San Bernardino, CA Public Conduct: Outdoor Smoking Restrictions (2026)
Key Facts
- Park smoking
- Banned outright, Section 8.73.050
- Playground buffer
- 25 feet from any playground/tot lot
- Sports facility rule
- Smoking barred except designated areas
- First-offense fine
- Up to $100 infraction
- Adopted
- Ord. MC-1319, Nov. 16, 2009
Summary
Smoking anywhere in a San Bernardino public park is against the law under Section 8.73.050, with no carve-out for trails or picnic areas inside park boundaries. Chapter 8.73 also adds a 25-foot no-smoking buffer around every playground and tot lot sandbox area and bars smoking in outdoor sports facilities except in areas an operator designates for it.
(A) It is made a violation of law for any person to smoke or engage in the act of smoking in any public park. (B) It is made a violation of law for any person to dispose of any cigarette, cigar or tobacco, or any part of a cigarette, cigar or tobacco, or a pipe or other device for smoking, in any public park, except in a waste disposal container designated for such purpose.
Official source re-checked September 7, 2026: no newer edition of the code had been published (publisher’s edition: 2026 S-2: Supplement contains: Local legislation current through Ord. MC-1666, passed 8-5-2026).
Full Breakdown
73, adopted by Ordinance MC-1319 on November 16, 2009, layers three separate outdoor smoking rules onto city-controlled recreation land. 010 to include all grounds, roadways, park facilities and playground areas supervised or operated by the Parks and Recreation Department; disposal is allowed only in a waste container designated for that purpose. 020 separately bars smoking, and disposing of smoking waste, within 25 feet of the boundary of any playground or tot lot sandbox area, whether or not that area sits inside a public park; tot lot boundaries are defined by the edge of the resilient safety surface where the area is not fenced.
040 extends the ban to outdoor athletic recreation areas, sports centers and sports facilities, including stadiums, gymnasiums, pools, playing fields and health spas open to the air, but requires publicly owned facilities to designate at least one area where smoking is not prohibited, and lets privately owned or long-term-leased facilities do the same. 030.
Violations & Fines
Each of Sections 8.73.020, 8.73.040 and 8.73.050 makes its own violation an infraction punishable under Section 1.12.010: up to $100 for a first offense, $200 for a second offense within a year and $500 for each further offense in that year, with a fourth offense in twelve months becoming a misdemeanor punishable by up to six months in county jail and a $1,000 fine. Section 8.73.050(C) specifies that punishment under the park smoking ban does not preclude punishment under any other applicable law.
Frequently Asked Questions
Can I smoke in a San Bernardino city park?
How close to a playground can I smoke in San Bernardino?
Are there any designated smoking areas at San Bernardino sports facilities?
Sources & Official References
Other rules in San Bernardino
California rules heatmap·Compare San Bernardino to another location·View the California public conduct overview
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Outdoor Smoking Restrictions in Nearby Cities
How other cities in San Bernardino County handle outdoor smoking restrictions.