Napa, CA

Napa's Municipal Code does not require neighbor consent to build a fence. Boundary fence cost-sharing follows California Civil Code Section 841, the Good Neighbor Fence Act, which…

A Special Fence Permit from the PBES Director is required when a proposed fence does not meet the height/location rules in section 18.104.270 or when a permitted fence will sit inside…

In AP, AW, RS, RM and PD zones, solid fences may be up to 4 ft in the front yard setback and up to 6 ft in side and rear yard setbacks, with see-through fencing allowed taller. Fences…

Napa County defines a fence broadly to allow wood, wire, stone, concrete, glass block or other construction, but in residential and agricultural zones any portion above 6 ft in side or…

Pool barriers in Napa follow California Health and Safety Code Sections 115921-115929 (the Swimming Pool Safety Act, as amended Jan 1, 2018) and California Building Code Section 3109…

The City of Napa requires a building permit for any swimming structure deeper than 24 inches: including in-ground, above-ground, and portable pools, hot tubs, and spas. Because of…

Tree trimming in the City of Napa is governed by Chapter 12.44 (Public Trees and Plants) for street and city trees and Chapter 12.45 (Trees on Private Property) for Protected Native…

Water restrictions in the City of Napa are codified in Chapter 13.09 (Water Conservation Regulations) and Chapter 13.10 (Water Shortage Regulations) of the Municipal Code. Permanent…

Weed control in the City of Napa operates locally under the Weed and Rubbish Abatement provisions of the Municipal Code (Title 8), with weeds, thistles, rank grass, brush, and berry…

The City of Napa does not mandate native-plant landscaping on existing residential property, but California's Model Water Efficient Landscape Ordinance (MWELO) at 23 CCR §490 et seq…

Backyard composting in the City of Napa is permitted and encouraged. Curbside collection of organic waste is mandatory under California SB 1383 (Public Resources Code §42652 et seq.)…

Since SB 676 took effect in 2024, Government Code 53087.7 protects only drought-tolerant living landscaping from local bans, so cities may again prohibit artificial turf. Civil Code…

The 2012 Rainwater Capture Act allows California residents to capture rainwater from rooftops for non-potable outdoor use without a state water-right permit, preempting most local…

The City of Napa does not have a breed-specific dog ordinance and cannot enact one. California Food and Agricultural Code Section 31683 expressly preempts local breed bans: cities and…

The City of Napa Zoning Ordinance excludes venomous reptiles, apiaries (except as separately permitted), kennels, and other prohibited animals from the definition of 'small domestic…

Napa County Code Chapter 6.18 (Keeping of Roosters), as amended by Ordinance 1431 effective Feb. 1, 2026, prohibits roosters on parcels under 0.5 acre, allows 1 rooster on 0.5-1.5…

Napa County Code Chapter 6.12 (Beehives), as amended by Ordinance 1377, requires apiaries to use moveable-frame hives in sound condition and be screened from neighboring dwellings and…

Napa County Code Title 6 does not set a numerical limit on the number of dogs or cats a household in the unincorporated area may keep. Cat limits were discussed by the Board of…

California law makes it illegal to knowingly feed big game mammals, deer, elk, pronghorn antelope, black bear, and Nelson bighorn sheep, anywhere in the state. The California…

Napa property owners must maintain 100 feet of defensible space around every habitable structure under California Public Resources Code Section 4291 (State Responsibility Area) and…

Large portions of Napa, particularly the eastern hillsides above Coombsville and Alta Heights, the Silverado / Atlas Peak corridor, the Browns Valley / western hillsides, and the…

California uniformly prohibits possession, sale, and use of dangerous fireworks statewide, while permitting cities to further restrict or ban Safe and Sane fireworks locally.

California requires permits for most outdoor burning, with statewide CAL FIRE and Air Resources Board rules that uniformly apply alongside local air district restrictions.

California uniformly applies the State Fire Marshal's propane storage standards through the California Fire Code, which all local jurisdictions must enforce as a minimum.

