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Sacramento, CA Public Conduct: Outdoor Smoking Restrictions (2026)

Significant Restrictions
Compiled from the official code textEditor Martyn O'NeillLast verified August 2026

Key Facts

Governing section
City Code § 12.72.135
Scope
All city parks except golf courses
Exception
Marked areas in community/regional parks
First-offense track
Civil/administrative, not criminal
Repeat offense
Misdemeanor, up to $1,000 fine
Enforcement
Park rangers and city police

Summary

Smoking is prohibited in all Sacramento city parks under City Code § 12.72.135, with butts and other smoking waste required to go in a designated container. The director may authorize marked smoking areas in community or regional parks, but golf courses, park streets, and perimeter sidewalks aren't covered by the ban at all.

A. Smoking is prohibited in parks. B. No person shall dispose of any material used for smoking in any park, except in a designated waste disposal container. C. Notwithstanding subsection A of this section and unless otherwise provided by state or federal law, smoking is permitted in designated areas in community parks or regional parks authorized by the director. Designated smoking areas shall be prominently marked with signs.

View official code

Full Breakdown

010 but expressly excludes golf courses, the streets inside a park, and the sidewalks along a park's perimeter, and defines "smoking" broadly to include lighting, inhaling, exhaling, or burning any pipe, cigar, cigarette, weed, or plant, or carrying any lit or ignited combustible substance. 020(D) makes anyone who violates the parks chapter more than twice within a six-month period guilty of a misdemeanor, punishable by a fine up to $1,000, incarceration up to six months, and probation with an order to stay away from the park or building where the last violation occurred. 020(F) authorizes department employees, park rangers, and city police officers to enforce the ban directly in the field.

Violations & Fines

A first violation of § 12.72.135 is civil or administrative only, under §§ 1.28 and 5.90, not a crime. A person who violates the parks chapter more than twice in six months becomes guilty of a misdemeanor under § 12.72.020(D), punishable by a fine up to $1,000, up to six months incarceration, and a stay-away order from the park.

Frequently Asked Questions

Can I smoke in a Sacramento city park?
No, not generally. City Code § 12.72.135(A) prohibits smoking in parks outright, with the only exception being smoking areas the parks director has designated and marked with signs in community or regional parks.
Where can I throw away a cigarette butt in a Sacramento park?
Only in a designated waste disposal container. Section 12.72.135(B) makes disposing of smoking material anywhere else in a park a separate violation from the smoking prohibition itself.
Is smoking on a golf course inside a Sacramento park allowed?
Yes, because § 12.72.135(D)(1) defines "parks" for this ban to exclude golf courses, the streets inside a park, and the sidewalks along a park's perimeter, so the smoking prohibition doesn't reach those areas.
Will I get arrested for smoking in a Sacramento park?
Not on a first offense, § 12.72.020(C) makes a § 12.72.135 violation civil or administrative, not criminal. Only after more than two violations in six months does § 12.72.020(D) make it a misdemeanor.

Sources & Official References

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