California Government
Hot Topics in the City: Fireworks
CITIES & TOWNS IN CALIFORNIA WHERE SAFE &
SANE FIREWORKS ARE LEGAL as of 2015 onward
| (*
Indicates unincorporated areas) Southern California Imperial County Brawley Calexico Calipatria El Centro Westmorland Winterhaven* Los Angeles County Alhambra Artesia Azusa Baldwin Park Bell Bell Gardens Bellflower Carson Commerce Compton Cudahy Downey Duarte El Monte Gardena Hawaiian Gardens Hawthorne Huntington Park Industry Inglewood Irwindale La Mirada La Puente Lakewood Lawndale Lynwood Maywood Montebello Monterey Park Norwalk Palmdale Paramount Pico Rivera Rosemead Santa Fe Springs South El Monte South Gate Temple City Vernon Orange County Anaheim Buena Park Costa Mesa Fullerton Garden Grove Huntington Beach Santa Ana Stanton Villa Park Westminster Riverside County Blythe Cathedral City Coachella Desert Hot Springs Indio San Bernardino County Adelanto Barstow Chino Colton Fontana Grand Terrace Rialto San Bernardino Ventura County Fillmore Central California Fresno County Clovis Coalinga Easton* Firebaugh Fowler Fresno Fresno County* Huron Kerman Kingsburg Laton* Mendota Orange Cove Parlier Reedley Riverdale* Sanger San Joaquin Selma Inyo County Big Pine* Bishop Independence* Lone Pine* Inyo County* Kern County Arvin Bakersfield California City Delano Kern County* Lamont* Maricopa McFarland Mojave* Oildale* Ridgecrest Rosamond* Shafter Taft Wasco Kings County Armona* Avenal Corcoran Kings County* Hanford Kettleman City* Lemoore Stratford* Madera County Chowchilla Madera Madera County* Merced County San Joaquin County San Luis Obispo County Stanislaus County |
Tulare County Dinuba Earlimart* Exeter Farmersville Goshen* Lindsay Pixley* Porterville Strathmore* Terra Bella* Tulare Tulare County* Visalia Woodlake Orosi* Ivanhoe* Northern California Alameda County Dublin Newark Union City Amador County Ione Jackson Plymouth Sutter Creek Butte County Gridley Oroville Calaveras County Angels Camp Calaveras County* Murphys* San Andreas* Valley Springs* Copperopolis* Mokelumne Hill* Colusa County Arbuckle* Colusa Maxwell* Williams Del Norte County Crescent City Fort Dicks* Klamath* Del Norte County* Glenn County Hamilton City* Orland Willows Humboldt County Alder Point* Arcata Carlotta* Eureka Ferndale Fieldbrook* Hydesville* Fortuna Garberville* Hoopa* Humboldt County* McKinleyville* Orick* Redway* Rio Dell Trinidad Lake County Lakeport Lassen County Susanville Modoc County Adin* Alturas Monterey County Gonzales Greenfield King City Marina Salinas Seaside Soledad Napa County St. Helena Nevada County Nevada City Placer County Lincoln Rocklin Roseville Sacramento County Citrus Heights Elk Grove Elverta* Folsom Galt Isleton Rancho Cordova North Highlands* Carmichael* Fair Oaks* Antelope* Rio Linda* Sacramento Sacramento County* Walnut Grove* San Benito County Hollister San Juan Bautista San Mateo County Pacifica San Bruno Santa Clara County Gilroy Santa Cruz County Watsonville Siskiyou County Dorris Dunsmuir Fort Jones McCloud* Mount Shasta Siskiyou County* Tulelake Weed Yreka Montague Solano County Dixon Rio Vista Suisun City Sonoma County Cloverdale Petaluma Rohnert Park Sebastopol Sutter County East Nicholaus* Live Oak Sutter* Sutter County* Yuba City Tehama County Corning Gerber* Los Molinos* Proberta* Red Bluff Tehama County* Yolo County Esparto* Knights Landing* Madison* West Sacramento Willow Oak* Winters Woodland Yolo County* Yuba County Linda* Marysville Olivehurst* Wheatland Yuba County* |
One of the
hottest topics in California cities is FIREWORKS
--the safe and sane ones. In cities that have
them some residents wish they didn't, and in
cities where they are illegal, others wish they
could buy and light them up. California's close
proximity to and shared borders with Mexico
prevents cities from completely stopping the
illegal flow of fireworks into California,
according to police and fire departments. All
they can really do during the 4th of July
holiday is respond to complaints, but even then
they must catch the culprits in the act of
lighting them up.
In June 2014 the City of Anaheim voters went to
the polls to decide the fate of Measure E which
allows for the sell and purchase of safe
and sane fireworks in the city known for its
nightly fireworks displays in the skies above
Disneyland. Those particular fireworks use a
proprietary technology that sets them off
electronically to reduce pollutants. It has been
shared with commercial fireworks companies and
is used in some of the high-end displays
sponsored by municipalities. Anaheim's Measure E
was approved by a 54.8% (13,316 votes.)
In Huntington Beach the city council
majority voted (4-3) to end a two-year
experiment of selling and owning safe and sane
fireworks, but not before a verbal fight. One
council member called the ban un-American and
said it was against the principles of the
Constitution. Another council member read from a
stack of letters she received from citizens
begging to ban fireworks. Comparing their
neighborhoods to war zones and the DMZ,
residents said the legalization of fireworks has
turned them into hostages holed up in their
homes. With a fall election of new council
members the ban was repealed and that city once
again legalized safe & sane fireworks.
We tried to examine the issue from the
perspective of the Chinese who created the
world's finest fireworks and have used them for
hundreds of years in celebrations. The first
news story we came across discussed how the use
of fireworks was down this Chinese New Year
2014, because of the choking air quality that
citizens have experienced without fireworks. Places in
California that permit the sale and use of
state-approved fireworks each 4th of July,
subject to change. Check before going!