Right to Farm in California (2026)

The California Right to Farm Act under Civil Code 3482.5 protects established agricultural operations from nuisance…

Calaveras County declares that any legally existing agricultural use, farming, ranching, orchards, livestock, row…

Brentwood's Right to Farm ordinance, Municipal Code Chapter 8.01, shields agricultural operations on the city's East…

Davis Municipal Code Chapter 40A shields properly conducted agricultural operations from local nuisance claims unless a…

Delano Development Code §20.10.270.4 requires the Community Development Director to include a Right-to-Farm notice on…

Eastvale shields agricultural operations from nuisance lawsuits once they've run for three years without complaint…

El Dorado County Code Section 130.40.290 shields existing agricultural operations on PA, LA, AG, FR, and TPZ-zoned land…

Fresno County Code Section 17.72.075 requires a Right-to-Farm Notice to be recorded with the county recorder before the…

Lake County Code Section 3-45.1 shields lawful agricultural operations from nuisance claims unless the activity meets…

California Civil Code §3482.5 protects established agricultural operations from nuisance suits after three years of…

Unincorporated Madera County shields established commercial agricultural operations from nuisance suits over changed…

Marin County Code Chapter 23.03 shields established commercial farms from nuisance lawsuits over noise, odor, dust, and…

Unincorporated Merced County requires a recorded Certificate of Public Acknowledgement of Farming Activities on final…

Chapter 16.40 of the Monterey County Code shields commercial farms on unincorporated agricultural land from nuisance…

Murrieta's development code shields existing horse-keeping and agricultural operations from nuisance claims filed by…

Sellers of residential property in unincorporated San Diego County must give buyers a written disclosure that a nearby…

Under County Code Section 5.16.030, an agricultural operation run for commercial purposes and consistent with accepted…

Santa Barbara County shields established agricultural operations on land zoned A-I, A-II, or exclusively for…

A commercial agricultural operation in unincorporated Tulare County cannot be declared a nuisance over a changed…

Yolo County Code Sec. 10-6.102 shields agricultural operations on Agricultural Preserve (A-P), Agricultural Exclusive…

Butte County's Right to Farm Ordinance, Chapter 35, shields properly conducted agricultural operations on agricultural…

Chico shields existing and future commercial farm operations from nuisance claims by neighbors, as long as the farming…

Clovis Municipal Code Section 9.40.170(A) declares it City policy to shield commercial agricultural operations from…

Unincorporated Contra Costa County shields established commercial agricultural and agricultural-processing operations…

Elk Grove shields established agricultural operations from nuisance claims and City abatement once they have run for…

California Civil Code §3482.5 shields established agricultural operations from nuisance suits after three years of…

Manteca's right-to-farm chapter works through disclosure rather than nuisance immunity: sellers and building-permit…

Mendocino County shields established agricultural operations from nuisance lawsuits once they have run more than three…

Placer County's right-to-farm ordinance shields commercial agricultural operations from nuisance lawsuits triggered by…

Pleasanton shields commercial agricultural operations on land zoned Agricultural from nuisance claims triggered by…

Solano County Code Section 2.2-30 bars agricultural operations on agricultural land from being declared a nuisance…

Stockton's right-to-farm ordinance shields properly run commercial agricultural operations from nuisance lawsuits…

Agricultural operations in Turlock that run more than three years without becoming a nuisance can't later be sued as…

San Buenaventura Municipal Code Section 8.750.120 shields commercial agricultural operations that comply with the…

Alameda County Code shields lawful commercial agricultural operations from private and public nuisance lawsuits…

Chino shields pre-existing animal keeping and agricultural operations from nuisance claims triggered by new neighbors…

Hanford shields lawfully run commercial farms from nuisance lawsuits triggered by nearby homes moving in, unless the…

Hemet bars nuisance lawsuits against established commercial farms in agricultural zones once an operation has run three…

Imperial County shields lawful, established agricultural operations from nuisance lawsuits under its right-to-farm…

Unincorporated Kern County protects agricultural, ranching, oil and gas, energy and mining operations from nuisance…

Kings County shields lawfully run commercial farms from nuisance lawsuits triggered by nearby development, protecting…

