Santa Barbara County, CA Outdoor Cooking: BBQ & Propane Rules (2026)
Key Facts
- Rule
- BBQs/open flames banned on county beaches (Sec. 26-27)
- Exceptions
- director approval or a camping-park fire pit
- High fire hazard
- all open fires banned when posted
- Applies to
- unincorporated county beaches and recreation areas
- Penalty
- infraction or misdemeanor (Sec. 26-6)
Summary
Bonfires, open flames and barbecues are banned on Santa Barbara County beaches under Sec. 26-27 unless the community services director approves them or they're used in a designated camping-park fire pit; the same section lets the county shut down all open fires countywide during declared high fire hazard periods.
Sec. 26-27. - Campfires and open fires. No person shall build, use or maintain any open fire within any recreation area that is deemed to be unsafe by individuals defined in section 26-3. This includes any fire within any county recreation area during a period of time declared to be a time of high fire hazard by park division personnel, except as specifically permitted by the director of community services, or deputy director. Public notices of high fire hazard shall be posted within the recreation area when applicable. Bonfires/open flames, BBQs are prohibited on county beaches, unless approved by the director of community services or designee or it is a camping park designated fire pit.
Official source re-checked September 7, 2026: no newer edition of the code had been published (publisher’s edition: Code of Ordinances: Supplement 44 Update 1).
Full Breakdown
Sec. ' This is a county-beach and county-park rule reaching only the unincorporated area's recreation areas, meaning county-run beaches like Goleta Beach County Park and county camping parks; it does not itself regulate propane grills on a private balcony or patio, which fall instead under the county's separately adopted Fire Code provisions in Chapter 15. The same section authorizes park division personnel to declare a 'time of high fire hazard,' during which any open fire, cooking fire included, becomes unlawful within the affected recreation area except with the director's specific permission; public notice of the high-hazard declaration must be posted in the recreation area.
Because Chapter 26 only binds unincorporated county property, a grill or fire pit inside Santa Barbara, Santa Maria, Lompoc, Goleta, Carpinteria or Buellton is governed instead by that city's own code, not this county rule.
Violations & Fines
Building or using a beach bonfire, open flame or barbecue without director approval, or lighting any open fire during a posted high fire hazard period, is a crime under Sec. 26-6, filed as an infraction or misdemeanor at the district attorney's discretion, with each day of continued violation a separate offense; violators can also be ejected from the recreation area under Sec. 26-7.
Frequently Asked Questions
Can I have a barbecue on a Santa Barbara County beach?
Does the county regulate propane grills on apartment balconies?
What if county staff declare a high fire hazard while I'm camping?
Sources & Official References
Other rules in Santa Barbara County
California rules heatmap·Compare Santa Barbara County to another location·View the California outdoor cooking overview
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