For eight years, California cities could not ban artificial turf on a home's yard. That changed on January 1, 2024. Today a city can limit turf again, while your HOA still can't ban it.
Older pages online still quote the old rule. Here's what changed, what it means if you live in Long Beach or Orange County, and how to check your own city before you buy.
This is a plain-words summary, not legal advice. Your city's planning office has the final word on its own code.
What the law said before, and what it says now
In 2015, during the last big drought, a bill called AB 1164 added section 53087.7 to the Government Code. It stopped cities and counties from banning drought tolerant landscaping, synthetic grass, or artificial turf on homes.
In 2023, a bill called SB 676 rewrote that section. The new text took effect on January 1, 2024. Now the law only protects "drought-tolerant landscaping using living plant material." It also says, in so many words, that this does not include synthetic grass or artificial turf.
So the state no longer stops a city from limiting turf on a home. A city can set rules on where it goes, cap how much of a yard it covers, or ban it. Living, low-water plants are still protected.
At least one California city has used that power. In 2025, Carmel-by-the-Sea passed a policy that bans new turf in every part of town. That's far from us, but it shows the change is real.
What it means where we work
A city rule and an HOA rule are two different things. The 2024 change was about cities. The HOA law, Civil Code 4735, was not changed, so an HOA still can't ban turf. Our page on HOAs and artificial turf covers that side.
Long Beach is the clearest local example of a city rule. Its code does not allow turf in the parkway, the strip of yard between the sidewalk and the street. A city memo from May 2026 confirms that permit plans showing turf in a parkway are not approved, while turf in a front yard is allowed. The details are on our Long Beach turf rules page.
Cities next door can move too. Signal Hill, which sits inside Long Beach, voted in January 2026 to limit how much of a front yard can be turf.
For the other cities we serve, check before you buy. Many have their own turf rules already, and rules can change at any council meeting.
Garden Grove is a good example of what a city rule can look like. Its code allows turf at homes, but with conditions. Some of the yard has to be live plants, there's a cap on how much of the front yard can be turf, and the product needs a no-fade warranty.
It shows the kinds of limits a city can choose, and why one call to city hall is worth it.
How to check your city before you buy
It takes one phone call or one search. Here's what to ask:
- Does the city allow artificial turf in a front yard? Is there a limit on how much of the yard it can cover?
- Is turf allowed in the parkway, or only on your side of the sidewalk?
- Do you need a permit or a plan check for it?
- Does the city want live plants mixed in, or a set amount of planting?
If you already have turf, ask one more thing: what happens to it if you redo the yard? In Long Beach, for example, the city's memo calls turf parkways that are already in place non-compliant, and the city is still deciding how to enforce that. Ask before you redo anything.
Search your city's municipal code for "synthetic turf" or "artificial turf", or call the planning counter at city hall. Write down the answer and who gave it.
If the parkway is off limits where you live, leave it out of the turf plan. Turf the city could make you pull up is money wasted.
The same goes for a cap on the front yard. If your city limits turf to part of the yard, plan the rest as planting from day one. The yard looks finished, not cut short.
If your city does limit turf, you still have options. A split yard puts turf where you play and plants where you don't, and the planted part may even earn the water rebate. Our turf versus rebate garden guide explains how, and the rebate rules page explains why turf itself doesn't qualify.
Want a quote that fits your city and your HOA? Tell us about your yard. We serve Long Beach, the South Bay and Orange County from our shop in Los Alamitos.
Last checked October 22, 2026, against Government Code section 53087.7 as changed by SB 676. We also checked city records from Long Beach, Signal Hill and Garden Grove. City rules change, so confirm with your city before work starts.