Livermore Municipal Code Section 8.16.050 protects lawfully run farms and agricultural processing operations from…

Madera Municipal Code § 10-3.418 shields commercial agricultural operations from nuisance claims once they've run more…

Napa County protects agriculture: no properly conducted commercial agricultural activity, operation, or facility may be…

Rancho Cordova's right-to-farm ordinance, RCMC Chapter 14.05, blocks nuisance claims against established farms. Once a…

Commercial farms in unincorporated Riverside County can't be sued as a nuisance once they've run three years without…

Sacramento County shields established commercial farms from nuisance lawsuits once they've operated three years without…

California Civil Code §3482.5 shields established agricultural operations from nuisance suits after three years of…

San Joaquin County Ordinance Code § 6-9002 says a commercial agricultural operation run in a manner consistent with…

California Civil Code §3482.5 shields established agricultural operations from nuisance suits after three years of…

California Civil Code §3482.5 protects established agricultural operations from nuisance suits after three years of…

Properly conducted agricultural operations on designated agricultural land in unincorporated Sonoma County cannot be…

Stanislaus County shields agricultural operations from nuisance lawsuits once they've run more than three years without…

Tracy shields agricultural operations running for more than three years from nuisance lawsuits and complaints triggered…

West Sacramento shields properly operated agricultural operations on agricultural land from nuisance lawsuits over…

Unincorporated Yuba County shields properly run agricultural and mining operations from nuisance claims if the…

The California Land Conservation Act of 1965 (Williamson Act), Government Code 51200-51297.4, allows landowners to…

El Cajon confines commercial agriculture to the O-S, RS-40, and RS-20 zones, and only for commercial horticulture…

Madera Municipal Code § 10-3.421 lets the Planning Commission grant a conditional use permit for farming on…

Alameda has no separate right-to-farm nuisance statute; agriculture is governed instead by the 'A' Agricultural…

Before transferring property within 2,000 feet of agricultural land in unincorporated Alameda County…

Bakersfield's A agriculture zone lets landowners keep livestock, poultry and crops as a matter of right, but §…

Berkeley has no right-to-farm nuisance shield; instead Chapter 23.318 zones urban agriculture directly. Small…

Buena Park's A-Overlay Zone permits farming, orchards, livestock, beekeeping and chickens on top of underlying zone…

Butte County's AG zone protects farming by requiring 20 to 160 acre minimum parcels and limiting non-farm uses, while…

Camarillo protects working farmland through its A-E Agricultural Exclusive zone, which requires a ten-acre minimum…

Carlsbad's E-A Exclusive Agricultural zone is built to protect and encourage farming, restricting land to a short list…

Ceres shields farmland with a dedicated R-A residential-agriculture zone meant to keep incompatible development from…

New development next to commercial crop production along Chico's Sphere of Influence must keep at least 100 feet of…

Chino Hills preserves large-lot agricultural land through its Agriculture-Ranch (R-A) zoning district. Municipal Code…

Chula Vista has no right-to-farm nuisance-immunity ordinance, but CVMC Chapter 19.20 establishes an Agricultural (A)…

Any Clovis subdivision within 300 feet of agriculturally zoned land cannot get final map approval until the owner…

In unincorporated Colusa County, Zoning Code Chapter 44 divides farmland into five agricultural zones: Foothill…

Corona's A Agricultural Zone sets a five-acre minimum lot size for farms and ranches, caps building height at two…

Davis requires a recorded deed restriction and written notice whenever a discretionary development permit affects…

Dublin's Agricultural (A) Zoning District under Alameda County's Tri-Valley general plan is codified at Dublin…

El Dorado County zones agricultural, rural and resource land under six designations in Code Chapter 130.21: Planned…

El Monte designates rural, agriculture-friendly lots under the Rurban Homesteads Overlay District (RHOD) in Chapter…

Elk Grove zones its farmland under two agricultural base districts set by Municipal Code Section 23.24.020(B): AG-80…

Escondido's Municipal Code Section 33-90 creates the Agriculture Residential (R-A) zone specifically to protect…

Fairfield's AG (Agriculture) zoning district, set out at Zoning Ordinance Section 25.26, protects farmland by…

Folsom protects farming through its A Agricultural Combining District rather than a standalone right-to-farm statute…

