Local Rules Near UC Berkeley

Berkeley bans gasoline-powered leaf blowers citywide for both residents and commercial landscapers, aligned with California AB 1346 phase-out of small off-road gas engines.

BMC 13.40.070(B)(5) makes it a violation to keep an animal whose frequent or long noise annoys two or more neighbors in separate residences, with 10 continuous or 30 intermittent minutes of barking counted as automatic proof of the disturbance.

Construction and demolition work in Berkeley is barred before 7 a.m. and after 7 p.m. on weekdays, and before 9 a.m. or after 8 p.m. on weekends and holidays, if the noise crosses a property line above code limits. Mobile equipment also faces separate dBA ceilings by zone.

Outdoor amplified music or speech in Berkeley needs an Environmental Health Division permit, capped at 65 dBA at the exterior of any residence and generally limited to 10 a.m. to 8 p.m. Private-property use also maxes out at four hours in any 24-hour period.

Berkeley caps noise crossing into a neighboring multi-family unit at 40 dBA overnight and 45 dBA during the day under BMC 13.40.060, measured with graduated exceedance rules that scale allowed decibel overages against how long the sound lasts.

Berkeley permits unlimited extended home-share nights when the host stays onsite and rents only a portion of the dwelling, recognizing roommate-style arrangements as distinct from whole-home rentals.

Beyond the citywide 12% occupancy tax, Berkeley's short-term rental ordinance layers on a host enforcement fee of 2% of rents charged and requires $1 million in liability insurance, a Zoning Certificate and a business license before a host residence can be listed.

A Berkeley short-term rental host loses the right to operate for a full year after a third violation affidavit is issued under the city's Second Response Ordinance. The rule ties directly to noise and party enforcement under BMC Chapter 13.48.

Berkeley lets a hosting platform like Airbnb stand in for the host on money obligations: it can pay the host's enforcement fee and it must, along with the host, cover the transient occupancy tax. Sections 23.314.050(E) and (H) set the split.

When the host is not on site, Berkeley caps a short-term rental at 90 days per calendar year. Section 23.314.050(B)(2) sets that limit, and going over it is a Chapter 23.314 violation enforceable through the City's general penalty and administrative citation process.

Berkeley defines 'host present' as the host actually living in the host residence during the rental period, and that status controls how many nights the unit can be rented. Section 23.314.050(B)(1) gives hosted rentals unlimited days a year once the host meets that presence test.

Berkeley will not let anyone rent a home for fewer than 14 days without a Zoning Certificate and a city Business License first. Table 23.202-1 lists short-term rentals as a ZC* use in residential districts, and Chapter 23.314 spells out the paperwork the Planning and Development Department requires before a host can operate.

Every short-term rental in Berkeley has to carry at least $1 million in liability insurance. Section 23.314.050(F) lets either the host or the hosting platform hold that coverage, so a host booking exclusively through a platform that provides host-liability coverage can rely on it to meet the rule.

Berkeley bans short-term rentals everywhere except the host's own principal residence. Section 23.314.040(A) states it flatly, and Section 23.314.020(A)(5) defines that residence by where the host actually lives, sleeps, and returns, not by ownership alone.

A Berkeley short-term rental host has to comply with the city's Second Response Ordinance, and a third violation affidavit for loud or unruly parties bans that host from operating any short-term rental for a full year. Section 23.314.060(A) sets the rule; excessive noise itself is also defined as a public nuisance.

Berkeley does not put a flat headcount on a short-term rental; Section 23.314.050(C) sends the occupant limit to the Housing Code, whose floor-area math in Section 19.40.030 requires at least 120 square feet in one room and adds 50 square feet for every sleeping-room occupant past two.

Berkeley bans the possession, manufacture, storage, sale, handling, and use of all fireworks, including State Fire Marshal-approved 'Safe and Sane' fireworks, anywhere in the city. Narrow exceptions exist only for licensed storage and handling, licensed manufacturing and testing, and professional pyrotechnics used in film, television, or stage productions under a fire department permit.

In Berkeley's Wildland-Urban Interface areas, covering the High and Very High Fire Hazard Severity Zones plus the Panoramic and Grizzly Peak Mitigation Areas, a fire pit, portable barbecue, or outdoor fireplace can run without a permit only if it stays on an inhabited property and sits at least 30 feet from combustible material or nonfire-smart vegetation. Any other outdoor fire needs a written permit from the Fire Chief.

Berkeley bars storing any LP-gas cylinder over 2.5 pounds water capacity, or any portable propane tank, inside a building classified Assembly (A), Residential R-1, R-2, or R-4, unless the fire code specifically authorizes it. The limit targets indoor storage in multi-unit and congregate housing rather than single-family homes.

Berkeley bars any outdoor fire in its mapped Wildland-Urban Interface areas, the hillside fire hazard zones above the flatlands, unless the person burning holds a written permit from the Fire Chief. Burning rubbish, trash, or combustible waste in a barbecue, fireplace, incinerator, or fire pit is prohibited outright, permit or no permit.

Berkeley designates four Wildland-Urban Interface areas, the High and Very High Fire Hazard Severity Zones plus the Panoramic and Grizzly Peak Mitigation Areas, all mapped by specific street segments in the Berkeley hills. Buildings inside these zones must meet the Wildland-Urban Interface Code's construction, roofing, and vegetation-management rules that the flatlands do not.

Berkeley requires working smoke alarms in every bedroom, hallway, and story, plus CO alarms near sleeping areas. Required at sale, rental turnover, and with any permit.

Properties in the Berkeley Hills VHFHSZ must maintain 100 feet of defensible space per PRC 4291. Berkeley Fire runs annual inspections and non-compliance triggers abatement at owner cost.

