Highland, CA Public Health Rules: Restaurant Grade Cards (2026)
Key Facts
- Posting rule
- Letter grade must be posted; operating without it is unlawful
- Protected card
- Cannot be defaced, marred, camouflaged, hidden or removed
- Enforcing agency
- San Bernardino County department of environmental health services
- Adopted law
- San Bernardino County Ordinance No. 3930
- Permit consequence
- Suspension or revocation of the public health permit
- Fees
- County schedule, collected by the county department
Summary
In the City of Highland, California, a food establishment cannot operate unless its inspection letter grade is posted. Highland Municipal Code § 8.44.050 bars anyone from defacing, hiding or removing the grade card, and removal can cost the operator its public health permit.
In accordance with Section 33.1406(c) of the San Bernardino County Code, adopted by reference herein and applicable to this chapter, the letter grade card posted in accordance with the program shall not be defaced, marred, camouflaged, hidden or removed. It shall be unlawful to operate a food establishment unless the letter grade is posted. Removal of the letter grade card is a violation of this chapter and may result in the suspension or revocation of the public health permit and shall be punishable as specified in Section 33.0112 of the San Bernardino County Code, which is adopted by reference herein and applicable to this chapter.
Full Breakdown
Chapter 8.44 of the Highland Municipal Code, titled Inspection Grading of Food Establishments, applies anywhere within the city that food or beverage products are sold or served (§ 8.44.010). The City Council did not write its own grading scale. Under § 8.44.020 it adopted San Bernardino County Ordinance No. 3930, which adds the inspection grading chapter to the San Bernardino County Code, and it made those adopted sections the city's inspection grading program.
The posting rule sits in § 8.44.050. The letter grade card posted under the program cannot be defaced, marred, camouflaged, hidden or removed, and the section makes it unlawful to operate a food establishment unless the letter grade is posted. That puts the burden on the operator: a restaurant, cafe, bakery counter or any other business in the City of Highland that sells or serves food cannot lawfully open without the card on display. The section points to Section 33.1406(c) of the San Bernardino County Code for the display standard.
Enforcement belongs to the county, not to a city department. Section 8.44.030 designates the San Bernardino County department of environmental health services as the enforcement agency for the city and authorizes it to provide the qualified personnel needed to enforce the chapter. Fees follow the same path. Section 8.44.040 adopts the fee schedule in County Ordinance No. 3930 as the fees in effect in the city, and it directs the county department to administer and collect them and deposit them with the county treasurer to offset the costs the county assumes in running the program for and within the city. The City Council found that those fees are reasonably related to the actual cost of administration and enforcement of the program.
Highland's own chapter does not print the grade thresholds or the inspection scoring method. Those sit in the county ordinance the city adopted by reference, so an operator with a scoring question needs to read County Ordinance No. 3930 itself.
Violations & Fines
Removing the letter grade card is a violation of Chapter 8.44. Under § 8.44.050 it can lead to suspension or revocation of the public health permit and is punishable as specified in Section 33.0112 of the San Bernardino County Code, which Highland adopted by reference. Operating a food establishment with no letter grade posted is unlawful by itself. The county department of environmental health services carries out enforcement.
Frequently Asked Questions
Who grades restaurants in the City of Highland?
Can a Highland restaurant take its letter grade card down?
Where do grading fees go in the City of Highland?
Sources & Official References
Other rules in Highland
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Restaurant Grade Cards in Nearby Cities
How other cities in San Bernardino County handle restaurant grade cards.