Santa Ana adopted sanctuary policies in 1986, among the earliest in the United States. The city limits cooperation with federal immigration enforcement and follows the California Values Act (SB 54) statewide.
Santa Ana City Council declared the city a sanctuary in 1986, one of the earliest declarations in the country. The current policy bars city employees and Santa Ana Police Department from using municipal resources to enforce federal civil immigration law, from holding people on ICE detainers without a judicial warrant, and from inquiring about immigration status during routine encounters. California's Values Act (Government Code section 7284 et seq., enacted via SB 54) layers a statewide floor on top, restricting state and local law enforcement from acting as immigration agents. Federal criminal warrants are still honored.
City employees cannot ask about immigration status during routine service, hold someone past release on an ICE detainer alone, or share information beyond what the Values Act allows.
Other ordinances people look up for this city. Green dot = verified primary-source excerpt.
Santa Ana, CA
Santa Ana does not regulate decorative lawn ornaments, statuary, or year-round yard decorations on private property. Property maintenance standards in SAMC C...
Santa Ana, CA
Santa Ana does not specifically regulate residential inflatable holiday displays. There is no size cap, lighting curfew, or fan-noise limit specific to infla...
Santa Ana, CA
Santa Ana does not have a specific ordinance regulating residential holiday light displays. Display dates, brightness, and decorative content are not regulat...
Santa Ana, CA
Built-in outdoor kitchens in Santa Ana require building, electrical, plumbing, and gas permits under SAMC Chapter 8 (Building and Construction Standards), wh...
Santa Ana, CA
Santa Ana does not have a specific ordinance regulating backyard smokers or wood-fired ovens by time of day. Use is governed by the general nuisance provisio...
Santa Ana, CA
Santa Ana enforces the California Fire Code (CFC) through SAMC Chapter 14 (Fire Prevention) and OCFA (Orange County Fire Authority) under contract. Under CFC...
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