Berkeley bars parking any heavy-duty commercial vehicle on a public street between 2 a.m. and 5 a.m. for more than one hour. The rule targets trucks over two axles, 20 feet or longer, or wider than six feet six inches, including dump trucks, moving vans, tractors, and pole or pipe dollies, wherever they sit in the city, not just residential blocks.

BMC Chapter 12.98 makes it unlawful to park or store an abandoned, inoperative or dismantled vehicle on public or private property in Berkeley. A vehicle counts as abandoned once it sits more than 72 hours on private property without the property owner's consent. The City can hire a contractor to remove it, bill the owner, and place a lien for unpaid costs.

Berkeley's yellow curb loading zones allow standing only for loading or unloading, capped at three minutes for passengers and twenty minutes for materials, in effect 7 a.m. to 6 p.m. every day except Sunday unless signs say otherwise. Commercial vehicles using a metered yellow curb in a paid zone must still pay the posted fee.

Berkeley reserves signed and marked on-street parking stalls exclusively for electric vehicles actively plugged in and charging. BMC § 14.46.050 bars gas-powered cars from those stalls, bars EVs from occupying a stall without charging, and bars any vehicle from overstaying the posted time limit, with police empowered to cite or tow violators under state law.

Berkeley residents can petition to create a preferential parking district under BMC § 14.72.050, requiring signatures from at least 51% of housing units on the affected block fronts, plus proof that at least 80% of block fronts are residentially zoned and 75% of unlimited on-street spaces are occupied during two one-hour surveys between 10 a.m. and 4 p.m.

Berkeley bars parking or standing on any street in hazard zones, red-curb areas, divisional islands or Council-designated no-parking zones under Section 14.36.030, and separately caps how long a vehicle may sit at the curb: seventy-two consecutive hours under Section 14.36.050, or as little as 24 minutes where signs or meters say so.

Painting a street or curb surface anywhere in Berkeley without city authorization is illegal under Municipal Code Section 14.12.080. The only exception covers house-number stenciling done under a City resolution or ordinance; every other curb color, from red no-parking zones to green short-term spaces, is reserved for the City Traffic Engineer to designate.

Berkeley has no blanket overnight parking ban, but oversized vehicles are prohibited 2am-5am and all vehicles must move every 72 hours under local and state law.

Berkeley bans barbed wire, razor wire, sharp glass, and jagged metal fencing in every Residential District. Existing prohibited fences had to come down by 2004 or 2005 depending on their value, and none may be repaired or expanded once non-conforming.

Berkeley lets fences up to 6 feet rise without a permit in most zoning districts, but anything taller on a lot line or inside a required setback needs an Administrative Use Permit from the Zoning Officer. The Hillside Overlay ES-R district caps the free-standing height at 4 feet instead.

Berkeley zoning sets 6 feet as the ceiling for a no-permit fence citywide, dropping to 4 feet in the ES-R hillside district, with taller fences allowed only through an Administrative Use Permit. The Mixed Use Residential district adds a separate 6-foot setback rule where a fence backs onto another home.

A retaining wall in Berkeley needs a building permit once it rises above 4 feet, measured from the bottom of the footing to the top of the wall, or once it holds back a surcharge load or impounds Class I, II, or IIIA liquids regardless of height. Berkeley Municipal Code Section 19.28.020 sets that exemption threshold, and the Building and Safety Division reviews and issues the permit.

California Civil Code 841 (Good Neighbor Fence Act) governs shared fence costs in Berkeley, presuming equal cost sharing with 30 days written notice before construction.

Berkeley bans feeding wild animals anywhere on public property, including parks, streets, sidewalks and median strips, unless the City Manager issues written authorization. Violators are guilty of an infraction under BMC Chapter 6.50.

Berkeley requires dogs to be on a substantial leash no longer than six feet in public unless they are inside a City-designated dog park or off-leash area, and an obedience-trained dog under control within six feet of its handler still counts as leashed.

Berkeley caps most households at four dogs over six months old on one premises, unless the extra dogs are kept in Public Health Department-approved kennels set back at least 25 feet from any occupied dwelling other than the owner's own.

Berkeley bars its Animal Shelter, humane societies and rescue groups from transferring any dog or cat over six months old to a new owner unless it has been spayed or neutered, with a narrow exception when a vet certifies the animal cannot safely be altered.

Berkeley declares feral cats a public nuisance, but anyone feeding or sheltering a colony avoids citation by registering with an animal agency, reporting sterilization records biweekly, and hitting 90% sterilized by three months and 100% by five months.

Any dog or cat leaving Berkeley's Animal Shelter through adoption, redemption by its owner, or a rescue transfer must be microchipped first under Municipal Code Section 10.04.207, at the expense of whoever takes the animal, with narrow exceptions for feral cats, veterinarian-certified health risks, and rescue groups.

Berkeley makes it unlawful to keep any vicious or dangerous animal in the city under Municipal Code Section 10.12.230, and a violation exposes the animal to impoundment and humane destruction. The City has no separate exotic-pet license: the only way around the ban is a City Council resolution granting a temporary exhibition or experimental permit.

Berkeley allows backyard chickens and rabbits, but the coop must sit at least 25 feet from any neighboring dwelling under Municipal Code Section 10.12.040. Sheep and male goats are banned outright, female goats are capped at two per lot outside industrial zones, and hog-keeping is barred within 1,000 feet of any occupied home, a radius that reaches nearly every residential parcel in the city.

Berkeley cannot single out a dog breed as dangerous: California Food and Agricultural Code Section 31683 bars any local program from being breed specific. Instead, Berkeley Municipal Code Section 10.04.170 defines a vicious or dangerous dog by behavior, such as unprovoked attacks or fight training, and Section 10.04.171 requires the owner of a declared dangerous dog to carry $50,000 in liability insurance and keep it confined or muzzled off the property.

