Taft Municipal Code Ch. 13 Sale of Safe and Sane Fireworks

Safe and sane fireworks as defined in section 12529 of the Health And Safety Code of the state may be sold and discharged within the city during the following periods:

(A) Sales:

July 1: 12:00 noon to 11:00 P.M.

July 2 and 3: 6:00 A.M. to 11:00 P.M.

July 4: 6:00 A.M. to 12:01 A.M. of the next day

(B) Discharged:

July 1: 12:00 noon to 12:01 A.M. of the next day

July 2: 9:00 A.M. to 12:01 A.M. of the next day

July 3: 9:00 A.M. to 12:01 A.M. of the next day

July 4: 9:00 A.M. to 12:30 A.M. of the next day

(Ord. 807-15, 1-20-2015)

Except as provided herein, no person shall offer for sale or sell at retail, any fireworks of any kind in said city without having first applied for and received a business license therefor. (Ord. 807-15, 1-20-2015)

All applications for a license to sell fireworks shall:

(A) Be accompanied by a license fee for the sale of fireworks within the city of twenty five dollars ($25.00) per year per stand, no part of which may be waived or refunded.

(B) Be made in writing on the appropriate license application forms to be provided by the city.

(C) Business license applications shall be submitted within two (2) weeks after notification of the lottery drawing request has been granted pursuant to section 4-13-4 of this chapter. The fireworks stands must be on private property located in a general commercial (GC), mixed use (MU), or downtown commercial (DC) zone, and be approved by the Taft planning director. Written permission of the owner of record or lessee must accompany the business license application.

(D) Be accompanied by a site plan clearly indicating the location of the fireworks stand. The site plan shall provide the address of the site, list the applicant name and fireworks contractor's name, and fully dimension the location of the fireworks stand pursuant to subsection 4-13-7(A) of this chapter.

(E) Be accompanied by an assurance that if the license is issued to the applicant, the applicant shall at the time of the receipt of said license provide a one million dollar ($1,000,000.00) public liability and a one million dollar ($1,000,000.00) property damage insurance certificate designating the city as the additional insured thereunder as follows: "The city of Taft, its officers, agents, volunteers, and employees as well as county of Kern".

(F) Include a statement that the applicant agrees to comply strictly with the terms of any permit granted to it and furnish any additional information upon request of the planning director. (Ord. 807-15, 1-20-2015)

(A) Granting of the opportunity to acquire a safe and sane fireworks license shall be selected by a lottery drawing, by the city council, each year from qualified applicants.

(B) Applicants for such license shall be notified of the granting or rejection as soon as practical after the second city council meeting in the month of April. (Ord. 807-15, 1-20-2015)

The following qualifications must be met by each applicant for a license hereunder:

(A) The organization must submit an organization application for safe and sane lottery drawing between March 1 and March 31, except when the last day falls on a Saturday or Sunday the following business day shall be determined to be the last day.

(B) The organizations applying for a business license pursuant to section 4-13-3 of this chapter shall have been selected as prescribed by section 4-13-4 of this chapter.

(C) No license shall be issued to any person except nonprofit associations or corporations organized primarily for veteran, patriotic, welfare, civic betterment or charitable purposes. An "organization" shall be defined for the purpose of this chapter to include any association and/or corporation and their affiliate or auxiliary organizations which were organized for the above prescribed purposes.

(D) Each organization must have its principal and predominant meeting place in the corporate limits of said city, must maintain a bona fide membership of at least twenty (20) members, and must have been organized and established within the city's corporate limits for a minimum of one year continuously preceding the filing of the request for lottery drawing application.

(E) No organization may receive more than one license for fireworks sales during any one calendar year. One license may be issued to two (2) or more qualifying applicants as a joint venture. The maximum number of licenses which may be issued pursuant to this section during any one calendar year shall not exceed four (4).

(F) If a primary organization has multiple auxiliary or affiliated organizations, the primary organization and one auxiliary or affiliate may submit an application for the lottery drawing prescribed by section 4-13-4 of this chapter. If one of these organizations is selected, the other will no longer be considered eligible for receipt of license that same year. (Ord. 807-15, 1-20-2015)

(A) No person other than the licensee organization shall operate the stand for which the license is issued or share or otherwise participate in the profits of the operation of such stand.

