DATE: May 6, 2026
TO: Honorable Mayor and City Councilmembers
FROM: Fire Department
TITLE: INTRODUCTION OF AN ILLEGAL FIREWORKS ABATEMENT ORDINANCE
RECOMMENDATION
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Staff recommends that the City Council introduce an ordinance adding Article V to Chapter 17 of the Oceanside Municipal Code relating to illegal fireworks abatement.
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BACKGROUND AND ANALYSIS
The possession, sale, and use of illegal fireworks pose significant threats to public safety, including increased risk of structure fires, wildland fires, and serious bodily injury. Such conduct constitutes a public nuisance endangering public health and safety within the meaning of Government Code section 36900(d).
On August 20, 2025, the City Council directed staff to explore enforcement strategies to address the proliferation of illegal firework usage within the City, similar to programs recently adopted by other California jurisdictions. On January 28, 2026, the City Council accepted receipt of an informational report outlining proposed abatement measures and directed staff to draft an ordinance addressing illegal fireworks enforcement based on the options discussed at that meeting.
The proposed ordinance makes it unlawful for any person to ignite, discharge, or possess illegal or dangerous fireworks or for any host to knowingly allow, permit, or promote the use of illegal fireworks on property under their control within the City of Oceanside. Staff recommends that the proposed ordinance be structured as Article V of Chapter 17 (Nuisance Abatement) of the Oceanside Municipal Code. As such, illegal fireworks activity would be declared a public nuisance subject to abatement under the procedures set forth in the ordinance. This structure allows the City to utilize Chapter 17's existing enforcement tools, including lien authority and tax-roll collection procedures, to recover costs associated with fireworks-related incidents. The remedies provided in the proposed ordinance are cumulative and do...
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