Berkeley requires new and significantly altered buildings to treat transparent or reflective glass between the ground and 75 feet with anti-collision measures to reduce bird deaths, using an American Bird Conservancy threat rating, patterned glazing, or exterior screens as compliance options.

Berkeley requires a discretionary Use Permit approved at a public hearing before opening a veterinary clinic anywhere in the city. Table 23.204-1 of the zoning code lists Veterinary Clinic as UP(PH) in all eleven commercial districts, from C-C Corridor Commercial to C-AC Adeline Corridor Commercial, with no by-right or administrative-only path in any of them.

Berkeley pet stores may sell dogs, cats, and rabbits only if sourced from public shelters or registered nonprofit rescues, mirroring California AB 485 and reinforcing the city humane sourcing policy.

Berkeley follows East Bay MUD drought rules: no irrigation 9am-6pm, no runoff, hose must have shutoff nozzle. Drought surcharges and restrictions apply during declared drought stages.

Berkeley treats overgrown weeds as a nuisance and fire hazard. Weeds over 6 inches (or 4 inches in the fire zone) must be abated; invasive broom and acacia are targeted for removal.

Berkeley exempts a private resident's own garden composting from its waste-accumulation ban, so long as it stays properly conducted on the resident's own premises and does not breed vermin, smell, or create a fire or eyesore problem.

Berkeley requires a permit from the Director of Recreation and Parks before anyone cuts, trims or removes a tree, shrub or plant growing on a street, parking strip, park or playground. This covers the public street trees that line most Berkeley blocks; it does not reach trees growing entirely on private property.

Rain barrels under 5,000 gallons are allowed without permit in Berkeley. Larger cisterns and any potable connection require plumbing permits and state code compliance.

Berkeley restricts artificial turf in front yards and limits coverage to preserve permeability. AB 1572 prohibits potable irrigation of non-functional turf, creating pressure to replace it with natives not plastic.

Private trees may be pruned by owners, but protected species and street trees require city approval. Fire zone pruning is mandatory under PRC 4291 defensible space rules.

Berkeley caps home-based businesses by daily customer count: Class I allows up to 5 visits a day, Class II up to 10, and Class III any number above 10, with visits restricted to the hours of 10am to 8pm citywide.

Berkeley zones home occupations by traffic class: Class I needs only a Zoning Certificate, Class II needs an Administrative Use Permit, and Class III needs a full Use Permit and is barred outright in the Hillside Overlay and ES-R district.

Berkeley bars any on-site sign identifying or advertising a home occupation, a flat citywide prohibition that applies to every class of home business no matter how many customer visits it draws.

Berkeley permits small and large family daycare homes as a residential use under California Health and Safety Code 1597.40, which preempts most local restrictions on state-licensed family childcare.

California's Swimming Pool Safety Act requires most new or remodeled residential pools to include at least one of seven drowning-prevention features, and if the owner picks a fence, Health and Safety Code Section 115923 sets exact numbers: 60 inches high, self-latching gates that swing away from the pool, and no gaps a small child could squeeze through.

Berkeley requires a building permit for any pool or spa over 18 inches deep, with plan review for structural, electrical, and plumbing work under the California Building Code.

Berkeley allows accessory dwelling units on any lot zoned for residential use, capping new-construction ADUs at 1,200 square feet outside the Hillside Overlay and 25 feet in height, with a 60-day Zoning Certificate review that cannot be denied for ADUs meeting state law.

Berkeley requires every ADU and Junior ADU to carry a recorded deed restriction barring rentals shorter than 30 days, filed with the Alameda County Recorder before the unit can be occupied, closing off short-term and vacation-rental use of these units.

Berkeley requires the owner to live in either the Junior ADU or the single-family home it sits in whenever a property has a Junior ADU, recorded as a deed restriction, unless the JADU has its own separate bathroom and kitchen or the owner is a public agency, land trust, or housing nonprofit.

A new backyard shed in Berkeley needs an Administrative Use Permit in most residential districts, with height capped by lot-line distance and setbacks running as high as 50 percent of lot depth at the front.

Berkeley Municipal Code Chapter 6.15 prohibits barbecues and open fires on public property including parks, sidewalks, streets, median strips and rights-of-way, unless the fire is a permitted street event or block party, a pre-approved City facility barbecue, a barbecue inside a City park, or a fire in a pre-existing park apparatus built for it. The City Manager enforces additional posted park restrictions.

Berkeley bars storing an LP-gas cylinder bigger than 2.5 pounds water capacity, which covers a standard 20-pound barbecue tank, or a portable propane tank inside any building classed as Assembly, hotel, apartment, or residential-care occupancy unless the Fire Code specifically authorizes it. The rule reaches apartment buildings and condos directly, so a spare grill tank has to stay outdoors.

Berkeley Municipal Code Chapter 6.20 governs berth permits at the City-owned Berkeley Marina on San Francisco Bay. Section 6.20.030 requires every boat owner to apply on a Harbormaster-issued form and show current vessel registration before a berthing permit issues, with applications granted in the order received. Monthly fees, 30-day cancellation notice and BCDC compliance apply once a permit is granted.

Berkeley bans discharging anything but stormwater into its storm drain system under Chapter 17.20, with construction sites, parking lots and hazardous-material handlers all carrying specific pollution-prevention duties tied to the City's NPDES permit.

Berkeley's Flood Zone Development Ordinance bars new construction, land alteration, or extension of any structure inside a FEMA special flood hazard area without full compliance with Chapter 17.12. The Director of Public Works serves as Floodplain Administrator, reviewing every permit that falls inside the mapped hazard zone.

New and substantially improved buildings in Berkeley's mapped flood hazard zones must have their lowest floor built at or above the FEMA base flood elevation, the water level of the 100-year flood. Berkeley's code sets no additional freeboard margin above that federal benchmark.