Fremont has no right-to-farm ordinance; instead, growing and selling crops on infill sites is governed by Municipal…

Any subdivision within 300 feet of an AE, AL, TPZ or RC agricultural zone in Fresno County must record a right-to-farm…

Hanford treats agriculture as the favored use near its urban limit line and requires new development within one mile to…

Hayward's Agricultural (A) zoning district exists to preserve farmland until orderly development can take place, per…

Hemet requires a minimum 20-foot buffer, at least half landscaped, between new residential development and existing…

Hesperia protects farming through two agricultural zoning designations, Limited Agricultural (A1) and General…

Irvine protects working farmland through a dedicated 1.1 Exclusive Agriculture zoning district under Zoning Ordinance…

Lake County's Right to Farm Ordinance protects agricultural operations only on land zoned Agricultural Preserve (APZ)…

Lakewood's R-A (Single-Family Residential, Limited Agriculture) Zone lets homeowners keep small livestock and, on…

Lancaster permits grazing as a light agricultural use in the RR-2.5 and RR-1 rural residential zones under Municipal…

Unincorporated LA County zones farmland A-1 Light Agricultural or A-2 Heavy Agricultural under Title 22 Chapter 22.16…

Manteca requires sellers and residential builders to give buyers a written disclosure warning that nearby farmland…

Unincorporated Marin County protects farmland through eight A (Agriculture and Conservation) districts, an A2…

Mendocino County Code Chapter 10A.13 shields established commercial agricultural operations from nuisance suits once…

Merced's Agriculture (A-G) zoning district protects farmland inside city limits with a 20-acre minimum parcel and a…

Merced County protects farming operations by requiring new houses to sit 200 feet back from land used for agricultural…

Monterey County's Limited Agricultural, or "A", combining district caps livestock density and steers intensive farming…

Mountain View's Agricultural (A) zoning district, City Code Section 36.24, exists to keep farmland from being crowded…

Oakland has no separate right-to-farm nuisance-protection ordinance; instead its Planning Code classifies on-site…

Oceanside's A (Agricultural) District carries its own chapter of the zoning ordinance built to keep farm and ranch…

Orange's Agricultural (A1) district allows farming and low-intensity recreational and open space uses, but a…

Unincorporated Orange County's A1 General Agricultural District permits farming, ranching and crop sales as by-right…

Oxnard's C-R Community Reserve Zone is set aside for open land uses, permitting farming, plant husbandry, forestry and…

In the City of Pacifica, the Agricultural District (A) zone under Municipal Code § 9-4.1901 permits farming, livestock…

Placer County's Agricultural Exclusive (AE) district, established under Zoning Ordinance § 17.08.010, restricts land to…

Pleasanton zones farmland under the A Agricultural District, Chapter 18.28, which permits commercial crop and livestock…

Rancho Cordova's two agricultural zoning districts, AG-80 and AG-20, set minimum parcel sizes of 80 and 20 gross acres…

Rancho Cucamonga protects historic farmland through its Agricultural Overlay under Development Code Section 17.38.050…

Redlands' A-1 Agricultural District, Chapter 18.20 of the zoning code, requires a five-acre minimum lot and caps…

Ridgecrest's PA Primary Agriculture District, in Kern County, California, reserves rural-scale parcels of at least five…

Riverside's Residential Agricultural (RA-5) Zone is built to keep working agriculture legal alongside a house…

Riverside County's right-to-farm ordinance shields commercial farms on land zoned A-1, A-2, A-D, A-P, or C/V from…

Sacramento's A zone restricts land primarily to agriculture and farming, protecting working farmland from incompatible…

Salinas Municipal Code Sec. 37-50.220 shields properly run agricultural operations from nuisance claims and requires a…

San Bernardino County requires a minimum 100-acre parcel to establish the AG Agricultural zoning district under the…

In unincorporated San Diego County, land inside a designated Agricultural Preserve carries an A designator under Zoning…

San Jose reserves land for farming through a dedicated A Agricultural zoning district with a 20-acre minimum lot size…

San Luis Obispo County has declared it county policy under Code Chapter 5.16 to enhance and encourage agricultural…

