Do I Need a Permit to Remove a Tree in Redding, CA?

The actual ordinance: RMC Chapter 18.45, not 18.65

A word of caution first: several sources floating around online (including an earlier draft of our own research) cite "Chapter 18.65" and a "native oak" trigger for Redding's tree permit rule. That's wrong. The real ordinance is Chapter 18.45, "Tree Management," of the Redding Municipal Code (Title 18, Division IV), enacted by Ordinance 2369 in 2006 and, per the City's own 2024 Comprehensive Tree Plan handout, originally adopted back in 1990. We read the primary text directly on the City's Municipal Code host (library.municode.com) to confirm this. "Native oak" doesn't appear anywhere in the chapter — oaks come up through the separate "candidate tree" definition used in development review, not through a species-specific homeowner permit trigger.

§18.45.030 is the rule itself: "No tree, regardless of species, that exceeds 6 inches dbh on any developed or undeveloped/vacant property in the city shall be destroyed, killed, or removed unless a tree removal permit is first obtained," except where the exemptions below apply. (Clearing more than one acre needs a separate clearing permit under Chapter 16.12 — a different process, for larger projects.)

DBH (diameter at breast height, defined in Chapter 18.61) is measured 4½ feet above the ground. If you only have a tape measure, circumference divided by 3.142 gets you the diameter.

The exemptions that actually matter to a homeowner

Section 18.45.040 lists several exemptions. Two are the ones nearly every residential call comes down to:

• §18.45.040.B.3 — the "ordinary house" exemption. "Developed residential properties which have been developed to the maximum density allowed by the zoning of the property" are exempt — provided the tree isn't on the Landmark and Heritage Tree Plan (Chapter 13.40) and wasn't required to be preserved as a condition of a development approval. In plain terms: a normal single-family house on a lot that can't be subdivided further is generally exempt. A large lot zoned for more units than it has, or a vacant/undeveloped parcel, is not automatically exempt — §18.45.040.B.4 only exempts an undeveloped residential lot under one acre once a building permit for the principal building has already issued.

• §18.45.040.G — the hazard exemption. Removal of a tree "a qualified professional has determined to be unhealthy or, because of its characteristics, a danger to life or property" is exempt — but the qualified professional's opinion has to be made available to the director before removal, not filed afterward as justification. "Qualified professional" means a Registered Professional Forester, an ISA Certified Arborist (Western Chapter), or a qualifying biologist approved by the City.

Two narrower exemptions round out the list: §18.45.040.A, an immediate-hazard order from the city manager, city engineer, Development Services director, Community Services director, or police/fire; and §18.45.040.C, utility right-of-way vegetation work performed by a public utility. Street trees (§18.45.040.F) go through the Recreation & Parks Commission under Chapter 13.40 instead of this permit.

How to apply, if you're not exempt

1. Check the exemptions first. Before applying, confirm you actually need to: a fully built single-family lot (§18.45.040.B.3), a hazard tree with a qualified professional's letter (§18.45.040.G), and a few other narrow exemptions cover most homeowner situations.

2. Call the Planning Division. Development Services Planning Division, 777 Cypress Ave, Redding CA 96001, 530-225-4022. Confirm whether your specific tree and lot need a permit and what the current fee is.

3. Gather the required information. The application must list the number, species, size, and location of each tree, the structures on the property, the reason for removal, and the property owner's signature.

4. Submit to Development Services. File the application with the Development Services director. If the tree is being removed on a hazard basis, attach the qualified professional's written opinion now — it must be on file before removal, not after.

5. Site inspection. The director inspects the site before issuing the permit and may require replanting proportionate to the tree being removed.

6. Get your permit and note the deadline. A permit is valid for six months, with one six-month extension available. Removing the tree without a valid permit exposes you to the penalties in §18.45.100.

What happens if you skip the permit

§18.45.100 sets the penalty for removing a protected tree without a permit: a fine of up to $2,000 per tree, and/or a requirement to plant and maintain replacement trees for three years, and/or a development moratorium on the parcel of up to two years. If the removal happened on an already-developed parcel, the code allows curing it after the fact by applying for the permit and paying twice the normal application fee. A permit itself, once issued, is valid for six months with one six-month extension (§18.45.060).

This is a City ordinance — check which government actually covers your address

Chapter 18.45 applies inside Redding city limits only. If your property is in unincorporated Shasta County, building permits run through the County's own Building Division and its "BUILD SHASTA" portal, not the City's EnerGov system — and we haven't researched whether the County has a separate tree-removal ordinance of its own outside its defensible-space and CAL FIRE rules, so don't assume "no City ordinance" means "no rule at all." Anderson and Shasta Lake are separate incorporated cities with their own codes and their own business-license systems, unrelated to Redding's. See our service area page for the jurisdiction breakdown, or call Shasta County's Building Division directly for a county address.

A note on the hazard exemption and emergencies

If a tree is actually down on your house right now, don't let the permit question slow you down — the immediate-hazard and qualified-professional exemptions exist for exactly this. Get the tree off safely first (see our emergency tree removal guide), keep the photos and any written arborist opinion, and sort out paperwork after. For a tree that's clearly dying or dangerous but not an active emergency, our warning signs guide can help you decide how urgently to act — and whether a qualified professional's letter is worth getting before you call a removal crew.

One more thing worth knowing

A citizen advisory committee proposed a rewrite of this ordinance in 2023 — a draft aimed at a candidate-tree/ native-oak mitigation framework was completed in early 2025, but as of our last check it hadn't been released or scheduled for a council hearing. The 2006 text above is the current law as of September 2026. If you're reading this well after that date, it's worth confirming nothing has changed.