Berkeley's only vehicle-idling limit sits inside its diagonal-parking rule: Municipal Code Section 14.40.060(B) caps engine idling at sixty seconds on any street where back-in diagonal parking is marked by a traffic control device. The city has no broader anti-idling ordinance covering general street parking, loading zones or drop-offs.

Licensed retailers may deliver cannabis to any private Berkeley address under California Bureau of Cannabis Control rules. Drivers must carry license copies, manifest, and limit on-hand inventory to 10,000 dollars.

Adults 21 and older in Berkeley may cultivate up to six cannabis plants indoors at a private residence under Proposition 64 and BMC Chapter 12.27, with additional rules for security and odor control.

Adults 21 and over may grow up to six cannabis plants per residence in Berkeley under Proposition 64. Plants must be in a locked, secured area not visible from public spaces.

Berkeley has not opted out of cannabis retail: storefront retailers are allowed with a Zoning Certificate in Commercial Districts, capped at seven citywide, while delivery-only retailers are capped at seven and barred from the C-N district.

Berkeley dispensaries must sit at least 600 feet from K-12 schools, day care centers, and youth centers under California Business and Professions Code section 26054 and Berkeley zoning rules.

California Civil Code 714 (Solar Rights Act) voids HOA rules that significantly increase solar installation cost by over 1,000 dollars or decrease efficiency by over 10 percent.

Berkeley must review a walk-in small residential rooftop solar permit and issue it over the counter or within 1 business day; electronic submittals get a decision within 1 to 3 business days. Berkeley Municipal Code Section 19.14.040 caps review to a single consolidated inspection and requires written correction notices on that same clock for incomplete applications.

Berkeley's Building and Safety Division reviews small residential rooftop solar permits under Berkeley Municipal Code Chapter 19.14, using a standing checklist tied to the state's solar permitting guidebook. Applicants can submit electronically with an electronic signature, and the city cannot condition approval on homeowners' association sign-off. A use permit is required only if the building official finds a specific, adverse health or safety impact.

Berkeley caps window signs, whether permanent or temporary, at 15 percent of a building's window area or 300 square feet, whichever is smaller. Temporary window signs get to stack on top of a business's other permitted signage, but a permanent window sign counts against the building's regular wall-sign allowance instead.

Berkeley outlaws off-premises signs west of the western line of Third Street that are designed to be read primarily from the Eastshore Freeway. There is only one way around the ban: a relocation agreement approved under BMC § 20.04.040, so a business cannot simply apply for a variance or design review exception.

Berkeley allows political signs on private property with residents permission, subject to size and placement limits in BMC Title 20, and protected by the First Amendment from content-based restrictions.

Berkeley's Anti-Blight ordinance treats an overgrown, debris-covered vacant lot as a public nuisance if two or more listed conditions exist and are visible from the street. The Building Official can order the owner to clean it up within 7 to 60 days, and repeat violators owe the City a $500 civil penalty for each additional order within a year.

Berkeley's Anti-Blight Chapter (BMC 12.92) makes it an unlawful nuisance for an owner, tenant or occupant to let residential or commercial property show two or more of six listed conditions, from broken structures and uncollected debris to a home standing vacant more than 120 days. The Building Official can order corrective action, and unresolved cases lead to city abatement, liens and civil penalties.

Berkeley does not receive measurable snowfall, but property owners must keep sidewalks clear of debris, overgrown vegetation, and tripping hazards under BMC 16.04 and state Streets and Highways Code 5610.

Berkeley requires all exterior lighting in Residential Districts to be shielded and aimed downward and away from lot lines so glare does not spill onto neighboring property. Motion-sensor fixtures cannot be triggered by activity happening off the lot where the light sits.

Berkeley requires all exterior lighting on residential lots to be shielded and pointed downward and away from lot lines, and it bars motion-sensor lights from being triggered by activity happening off the property they sit on.

Berkeley has one of the nation strongest Rent Stabilization Ordinances (adopted 1980) with annual AGA increases, just-cause eviction, and registration; enforced by the elected Rent Stabilization Board.

Berkeley caps residential security deposits at two months rent for unfurnished units and requires landlords to pay annual interest to tenants, layered atop California Civil Code Section 1950.5 protections.

California AB 1482 requires Berkeley landlords to provide written notice of statewide rent cap and just-cause coverage, even though Berkeley's stronger local rules supersede the floor for most pre-1995 units.

State law, not a Berkeley ordinance, sets the pass-through limit for rentals outside Berkeley's own rent control: Civil Code § 1947.12 caps any 12-month rent increase at 5% plus the local cost-of-living change or 10%, whichever is lower. Units already under Berkeley's stricter Rent Stabilization Ordinance are exempt from this state cap and follow the Rent Board's own ceiling instead.

Berkeley requires landlords of covered units to register annually with the Rent Stabilization Board, pay a per-unit fee, and comply with the Rental Housing Safety Program inspection cycle.

Berkeley's Tenant Protection Ordinance prohibits sixteen categories of landlord harassment, providing tenants with private right of action, treble damages, and Rent Board enforcement against displacement pressure.

Under Berkeley's Rent Stabilization Ordinance, any rent increase tied to the annual general adjustment or an individual rent-ceiling petition takes effect only after the landlord gives the tenant at least 30 days' written notice and the notice period runs out.

Berkeley Municipal Code Chapter 13.31 makes it unlawful for landlords to refuse rentals, deny units, or use income screening standards that discriminate against tenants paying with Section 8 vouchers or other housing assistance. Violators face criminal misdemeanor charges plus treble civil damages.

Berkeley's Housing Code sets the baseline every rental must meet: heat capable of reaching 68°F in habitable rooms, hot water of at least 110°F, working plumbing, and freedom from mold, vermin, and structural hazards. A unit missing any of these under BMC § 19.40.090 is a 'substandard building,' and the Building Official can order repairs, vacate the unit, or demolish it.

