Madera County, CA Public Conduct: Public Alcohol Use (2026)
Key Facts
- Prohibited
- Open, seal-broken, or partly emptied alcohol containers
- Covered area
- Posted off-sale liquor store, lot, and sidewalk
- Trigger
- Requires visible posted notice under § 9.46.040
- Exception
- Private residential parking lots nearby
- Penalty
- Infraction under § 9.46.060
- Adopted
- Ordinance 482, 1984
- Scope
- Unincorporated Madera County only
Summary
Madera County bans carrying an open container of alcohol, one that's been opened, seal broken, or partially emptied, onto or around any off-sale liquor store that has posted notice under the county's alcoholic beverage control chapter. The rule covers the adjacent parking lot and sidewalk too, but only where the county's required signs are up, and a violation is an infraction.
As used in this chapter, "posted premises" means any retail package off-sale alcoholic beverage licensee licensed pursuant to Division 9 (commencing with Section 23000) of the Business and Professions Code, any parking lot immediately adjacent to the licensed premises, and any public sidewalk immediately adjacent to the licensed premises on which clearly visible notices indicate to the patrons of the licensee and to persons in the parking lot and the public sidewalk that the provisions of this chapter are applicable. [...] No person who has in his or her possession any bottle, can or other receptacle containing any alcoholic beverage which has been opened, or a seal broken, or the contents of which have been partially removed, shall enter, be or remain on a posted premises as defined in Section 9.46.020.
Official source re-checked September 7, 2026: no newer edition of the code had been published (publisher’s edition: Code of Ordinances: Supplement 52).
Full Breakdown
46, Alcoholic Beverage Control, adopted by Ordinance 482 in 1984, targets the area immediately around off-sale liquor stores in unincorporated Madera County. 020 as any retail package off-sale alcoholic beverage licensee under Business and Professions Code Division 9, plus any parking lot immediately adjacent to the licensed premises and any public sidewalk immediately adjacent to it, but only where clearly visible notices tell patrons the chapter applies. 040 puts the burden on the store owner: each licensee must cooperate with county authorities to post the premises and adjacent lots properly, and enforcement only reaches locations that are actually posted.
050 carves out an exception for private residential parking lots that happen to sit next to a posted store; those remain outside the chapter. 010 explains the rationale: unrestricted open-container activity around off-sale outlets in the unincorporated county creates public intoxication, easier minor access to alcohol, and disturbances of the peace, so the chapter targets that specific problem rather than banning open containers countywide.
Violations & Fines
Violating § 9.46.030 is an infraction under § 9.46.060, the lowest tier of criminal offense under California law, typically resolved by a citation and fine rather than an arrest or jail time. Because the chapter only applies to premises the store owner has actually posted with the required signage, an open-container citation only holds up where the required notice was visibly displayed at the time of the violation.
Frequently Asked Questions
Can I walk into a Madera County liquor store with an open beer?
Does Madera County's open-container rule apply everywhere in the county?
What's the penalty for violating the open-container rule near a Madera County liquor store?
Is a residential parking lot next to a liquor store covered by this rule?
Sources & Official References
Other rules in Madera County
California rules heatmap·Compare Madera County to another location·View the California public conduct overview
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