San Marcos protects working farms through three dedicated Agricultural zones (A-1, A-2, A-3) rather than a standalone…

Santa Ana's A1 general agricultural district permits crop farming, grazing and small animal farms by right, but bans…

Santa Clarita protects farming through its Non-Urban zoning series, not a standalone right-to-farm statute. NU1 through…

Santa Maria protects light farming through its RA Residential Agricultural zoning district rather than a separate…

Tehama County reserves land in its four agricultural districts, AG-1 Upland, AG-2 Valley, AG-3 El Camino, AG-4 Capay…

Thousand Oaks protects farming through its Rural-Agricultural (R-A) zone, which permits crop production, horticulture…

Vacaville protects farmland through two agricultural zoning districts, AG and AH, under Municipal Code Section…

Ventura's right-to-farm ordinance, Municipal Code Section 8.750.120, shields lawful commercial agriculture from…

County code shields properly run commercial farms in unincorporated Ventura County from nuisance lawsuits over normal…

Vista's A-1 Agricultural Zone, governed by Municipal Code Chapter 18.10, makes crops, orchards, greenhouses and a…

West Sacramento's AG Zone preserves farmland by permitting one dwelling per 5-acre-minimum parcel, capping height at 35…

Westminster's zoning code permits farming, horticulture, flower and vegetable gardening, and non-retail nursery and…

Yolo County shields established agricultural operations on agricultural land from nuisance lawsuits once they have run…

Yuba City protects farmland with its Agricultural Holding (AH) zoning district, reserved for rural land awaiting…

Antioch's zoning code lets pre-existing agricultural operations keep running but bars expanding them, and it lets…

Apple Valley protects working agriculture through two residential zoning districts. The Residential Agriculture (R-A)…

Eastvale's Chapter 6.40 right-to-farm ordinance shields established commercial agricultural operations in the city's…

Unincorporated Glenn County shields commercial agricultural operations from nuisance lawsuits and complaints under its…

Kings County's Right to Farm ordinance shields lawful, established agricultural operations in the county's Agricultural…

San Benito County's Agricultural Community Disclosure ordinance tells property owners in unincorporated San Benito…

San Diego designates AG and AR base zones under Municipal Code Section 131.0301 specifically to accommodate agriculture…

Unincorporated San Mateo County's Agricultural Awareness ordinance declares normal farm impacts on neighboring property…

Commercial farms and ranches on land zoned AG-I, AG-II, or exclusively for agriculture in unincorporated Santa Barbara…

Santa Cruz County's Agricultural Land Preservation and Protection ordinance, SCCC Chapter 16.50, shields a commercial…

Sonoma County shields properly conducted farms and ranches on agricultural land from nuisance lawsuits and requires…

Stanislaus County's Agricultural Land Policies chapter requires every discretionary parcel or subdivision map touching…

Tracy Municipal Code Chapter 10.24 shields established commercial agricultural operations from nuisance lawsuits once…

Turlock's municipal code sets a formal right-to-farm policy protecting agricultural operations on Stanislaus County ag…

Union City's Agricultural (A) zoning district exists to shield land suited for farming from incompatible development…

Brentwood's Right to Farm ordinance, Municipal Code Chapter 8.01, shields properly run agricultural operations near…

Calaveras County Code § 17.16.120 gives legally existing farms, ranches, orchards, livestock operations, row crops, and…

Chino's right-to-farm rule reaches every legal animal-keeping and farming operation in the city, plus land annexed from…

Cupertino maintains two agricultural zoning districts, Agricultural (A) and Agricultural-Residential (A-1), under…

Los Angeles's "A2" Agricultural Zone lets landowners farm, run nurseries, and keep aviaries and apiaries as a matter of…

Established agricultural operations in Moorpark's O-S and A-E zones can't be declared a nuisance over changed…

Perris's A-1 Light Agricultural zone allows general farming, orchards, nurseries and field-crop growing by right, with…

Petaluma zones farmland separately: the AG (Agriculture) zone under Section 4.020(B) covers land actively and primarily…

Santa Clara County's own ordinance shields lawfully run commercial agricultural operations from nuisance claims and…

Shasta County channels farming into two zoning districts built to keep land in agricultural use: Limited Agriculture…