Berkeley landlords issuing no-fault evictions must pay relocation assistance scaled by tenancy length, with elderly, disabled, and child-occupied households receiving enhanced payments under the Rent Stabilization Ordinance.

Berkeley's Just Cause Eviction Ordinance, among the nation's earliest, restricts no-fault evictions to owner move-in, Ellis Act withdrawal, substantial rehabilitation, or government order, each with relocation duties.

Berkeley has one of the oldest just-cause eviction ordinances in the US. Landlords must cite a specific legal reason from BMC Chapter 13.76 to terminate a tenancy, and relocation payments apply for no-fault evictions.

Berkeley requires separation of recyclables and organics from trash for all residents and businesses under BMC 11.28 and California SB 1383, with fines for contaminated or commingled loads.

Berkeley Zero Waste Division provides weekly curbside collection of refuse, recycling, and compost. Carts must be at the curb by 6 a.m. on the scheduled day and removed by the end of collection day.

Berkeley bars placing any waste container besides the City's own inside a street or alley right-of-way. Property owners need specific Public Works authorization to keep a dumpster or roll-off at the curb even briefly.

Any Berkeley property that lets more than one cubic yard of waste build up between collections must manage it as the environmental health manager directs, and over two cubic yards it must sit in fire-resistant containers at a Fire Chief-approved spot.

Berkeley declares garbage collection an essential service performed exclusively by the City. Every owner whose property generates garbage must use and pay for City collection, with pickup at least weekly from private residences.

Berkeley requires residents to wheel City garbage, recycling and organics carts to the gutter on collection day and pull them back within 24 hours, unless a disability, age, or site condition qualifies them for backyard pickup.

Berkeley runs a municipal curbside recycling program under Chapter 12.36 and makes it unlawful for anyone but the City or its authorized agents to take metals, glass or paper left out for that program, protecting the material's value for the City.

Berkeley collects yard waste (grass, leaves, prunings) through the same City curbside cart system used for garbage and recycling, run by Public Works. Residents place the Organics cart at the curb on collection day; excess brush over one cubic yard needs Environmental Health sign-off, and over two cubic yards must sit in fire-resistant containers approved by the Fire Chief.

Dumping trash, litter or debris on Berkeley streets, parks or into creeks and other waterways is unlawful under BMC § 12.40.080, and dumping at an unapproved disposal site is separately banned under § 12.32.070. Both are enforced as infractions, with the City able to bill or lien the property for illegal accumulations it must remove.

Berkeley food trucks need a Mobile Food Facility permit from Alameda County Environmental Health, a city business license, and must follow CA Retail Food Code and SB 946 sidewalk vending law.

Berkeley regulates sidewalk vending through two parallel chapters of the BMC: Chapter 9.48 covers arts-and-crafts and flower vending, and Chapter 9.49 covers food vending on sidewalks and rights-of-way. Both chapters require a city-issued vending permit and ID card before any vending may occur. Vending without a permit is unlawful.

Berkeley allows sidewalk vending citywide under SB 946 with time, place, and manner rules, and permits food trucks in commercial zones with Use Permit at regular locations.

Berkeley residents can post No Solicitation or No Knock signs at their door. Ignoring a posted sign during door-to-door commercial activity exposes the solicitor to trespass enforcement.

Commercial door-to-door solicitors in Berkeley must obtain a business license and comply with time-of-day and No Solicitation sign rules; political, religious, and charitable canvassing is generally exempt.

Berkeley closes its city parks overnight unless a posted sign says otherwise. Default closure runs 10 p.m. to 6 a.m., extended to 11 p.m. to 6 a.m. in parks with user-operated lighting, and entering or remaining during closure hours is an infraction under BMC Chapter 6.32.

Berkeley limits building footprint under BMC Table 23.202-2: no more than 60 percent of an R-1 lot may be covered by structures, dropping to 40 percent in the R-1H hillside overlay. The Zoning Officer reviews lot coverage through the Zoning Certificate every new building or addition must obtain before construction starts.

Berkeley's R-1 district requires a minimum 5-foot front and 5-foot rear setback that together must total at least 20 feet, plus 4-foot interior side and 4-foot street side setbacks, under BMC Table 23.202-2. The hillside R-1H variant doubles front and rear setbacks to 20 feet each, and the Zoning Officer enforces both through the Zoning Certificate process.

Berkeley caps new houses and additions in the R-1 district at 35 feet and three stories under BMC Table 23.202-2, dropping to 22 feet within 15 feet of the rear property line. In the hillside R-1H variant, average height falls to 28 feet with a 35-foot ceiling, both enforced by the Zoning Officer through the Zoning Certificate process.

Berkeley has banned removal of Coast Live Oak trees since 1996 under BMC Chapter 6.52: any single-stem oak 18 inches or more in circumference, or multi-stem oak totaling 26 inches or more, cannot be cut down absent a narrow City Manager exception.

Planting a tree, shrub or plant in a Berkeley street parking strip, or paving over it, both require written permission from the Director of Recreation and Parks first. The Director gets to pick the kind, variety and size of anything planted, and the code defines the "park" or parking strip as the area between the property line and the roadway, minus sidewalk and curb.

Berkeley allows garage, yard, and rummage sales on residential property by right, but caps each sale at two days and limits any property to one sale per calendar month under the Zoning Ordinance's temporary use rules.

Berkeley HOAs enforce CC&Rs under Civil Code 5850-5875, which requires due process including notice, a hearing, and written findings before imposing fines or discipline.

Berkeley HOAs operate under the Davis-Stirling Common Interest Development Act (Civil Code 4000+), which governs board meetings, elections, quorum, and open-meeting requirements.

Berkeley HOAs must offer internal dispute resolution (IDR) under Civil Code 5900 and alternative dispute resolution (ADR) before filing most lawsuits against members.