On-street parking in Napa is governed by Napa Municipal Code Chapter 10.36 (Stopping, Standing and Parking) together with the California Vehicle Code. The City does not impose a…

Napa does not impose a citywide overnight parking ban on passenger vehicles. On most residential streets, vehicles may park overnight provided they comply with the 72-hour rule in Napa…

Abandoned and inoperable vehicles in Napa are handled under Napa Municipal Code Chapter 10.64 (Abandoned Vehicles), which adopts the California Vehicle Code §§22660–22668 abatement…

Napa has adopted the California Building Standards Code and the California Green Building Standards Code (CALGreen) under Napa Municipal Code Title 15. New one- and two-family…

Napa County's Good Neighbor guidance directs that RVs, campers, boats, and trailers be stored on private property on paved surfaces, not on the street; under Napa County Code Section…

Napa County has not adopted a stand-alone weight-based ordinance restricting commercial vehicle parking in residential districts; the controlling rules are California Vehicle Code…

California doesn't ban private-property towing, but Vehicle Code Section 22658 controls how it happens. A posted sign at least 17 by 22 inches must warn drivers before a tow company…

Short-term rentals are flatly prohibited in unincorporated Napa County. Napa County Code Section 18.104.410 bans transient commercial occupancies (rentals under 30 consecutive days) of…

Napa County does not publish guest-count, bedroom, or night caps for short-term rentals because the underlying use is prohibited. Any rental of a dwelling unit for less than 30…

California requires hosting platforms to warn hosts to check their lease and insurance before listing (Business and Professions Code 22592), and AB 537 requires short-term lodging…

Cottage food operations in Napa County are authorized under California's AB 1616 / Health & Safety Code section 113758 et seq. and are registered (Class A) or permitted (Class B) by…

Napa County Code 18.116.020(A) allows one wall-mounted, parallel-to-the-front-wall sign of up to one square foot displaying the occupant's name, address, and occupation without any…

Napa County Code 18.104.090 limits home occupations to the dwelling itself (no accessory buildings), confines them to 25% or less of the dwelling's gross floor area, restricts work to…

Health and Safety Code sections 1597.40 through 1597.465 require all California cities and counties to treat licensed family daycare homes as permitted residential uses, preempting any…

California lets home cooks sell meals from their own kitchen under a microenterprise home kitchen operation (MEHKO) permit, capped at 30 meals a day, 90 a week, and $100,000 in annual…

Napa County Code Section 18.104.180 ministerially permits Accessory Dwelling Units (ADUs, called 'second units') and Junior ADUs (JADUs) on legal lots zoned RS, RC, AW, or PD, with a…

Napa County Code Section 18.104.180 (per Ordinance 1456) expressly defines a 'second unit, detached' to include a second unit located within a detached garage or other accessory…

Per the California Building Code section 105.2 (adopted via Napa County Code Title 15, Chapter 15.12), one-story detached storage sheds with a floor area of 120 sq ft or less are…

Section 8.16.080 of the Napa County Code prohibits operating construction, drilling, repair, alteration or demolition tools and equipment in a manner that creates a noise disturbance…

Napa County's Noise Control Regulations (Chapter 8.16) set lower nighttime exterior and interior noise standards from 10:00 p.m. to 7:00 a.m., effectively functioning as nighttime…

In unincorporated Napa County, habitual barking and other animal noise is regulated through Chapter 8.16's general noise-disturbance prohibition rather than a dedicated barking-dog…

Section 8.16.080 of the Napa County Code prohibits loudspeakers, radios, televisions, musical instruments and similar devices from being operated in a manner that creates a noise…

The Napa County Airport Land Use Commission (ALUC) administers the Airport Land Use Compatibility Plan (ALUCP), which uses a 65 dB CNEL noise contour around Napa County Airport and…

Unincorporated Napa County does not have a stand-alone leaf-blower ban. Powered garden tools (leaf blowers, mowers, chainsaws) are regulated under the general property-line noise…

The City of Napa has no local just-cause eviction ordinance, so the statewide Tenant Protection Act of 2019 (AB 1482, Civil Code Section 1946.2) controls. After 12 months of continuous…

The City of Napa has not adopted a local rent control ordinance. Rent is governed by California's statewide Tenant Protection Act of 2019 (AB 1482, Civil Code Section 1947.12), which…

Security deposits on Napa residential rentals are capped at one month's rent under California AB 12, effective July 1, 2024, codified at Civil Code Section 1950.5(c). A narrow…

California evictions run through the unlawful detainer process. Under Code of Civil Procedure § 1161, nonpayment requires a 3-day notice to pay rent or quit (excluding weekends and…

California landlords must keep rentals fit to live in. Civil Code §§ 1941 and 1941.1, reinforced by Green v. Superior Court, imply a warranty of habitability covering plumbing, heat…

California Civil Code § 1954 limits when a landlord may enter a rented home. Except in emergencies, abandonment, or with tenant consent, the landlord must give reasonable written…

California sets no fixed dollar or percentage cap on rent late fees, but a late fee in a residential lease is treated as liquidated damages. Under Civil Code § 1671, such a fee is…

To end a California month-to-month tenancy, a tenant gives 30 days' written notice. A landlord gives 30 days if the tenant has lived there under a year, or 60 days if a year or more…

