Fullerton, CA Landscaping Rules: Weed Ordinances (2026)

FMC Chapter 13.18 - Weed and Rubbish Abatement is Fullerton's vehicle for clearing dry vegetation and accumulated debris from private parcels, especially before fire season. Section 13.18.010 defines key terms: 'Weed Abatement Official' is the Fire Chief or his designated representatives; 'Abate' includes those acts necessary to protect the property from further accumulation of rubbish and to protect the neighborhood from the existence of a nuisance which cannot easily be removed; and 'Rubbish' is broadly defined to include refuse, waste, offal, garbage, filth and trash, asphalt, boards, bottles, boxes, cans, cartons, cement, concrete, crates, dirt, glass, gravel, hoses, lumber, metal, paint, paper, pasteboard boxes, plaster, plastic, rubber, sand, stucco, tile, wire, wood, vehicle bodies and parts, tires, trimmings and clippings from lawns and shrubs, and similar items. FMC 13.18.020 declares the maintenance of weeds and rubbish a public nuisance, 13.18.030 imposes a duty on the property owner to remove the nuisance, and 13.18.040 et seq. provide for service of notice, notice contents, fee schedules, City Council hearings, abatement by City contractor, accounting for costs of abatement, hearing on costs, recording the cost of abatement as a lien on the property, and collection through the tax roll. Fullerton's procedure parallels the California Government Code 'alternative procedure' for weed and rubbish abatement (GC ss 39560-39588), under which a city declares the nuisance, gives notice, holds a hearing, and recovers abatement costs as a special assessment / lien. In coordination with the Fire Department, the City issues an annual Weed Abatement Program notice each spring identifying parcels (often hillside and undeveloped lots) that must be cleared by a stated deadline; non-compliant parcels are abated by the City's contractor and billed back. The Fire Department's Brush Clearance Standard for fire-hazard mitigation reinforces these requirements - dead and/or dying ground cover, vegetation, and weeds must be cut to a maximum of three (3) inches and immediately removed, with trees and shrubs maintained free of dead wood per the Fire Code.