Berkeley HOA architectural review committees must follow Davis-Stirling rules for fair, timely decisions and cannot prohibit solar, EV charging, low-water landscaping, or accessory dwellings protected by state law.

Berkeley HOAs may levy regular and special assessments under Civil Code 5600-5625, with strict limits: 20% annual increases and 5% special assessments without a member vote.

Filming that closes or partially closes a Berkeley street needs at least three business days' notice, or seven days if a major or collector street closes or public transit must be re-routed, plus insurance if the closure hits two or more intersections.

Commercial for-profit filming in any Berkeley park or on any public street, sidewalk or alley that requires street closure or traffic control needs a permit from the City Manager before shooting begins. News, court and private/family filming are exempt.

Berkeley bars commercial filming between 10 p.m. and 8 a.m. in residentially zoned areas unless the City Manager finds it will not create noise above ambient levels or undue light or glare, and restricts commercial-zone filming during morning and evening rush hours.

Berkeley building permits expire if a completed, approved city inspection under California Building Code Section 110.3 is not performed within 12 months of issuance. The Building and Safety Division charges a re-inspection fee whenever a scheduled inspection finds the work not ready.

Berkeley's Housing Code requires carbon monoxide alarms in every dwelling and sleeping unit that has a fuel-fired appliance, fireplace, or an attached garage that opens into the unit. Alarms must sit outside each sleeping area, on every occupiable level including basements and attics, and inside any sleeping room with an in-room fuel-burning appliance. Combination smoke/CO alarms satisfy both requirements.

Berkeley landlords running a building with 10 or more rental units, two or more stories, and an elevator must repair a malfunction within 24 hours of notice. If a repair beyond the operator's control runs longer and a disabled or mobility-impaired tenant cannot reach their unit, the landlord must provide alternative housing at up to $180 a day.

Berkeley's minimum security ordinance requires every exterior door of a rental dwelling unit, hotel, or apartment house to carry a 1-inch single-cylinder deadbolt with a hardened cylinder guard, a deadlocking latch, non-removable hinge pins, and a strike plate fastened with screws at least 2.5 inches long.

Berkeley enforces the 2025 California Plumbing Code as the Berkeley Plumbing Code under Municipal Code Section 19.34.010, using the same Building and Safety Division permit process as every other trade. A local amendment at Section 19.34.040 goes further than the state code: any newly constructed building, or any existing building getting a mechanical or plumbing permit for an addition, alteration, or repair, must install a listed motion-activated seismic gas shut-off valve.

Berkeley requires existing hotels, dormitories, Greek houses, and congregate residences built before 1992 to retrofit automatic fire sprinklers if the building is three or more stories, or two stories plus an inhabited basement, or has 20 or more sleeping rooms or residents. Only residential or quick-response sprinkler heads are allowed in sleeping units.

Berkeley requires a building permit from the Building and Safety Division for most construction, alteration, and repair work, issued under Berkeley Municipal Code Section 19.28.020's adoption of the 2025 California Building Code. A short list of minor work is exempt, including small tool sheds under 120 square feet, fences under 7 feet, and low sidewalks, but nearly everything else needs a permit, a construction-document review, and a paid fee before work starts.

Berkeley enforces the 2025 California Green Building Standards Code (CALGreen) as the Berkeley Green Code under Municipal Code Section 19.37.010, with local amendments at Section 19.37.040 setting the specific projects the state's waste-diversion mandate reaches: any addition or alteration that grows a building's size, any alteration valued over $100,000, and any demolition valued over $3,000 must divert 65 percent of construction and demolition waste.

Berkeley enforces the 2025 California Electrical Code as the Berkeley Electrical Code under Municipal Code Section 19.30.010, and Section 19.30.030 folds in the same permit, application, and fee rules the Berkeley Building Code uses for every other trade. Minor repairs, temporary testing setups, and radio/TV transmitting equipment are exempt; nearly all other electrical installation and alteration work needs a permit from the Building and Safety Division first.

Berkeley enforces California H&S 17920.10 treating lead hazards in pre-1978 housing as substandard conditions, plus EPA RRP and Cal-OSHA rules for renovation work.

Gatherings of 50 or more people in most Berkeley parks, or 100 or more in Cesar Chavez Park, Civic Center Park or sports-use parks, need a City Manager permit under BMC Chapter 6.46, with earlier filing and extra conditions for larger 'major' events.

A Berkeley block party can close one local street or intersection with a City Manager permit if at least two-thirds of the abutting area is residentially zoned. Organizers must indemnify the City and clean the street within four hours of the event.

A Berkeley street fair or festival is a 'street event' requiring a City Manager permit filed at least 10 business days ahead, or 30 days for high-impact routes or Certified Farmers' Markets. Permits can require security, insurance, cleanup, and sound-permit compliance.

Berkeley lets businesses convert curbside parking into public parklets only in Commercial, Mixed-Use, and Mixed Manufacturing zoning districts, under a Public Works permit issued through BMC § 14.48.190. Permits require ADA compliance, a 25-foot clearance from hydrants and curb returns, a six-foot width cap, and at least $1 million in liability insurance naming the City as additional insured.

Berkeley requires a City Manager permit before any parade, march, demonstration, festival or other event that closes a public street, sidewalk or alley. Chapter 13.44 sets filing deadlines, insurance thresholds and content standards for street event permits, while a simpler process covers neighborhood block parties on local streets.

Berkeley has stopped issuing discretionary Administrative Use Permits for sidewalk cafe seating on the public right-of-way, requiring restaurants instead to obtain a streamlined permit under the sidewalks and streets chapter with fixed, identifiable standards.

