that purpose. Because the urination ban sits inside the Unlawful Camping article, a violation carries the same misdemeanor penalty as illegal camping.

Fresno Municipal Code Section 9-2503 bars drinking beer, wine or any intoxicating beverage on any street, sidewalk, alley, playground, or parking lot open to the general public. Restaurants with an encroachment permit may serve alcohol in a posted sidewalk seating area during business hours, and the Parks and Recreation Director can authorize drinking at a limited-duration mall-area event.

Fresno's Smoking Pollution Control Ordinance defines "smoking" to include any lighted or heated plant product intended for inhalation, natural or synthetic, and Section 10-1105 bans that smoking in all enclosed public places -- stores, restaurants, restaurants, theaters, health facilities and more -- reaching cannabis smoking as squarely as tobacco.

Fresno's business license is legally a revenue tax, not a permit to operate: most businesses pay a quarterly fee on gross receipts under a retail-or-wholesale schedule, while a defined list of professions instead pays a flat $328-per-person annual fee capped at $5,260 per firm, both escalating yearly with the CPI.

Fresno permits card rooms only under the City of Fresno Card Room Ordinance, capping the city at no more than 51 card tables total and requiring 10 to 51 tables per room, with a card room permit plus a separate operations certificate before any legal gaming can begin, per FMC Sec. 9-2102.