California requires written notice before raising a month-to-month tenant's rent. Under Civ. Code § 827, increases of 10% or less in 12 months need 30 days' notice; increases above 10%…

California adverse possession requires five years of continuous, open, hostile possession AND payment of all property taxes during that period under Code of Civil Procedure § 325. A…

Food trucks operating in the City of Napa need a Mobile Food Facility (MFF) permit from Napa County Environmental Health under the California Retail Food Code (CalCode, Health & Safety…

Mobile food vending in the City of Napa is shaped by three layers. Napa Municipal Code Section 10.36.180 restricts peddlers selling food from a vehicle, wagon, or pushcart in the…

Political signs in the City of Napa are protected speech under the First Amendment and must be regulated content-neutrally under Reed v. Town of Gilbert, 576 U.S. 155 (2015). Napa's…

In unincorporated Napa County, no building, structure, well, utility facility, or other improvement may be erected within the established road setback area, which is measured from the…

In unincorporated Napa County, no person may engage in the business of peddler or solicitor without first obtaining a permit under the county's peddling-and-soliciting chapter, subject…

In unincorporated Napa County it is a public nuisance for anyone owning, leasing, or occupying premises to maintain them so as to be injurious to health, offensive to the senses, or an…

In unincorporated Napa County, any owner or occupant of premises where solid waste accumulates must place and keep garbage and other putrescent or litter-prone waste in proper storage…

In unincorporated Napa County it is unlawful to camp, occupy camp facilities, or use camp paraphernalia in designated areas, except as expressly allowed under the county's camping and…

In unincorporated Napa County it is unlawful to sponsor or conduct a special event or filming activity on public roadways without first obtaining a special event permit and complying…

Napa County protects agriculture: no properly conducted commercial agricultural activity, operation, or facility may be deemed a nuisance because of changed conditions in or around the…

The California Land Conservation Act of 1965 (Williamson Act), Government Code 51200-51297.4, allows landowners to enter contracts with counties restricting land to agricultural use…

Napa County adopts an expedited, streamlined permitting process for small residential rooftop solar energy systems, removing obstacles and encouraging property owners to install solar.

California Civil Code section 714 makes any HOA covenant, deed restriction, or governing document provision that effectively prohibits or restricts a solar energy system void and…

California's Solar Rights Act and the SolarAPP+ mandate (SB 379) require expedited permit review of small residential solar systems, preempting restrictive local processes.

Napa County caps exterior noise at 45 dBA at night and 50 dBA by day at a neighboring rural home's property line, under Code Section 8.16.070. A data center's cooling equipment and…

California requires statewide licensing of tobacco and vape retailers under the STAKE Act and the Cigarette and Tobacco Products Licensing Act. Business and Professions Code 22970…

California licenses cannabis retailers under MAUCRSA, but Business and Professions Code section 26200 preserves each city's and county's power to zone, permit, or completely prohibit…

Health and Safety Code section 11362.2 grants every adult 21 or older the statewide right to cultivate up to six cannabis plants indoors, and bars local governments from completely…

California sets a statewide minimum wage floor under Labor Code 1182.12, $16.90 per hour for all employers as of January 2026. Local governments are not preempted and may set higher…

California's Healthy Workplaces, Healthy Families Act under Labor Code 245-249 mandates paid sick leave for nearly all employees statewide. SB 616 (2023) raised the minimum to 40 hours…

The California Coastal Act, Public Resources Code sections 30000 through 30900, requires Coastal Development Permits for nearly all work in the coastal zone and gives the Coastal…

California requires anyone clearing, grading, or disturbing one acre or more of land to obtain coverage under the State Water Board's Construction General Permit, file a Notice of…

Government Code sections 65302 and 65962, together with Water Code section 8401 and the State Building Code Chapter 16, set uniform floodplain mapping, disclosure, and construction…

California Water Code sections 13260 and 13383 implement the federal Clean Water Act through statewide MS4 NPDES permits issued by the State and Regional Water Boards, binding all…

California regulates concealed carry weapons licenses statewide under Penal Code 26150 through 26225. Senate Bill 2 (2023) imposes uniform sensitive-place restrictions and applicant…

California preempts most local firearm regulation under Government Code 53071 and Penal Code 25605, reserving licensing, registration, and manufacture authority to the state. However…

California broadly prohibits open carry of firearms statewide under Penal Code 25850 (loaded firearms in public) and Penal Code 26350 (open carry of unloaded handguns). The prohibition…

California prohibits carrying loaded firearms in vehicles statewide under Penal Code 25400 and 25850. Unloaded handguns transported in private vehicles must be in a locked container or…

California's Gambling Control Act bars any city or county from issuing a gambling license to a cardroom unless a local ordinance authorizes it first: one adopted by voters after…