Building anything into a Berkeley sidewalk or street right-of-way, from a fence to a basement vault, requires an encroachment permit under Municipal Code Chapter 16.18. Major encroachments need City Council approval; minor ones are approved administratively by Public Works.

Berkeley property owners, not the City, must keep the sidewalk fronting their lot in safe repair. Municipal Code Section 16.04.010 makes it unlawful to let an abutting sidewalk fall out of repair and puts civil liability on the owner if someone is hurt.

Berkeley bans placing any object on a sidewalk, parklet, or roadway that obstructs, restricts, or prevents pedestrian or vehicle use, except for the specific exceptions Chapter 14.48 lists, such as brief transit of goods, permitted construction barricades, or approved sidewalk seating. BMC § 14.48.020 is the catch-all rule the City enforces against everything else left on the public way.

Berkeley bars loud loading and unloading between 10 p.m. and 7 a.m. if the racket crosses a residential property line above code limits. The Environmental Health Division enforces it on a two-complaint trigger, with a warning issued before any citation.

BMC 13.40.115 lets a bar, club, or other entertainment establishment run up to 5 decibels louder than the zone's standard or the ambient level, whichever is higher, plus later hours, but only if its own use permit spells that allowance out.

A motor vehicle burglar alarm sounding in Berkeley must shut off within 15 minutes of any single security violation or false alarm. There is no warning step for this one: measurement alone is enough to cite a violation.

Air conditioners, compressors, and pumps in Berkeley must be enclosed or muffled enough to avoid a noise disturbance under the code's exterior and interior sound limits. The Environmental Health Division treats these units as 'fixed noise sources' subject to the same zone-based dBA tables as any other stationary equipment.

Berkeley's Rental Housing Safety Program requires every owner of rental units to self-certify annually, by July 1st, that units meet the city's housing safety checklist, or request a City inspection instead. The City Manager can also proactively inspect any rental unit, but not more than once every three years for units that stay current on self-certification.

Berkeley cannot deploy automatic license plate readers without the City Council approving a public Surveillance Use Policy first. BMC Chapter 2.99 names ALPR as covered Surveillance Technology and requires Council sign-off before acquisition, use expansion, or any data-sharing deal with an outside agency.

Berkeley does not license private home security cameras, but it puts city-owned cameras and other surveillance technology through a public approval gate. Under BMC Chapter 2.99, the City Manager cannot buy, deploy, or share data from cameras or similar tools without a City Council vote at a noticed public meeting.

Berkeley bars its own City Manager and anyone acting on the City's behalf, including police, from obtaining, retaining, or using Face Recognition Technology or any information it produces. Municipal Code Section 2.99.030(5) makes acquiring or using it a violation of the surveillance ordinance.

California SB 793, ratified by voters as Proposition 31 in 2022, bans most flavored tobacco product sales statewide. Berkeley enforces the ban locally and prohibits hookah lounges from opening near schools.

Berkeley restaurants and delivery platforms may only provide disposable utensils, straws, condiments, and napkins when customers explicitly request them, in line with state AB 1276 and stricter local rules.

Berkeley adopted its own Minimum Wage Ordinance in 2014 with annual indexing, and the local rate reached $18.07 per hour in 2025, applying to nearly every employee performing at least two hours of work weekly within city limits.

Berkeley supplements California paid sick leave with a stronger local accrual cap, broader family definitions, and tighter coverage for small employers, all enforced through the city Office of Labor Standards Enforcement.

Berkeley has no right-to-farm nuisance shield; instead Chapter 23.318 zones urban agriculture directly. Small operations get a by-right Zoning Certificate, while larger ones need a discretionary Administrative Use Permit.

Berkeley Municipal Code Chapter 13.114 bars every city agency and employee from using city resources to help federal immigration enforcement, from denying city services based on immigration status, and from sharing personal information with ICE or CBP without a judicial warrant. Adopted as Ordinance 7984-NS in 2025, it replaces a string of City of Refuge resolutions running back to 1971.

Berkeley does not require private employers to use the federal E-Verify system, and California Labor Code section 2814 forbids cities and employers from mandating E-Verify beyond what federal law specifically requires.

Berkeley bars lying on commercial sidewalks and caps stationary dogs at two per ten-foot stretch, seven days a week during business hours, under BMC 13.36.015. A warning must precede any citation, and violations are infractions or misdemeanors at the prosecutor's discretion.

When a bike lane runs next to on-street parking in Berkeley, city rules force a buffer: cars on a one-way street must keep their curb-side wheels within 18 inches of the bike lane's dividing line, and diagonally parked cars must stay within 12 inches of it, so the painted bike lane stays clear.

Berkeley regulates shared electric scooters and bikes through a city permit program with operator caps, equity requirements, mandatory parking corrals, and helmet rules under California Vehicle Code.

Berkeley sets its noise limit by the zone of the property receiving the sound, not the source. A West Berkeley data center's cooling and generators may not exceed 55 dBA daytime and 45 dBA nighttime at a neighboring home, or 70 dBA at another industrial parcel.

Downtown Berkeley projects using the Green Pathway streamlined process must conform to the city's Downtown Design Guidelines, and the Design Review Committee (DRC) treats those guidelines as binding standards, not suggestions. The DRC must act within 90 days of a complete application, and its conformance call skips normal design-review appeal channels, going straight to City Council within 14 days.

Berkeley implements California Government Code 65915 density bonus, granting up to 50 percent additional units and concessions for projects providing affordable housing, with local procedures in BMC Title 23.

California Senate Bill 602 requires every food handler in a Berkeley restaurant to obtain an ANSI-accredited Food Handler Card within 30 days of hire and renew every three years. Alameda County Environmental Health verifies during inspections.

California Civil Code section 1954.603 requires Berkeley landlords to provide written bed bug information at lease signing, prohibits renting infested units, and requires prompt response when tenants report sightings.

