Santa Ana, CA Homelessness & Encampment Rules: Sit-Lie Rules (2026)

Santa Ana Municipal Code Section 10-100 prohibits obstructing public or private access by sitting, lying, or sleeping on public property, or by storing, using, or placing personal property in the public right-of-way. The ordinance lists ten specific no-go zones: within 20 feet of a driveway, ramp, or loading dock; within 20 feet of a fire hydrant or Fire Department connection; within 20 feet of a public restroom, park, trail, or path entrance; within 50 feet of an operational business, restaurant, or office entrance; within 20 feet of an ATM, parking pay station, or EV charging station; within 10 feet of a sidewalk ramp or street corner; and within 200 feet of a college, school, or day care center.

The section also bars sitting or storing property in a way that unreasonably interferes with vehicles, pedestrians, or bicycles, or that violates ADA passage requirements. Subsection (c) exempts legally parked vehicles, trash set out for municipal collection, loading or unloading under one hour, minor building encroachments, permitted bus benches, and sitting to view a lawfully permitted parade. Enforcement runs through Section 10-101, which covers Sections 10-94 through 10-100 together: a violation may be charged as an infraction or misdemeanor at the citing officer's discretion, and a violator also faces civil actions and administrative penalties under Section 1-8 of the Municipal Code.

The current buffer-zone framework was adopted by Ordinance No. NS-3074 on January 21, 2025. Because the rule turns on precise distances from fixed features rather than a blanket sitting ban, officers measure from the specific hydrant, doorway, transit stop, or school before citing, and the City may abate a related obstruction immediately as a public nuisance if it threatens health or safety.