Hemet, CA Home Business: Home Daycare (2026)

Family day care is addressed in Hemet's zoning land-use matrices and Sec. 90-72, as amended by Ordinance No. 1949. In the single-family residential zones, a licensed Small family child care home (up to 8 children) is listed as a Permitted use (P) and a Large family child care home (up to 14 children) is Conditionally Permitted (C), referencing Sec. 90-72. Ordinance No. 1949 amended Sec. 90-72 to update provisions for small family child care homes and amended Sec. 90-312 to clarify that a home occupation permit is required for a small family child care home, and Sec. 90-72(d)(2) and (d)(7) expressly carve out 'as permitted by State law for Small Family Child Care Homes' from the no-employee and no-on-site-customer conditions. Importantly, California state law preempts much of this: under Health & Safety Code sections 1597.40-1597.45 (as strengthened by SB 234, 2019), the use of a home as a small or large family daycare home is 'a residential use of property and a use by right' for all local ordinances including zoning, and a local jurisdiction 'shall not impose a business license, fee, or tax' for operating a small or large family daycare home. This means that while Hemet's code historically conditioned large family child care on a CUP and referenced permits, state law now requires both small and large family day care to be treated as by-right residential uses and prohibits business-license fees - the state standard controls where the local code is more restrictive.