Every building and structure in Berkeley must be rodentproofed and kept in a rodent-free condition under Municipal Code Section 11.32.030. The City's chief of environmental health can order an owner to fix a rodent harborage, requires food stored in vermin-proof containers, and requires materials that could shelter rodents to sit elevated off the ground.

Chain restaurants in Berkeley with 20 or more US locations must post calorie counts next to menu items, following the federal FDA menu labeling rule embedded in the California Retail Food Code that Alameda County enforces.

California Medical Waste Management Act bans home sharps from regular trash. Berkeley residents must use approved sharps containers and drop them at participating pharmacies, transfer stations, or city-supported events.

Berkeley charges a 12% transient occupancy tax on every hotel stay of 13 nights or less. The Finance Department's tax administrator collects it through the operator, who must register the property and post a occupancy certificate within 30 days of opening.

Hotels and city contractors operating in Berkeley must pay the Living Wage set under BMC Chapter 13.27, which exceeds the state minimum and adjusts annually for inflation, plus health benefits or supplemental cash wages.

Berkeley's Landmarks Preservation Commission, not a "cultural monument" label, is the local mechanism for protecting historic properties. Under BMC 3.24.100 every landmark, historic district, or structure of merit designation must describe what qualifies the property and what features must be preserved before controls attach.

Berkeley bars pharmacies from holding or renewing a tobacco retailer license and blocks new tobacco or e-cigarette retail licenses within 600 feet of any school, with sales of electronic nicotine devices near schools separately prohibited since 2017.

Tattoo and piercing work in Berkeley requires both a City registration for the practitioner and a health permit for the facility, issued by the Division of Environmental Health under Chapter 11.70. Operating without either is unlawful.

Operating a massage establishment in Berkeley without a permit is unlawful under BMC § 9.32.060. Establishments that employ only CAMTC-certified therapists can skip the permit under narrow conditions, but everyone else must apply through the Department of Finance, pass a police background check, and renew every two years.

Berkeley secondhand dealers, from pawnbrokers to used bike shops, must log every purchase, pledge, or exchange in a police-supplied record book under BMC § 9.36.010. The book must be turned over to the Police Department weekly and goods held at least 30 days before resale.

Berkeley lets a private property owner, their agent, or a designated police officer remove a vehicle parked without consent once the property carries police-approved signage. BMC § 13.52.060 authorizes removal to the nearest garage or a City-designated garage, and the person who wrongly triggers a tow, not the tower, pays the towing and storage bill.

Berkeley lets a resident run a repair business from home only as a home occupation, but every repair activity must happen indoors, capped at 400 square feet, with no outdoor work, storage, or noise beyond the unit.

Berkeley keeps adult-oriented businesses at least 300 feet from any residential district boundary, 1,000 feet from any other adult business, and 600 feet from parks, schools, libraries, clinics, and religious assembly uses.

Berkeley bans lingering in any City-owned, -operated, or -leased parking lot for any purpose other than parking a vehicle and walking to or from it. The rule targets unauthorized windshield-washers and squeegee panhandlers who accosted drivers for payment, and it carries a misdemeanor penalty.

Berkeley bans drinking alcohol in parks, on streets, or anywhere open to public view under BMC 13.36.070, and separately bans carrying an already-opened container near an off-sale liquor store under 13.36.075. Both are charged only as infractions.

BMC 13.36.085 bans urinating or defecating in any public place, anywhere open to public view, or on private property entered without the owner's consent. A warning must precede any citation, and every violation is charged only as an infraction.

Berkeley Municipal Code Section 12.22.040(F) bans consuming cannabis or cannabis products in any public place citywide, written as its own cannabis-business standard rather than folded into the tobacco smoking chapter. The only carve-out is a licensed Cannabis Retailer 'Lounge' built with a ventilated Designated Cannabis Smoking Room. Violations run through the City's administrative citation process, not criminal court.

Berkeley bans smoking in every city recreational area, including parks, playgrounds and hiking trails, plus outdoor restaurant seating and any pedestrian patio enclosed on three sides. The ban extends 25 feet from any public building entrance and 50 feet from health clinics, child care centers and senior centers. Violators face an infraction, and a private citizen can also sue to enforce it.

In Berkeley's business districts, pedestrians must cross at a marked crosswalk; Municipal Code Section 14.32.020 makes any mid-block crossing there unlawful. Citywide, Section 14.32.030 further requires crossing at right angles to the curb, or by the shortest route to the opposite curb, wherever no marked crosswalk is present.

Berkeley regulates where and how skateboards may be ridden under Municipal Code Section 14.32.060: no age limit applies, but riders must wear reflective or light-colored clothing after dark, use sidewalks where available while yielding to pedestrians, and keep to the far left edge of the roadway facing traffic where no sidewalk exists.

Berkeley Municipal Code Chapter 13.48 makes a gathering of ten or more people a public nuisance once it substantially disturbs a neighborhood through excessive noise, traffic, drunkenness, fights, or underage drinking. A second police response to the same address within 120 days triggers civil penalties of $750, rising to $1,500 and then $2,500, charged jointly against hosts, residents, sponsors, and the property owner.

Berkeley's Empty Homes Tax charges owners $3,000 to $6,000 the first year and $6,000 to $12,000 every year after for keeping a residential unit vacant more than 182 days, with the amount doubling for buildings that aren't a condo, duplex, single-family home or townhouse.

Berkeley taxes commercial parking at 10% of the rent charged for any occupied space in a parking station. The operator collects the tax from drivers, must hold a City business license, and remits monthly to the Director of Finance.

Berkeley sorts every business into one of roughly twenty license-tax categories under BMC Chapter 9.04, and the category you land in sets your rate per $1,000 of gross receipts. Services not specifically taxed elsewhere fall into the catch-all "business, personal and repair services" class, currently billed at $1.80 per $1,000.