Maricopa County, AZ Outdoor Cooking: Smoker Rules (2026)

C carves out "appliances, including but not limited to, grills, ovens, and smokers, that are used exclusively for the cooking, smoking, or flavoring of food" from that ban, so long as the appliance meets Rule 314 of the Air Pollution Control Regulations. Rule 314, Section 314 ("Fires for Cooking") governs both open outdoor cooking fires and solid-fuel appliances used to cook, smoke or flavor food. Every such fire must meet the general open-fire requirements in Rule 314, Section 302: fire extinguishing equipment must be readily available, a trained attendant must stay with the fire, and no black-smoke-producing materials may be added.

2). During a Control Officer-declared restricted-burn period, the rules tighten further: the fire may only be started to cook, smoke or flavor food for immediate human consumption; cooking must begin without delay once the fire is lit; the fire must be put out immediately once the food reaches a safe internal temperature; and the fire's dimensions cannot exceed 2 square feet unless a larger fire is genuinely needed to bring all parts of the food to the USDA-recommended safe temperature. Restricted-burn periods are declared by the Maricopa County Air Quality Department (MCAQD) when monitoring or forecasting shows air quality standards are likely to be exceeded, and residents must check the burn restrictions advisory or call the air quality hotline before igniting. 2.