Contra Costa County, CA Parking Rules: Abandoned Vehicles (2026)

Ordinance Code Division 430 was enacted under Vehicle Code Sections 22660-22663 and 22671 and Government Code Section 25845. Section 430-2.004 declares that an abandoned, wrecked, dismantled, or inoperative vehicle on private or public property, including streets and private roads, is a nuisance that reduces property values, invites plundering, creates fire hazards, and endangers children. The rule does not reach vehicles fully enclosed in a building out of public view, or vehicles lawfully stored on a licensed dismantler's, dealer's, or junkyard's lot.

The sheriff and the director of conservation and development are the designated enforcement officers under Section 430-6.002 and may enter property to inspect and remove vehicles. Before abatement, Section 430-6.006 requires a ten-day written notice by certified or registered mail to the landowner, any known possessor, and the vehicle's owner, stating the estimated abatement cost and the right to a hearing. A separate, faster track exists under Section 430-6.008 for inoperable, nontowable vehicles worth under $200 on agricultural or unimproved-residential parcels: no ten-day notice is required if the owner has signed a release.

If a hearing is requested within ten days, the zoning administrator holds it, may delay removal, and must clear the landowner of cost liability if the vehicle was placed without the landowner's consent and the landowner never acquiesced. Any party may appeal the zoning administrator's decision to the board of supervisors within ten calendar days. Once removal is final, Section 430-10.004 requires notifying the DMV within five days.