Perris, CA Landscaping Rules: Tree Removal & Heritage Trees (2026)

Under PMC 19.71.050, trees on private property may be protected or unprotected: a mature tree shading a backyard is exempt from regulation, while front-yard trees and the street tree are not exempt. Protected trees also include trees required as a project condition of approval (monument, screening, shade, and required front-yard tract trees), and trees on environmentally sensitive land such as open space, flood zones, and MSHCP conservation areas. PMC 19.71.090 prohibits any person from harming, destroying, or removing a tree on public land, or any tree in the protected category (including heritage, specimen, or special-status trees). For nuisance or hazardous trees on public/city-controlled land, PMC 19.71.100 sets a structured process: a nuisance tree must meet at least four of six economic criteria (with the cost-of-damage test required) before removal is recommended to the public works director; for residential street trees, no more than 30 percent of any one block may be removed within a one-year period. A 'hazardous tree' is defined as one that is dying, dead, structurally weak, a traffic obstruction, or injurious to public welfare; removal needs the city arborist's recommendation and an arborist report unless an emergency requires immediate action. Removing a heritage or other protected tree requires approval by the public works director (appealable to the urban forestry board) and a certified arborist report. After removal, a replacement tree must be planted within 45 days, except during summer months. California has no statewide tree-removal permit; protection is purely local.