(B) No person under age eighteen (18) shall be permitted in a fireworks stand.

(C) No person other than the individuals who are members of the licensee organization, the wives, husbands, adult children or adult volunteers of such members, as long as they are covered by the licensee organization's liability insurance, shall sell or otherwise participate in the sale of fireworks at such stand.

(D) No person shall be paid any consideration for selling or otherwise participating in the sale of fireworks at such stand.

(E) No person shall sell or transfer any safe and sane fireworks to a person who is under sixteen (16) years of age from any fireworks stand. (Ord. 807-15, 1-20-2015)

All retail sales of "safe and sane" fireworks shall be permitted only from within a temporary fireworks stand and sales from any other building or structure is hereby prohibited. Temporary stands shall be subject to the following provisions:

(A) No fireworks stand shall be located within:

• 1. Three feet (3') of a property line.
• 2. Ten feet (10') of a curb line, alley, street or driveway.
• 3. Twenty five feet (25') of a watchman's accommodations and generators.
• 4. Fifty feet (50') of other buildings.
• 5. One hundred feet (100') of gasoline storage, gasoline pump, or repair garage.
• 6. Five hundred feet (500') of other fireworks stands.

(B) Fireworks stands need not comply with the provisions of the building code 1 of said city; provided, however, that all stands shall be erected so as to meet the approval of the city building inspector, who shall require that the stands be constructed in a manner that will reasonably ensure the safety of attendants and patrons.

(C) No stand shall have a floor area in excess of three hundred (300) square feet.

(D) Each stand must have at least two (2) exits; and each stand in excess of forty feet (40') in length must have at least three (3) exits spaced approximately equidistance apart; provided, however, that in no case shall the distance between the exits exceed twenty four feet (24').

(E) Each stand shall provide at least two (2) 2A rated, currently serviced, tagged extinguishers, readily accessible for use in the event of a fire. (Ord. 807-15, 1-20-2015)

(A) All weeds and combustible material shall be cleared from the location of the stand including a distance of at least twenty feet (20') surrounding the stand.

(B) "No Smoking" signs shall be placed on prominent display on the fireworks stand.

(C) Each stand must have an adult in attendance and in charge thereof while fireworks are stored therein. The permittee shall provide an adult night watchman to provide security during the hours of storage. Under no circumstances shall the night watchman sleep within the fireworks stand.

(D) Each stand shall have available at all times, a telephone for emergency purposes.

(E) All unsold stock and accompanying litter shall be removed from the location by five o'clock (5:00) P.M. on July 6.

(F) The fireworks stand shall be removed from the temporary location by twelve o'clock (12:00) noon on July 18, and all accompanying litter shall be cleared from said location by the said time and date.

(G) Prior to the issuance of a license, each applicant shall file with the city treasurer a cash deposit, a certificate of deposit or a surety bond made payable to the city in the amount of one hundred dollars ($100.00) to assure compliance with the provisions of this chapter. Such deposit or certificate shall be made refundable upon compliance with the provisions and requirements of this chapter including, but not limited to, the removal of the stand and cleaning of the site.

In the event that the licensee does not comply or remove the stand or clean the site in the manner required by the city building inspector the city may do so, or cause the same to be done by another person, and the reasonable cost thereof shall be charged against the licensee and his surety and the deposit certificate or bond.

(H) All required permits for auxiliary buildings or services shall be the responsibility of the individual applicant. (Ord. 807-15, 1-20-2015)

Organizations licensed for the selling of fireworks are required to obtain a temporary sales tax permit from the regional office of the state board of equalization. (Ord. 807-15, 1-20-2015)

License to sell fireworks and temporary sales tax permit shall be displayed in a prominent place in the fireworks stand. (Ord. 807-15, 1-20-2015)

City has right to deny, suspend, revoke license in accordance with process and procedures of section 4-2-9. (Ord. 852-23, 7-18-2023)

Persons violating this chapter shall be deemed guilty of a misdemeanor, unless the enforcing enforcement officer or the city attorney or his or her designed representative, determines it to be an infraction. The City's fine schedules pursuant to section 1-1-11 or 8-14-4 shall apply, as the case may be. (Ord. 807-15, 1-20-2015; amd. Ord. 852-23, 7-18-2023)