Yuba City, CA Home Business: Home Daycare (2026)

California Health & Safety Code §1597.45 (Keeping Children Safe and Healthy Act, SB 234, eff. Jan. 1, 2020) provides that the use of a home as a small family daycare home (up to 8 children) or large family daycare home (9 to 14 children) is a residential use of property and a use by right for purposes of all local ordinances, including zoning ordinances. The statute expressly bars local jurisdictions from: (1) imposing a business license, fee, or tax for the privilege of operating a small or large family daycare home; (2) treating the use as a change of occupancy under state housing law or local building codes; or (3) requiring a use permit, conditional use permit, or other discretionary zoning approval. Family daycare homes must be licensed by the California Department of Social Services, Community Care Licensing Division, under H&S Code §§1596.70–1597.621 (California Child Day Care Facilities Act). Operators must comply with state licensing requirements (background checks, TrustLine, fire clearance for large homes, capacity ratios). The Yuba City zoning code's home occupation restrictions in §8-5.5002(b) are preempted as applied to state-licensed family daycare homes — the city cannot apply the one-customer limit, no-employee rule, or sign prohibition.