Yuma, AZ Homelessness & Encampment Rules: Encampment Sanitation (2026)

City Code § 110-04 prohibits overnight camping by any person on public or private land that is not licensed by the city as a campground, and the ban applies whether or not the camping takes place in a motor vehicle. Four exceptions exist. A landowner or family member may camp on their own land for private use and enjoyment, so long as it does not violate Ordinance 583 codified at Chapter 154 (the zoning code). Organized and supervised camping activity on public or private land is allowed if the organizer has secured prior permission from the City Administrator or a designee.

Camping at the Yuma Civic and Convention Center is exempt when it complies with the center's own rules. The section originates from the 1980 Code § 20-4 and has been amended three times, by Ordinance 1908 in 1980, Ordinance 2084 in 1982, and Ordinance 2202 in 1984, showing the city has revisited its camping restriction repeatedly rather than leaving it static. Because the prohibition reaches private land as well as public land, it functions as a citywide camping and encampment ban rather than one limited to parks or rights-of-way, and it is the operative tool the city uses against unsanctioned encampments outside a licensed campground.