California Penal Code § 326.5 lets only tax-exempt nonprofits, mobilehome park associations, senior groups, and school-affiliated charities run bingo, and only under a local city or…

California law exempts private home card games from gambling regulation entirely. Penal Code § 337j(e)(2)(D) excludes any card game played in a private home or residence from the…

California has no legal sports betting, in stores or online. Penal Code section 337a criminalizes bookmaking, pool-selling, and placing or accepting any bet on the result of a sporting…

California HOAs may levy regular and special assessments, charge late fees and interest, record liens, and ultimately foreclose on delinquent owners under the Davis-Stirling Act. State…

California's Davis-Stirling Act gives every HOA member the right to inspect and copy association records under Civil Code § 5205. Boards must produce current-year records within 10…

California overrides HOA governing documents on several owner protections. The Davis-Stirling Act and related Civil Code sections bar HOAs from prohibiting solar systems, U.S. flag…

California voids any HOA governing-document clause that effectively bans or unreasonably restricts a clothesline or drying rack in an owner's exclusive-use backyard. Civil Code Section…

Civil Code section 4735 voids any HOA rule that bans low-water plants, turf replacement, or artificial turf, and bars fines for cutting back watering during a declared drought…

Civil Code § 4745 voids any HOA covenant or governing-document rule that prohibits or unreasonably restricts installing an EV charging station in an owner's unit or designated parking…

Civil Code § 4705 bars every California homeowners association from limiting a member's display of the United States flag on their own lot or within their exclusive-use common area…

California law caps homeowners association fines at $100 per violation or the amount listed in the association's published penalty schedule, whichever is less. Civil Code section 5850…

A California homeowners association cannot foreclose on a member’s home over unpaid dues until the delinquent assessments alone reach $1,800, or until the assessments secured by the…

Civil Code § 4741 bars every California homeowners association from adopting or enforcing a rule that prohibits, or unreasonably restricts, renting out a separate interest, and sets a…

Sobriety checkpoints are lawful in California and stopping at one is a statutory obligation, not a courtesy. Vehicle Code § 2814.2(a) requires a driver to stop and submit to a sobriety…

California is one of the few states that answers this by statute rather than by case law alone. Penal Code § 148(g) says that photographing or making an audio or video recording of a…

California has no general stop-and-identify statute. The old Penal Code § 647(e), which required a person lawfully detained to give "credible and reliable" identification, was held…

California has no statute that requires you to consent to a search of your car, and none that requires an officer to warn you that you may refuse. What the Legislature and the voters…

A low-speed vehicle in California may not be driven on any roadway with a speed limit above 35 miles per hour. Vehicle Code section 21260 permits it to cross a faster road only where…

California prohibits grocery stores and large retailers from providing single-use plastic carryout bags under Public Resources Code 42280-42288, enacted by SB 270 (2014) and ratified…

California restricts expanded polystyrene food containers statewide through SB 54 (2022) packaging requirements under Public Resources Code 42040-42081. The law mandates that…

California Public Resources Code 42270-42273, enacted by AB 1884 (2018), prohibits full-service restaurants from providing single-use plastic straws unless requested by the customer…

California prohibits sale of tobacco and vapor products to anyone under 21 statewide under Business and Professions Code 22958, enacted by SBX2-7 in 2016. The Tobacco 21 standard…

California bans retail sale of most flavored tobacco products statewide under Health and Safety Code 104559.5, enacted by SB 793 (2020) and upheld by voters via Proposition 31 in…

California provides statewide protections for native oak woodlands and heritage trees through CEQA review, Public Resources Code, and Forest Practice Rules that apply uniformly.

California works from a closed list: Vehicle Code section 24003 says no vehicle may carry any lamp or illuminating device not required or permitted by the code, so an accessory light…

California measures dash cam placement in square inches. Vehicle Code section 26708(b)(13) lets a video event recorder occupy a seven-inch square in the lower corner of the windshield…

Lane splitting is lawful in California. Vehicle Code section 21658.1, added by AB 51 in 2016, defines it as driving a motorcycle with two wheels in contact with the ground between rows…

California does not let you put a cover over your license plate. Vehicle Code section 5201(c) allows exactly two things: a full car cover on a lawfully parked vehicle, and a license…

No section of the California Vehicle Code makes it an offense for a private motorist to own, carry or use a radar detector. The prohibition in Vehicle Code section 28150 reaches only…

California permits metal studded tires only between November 1 and April 30, and only where the studs are tungsten carbide or another suitable material and the metal touching the road…

California never publishes a "legal VLT" for front side windows because it does not permit aftermarket darkening there at all. Vehicle Code section 26708(d) allows only clear…