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Do you need a permit to remove a tree in Roseville?

Roseville's Tree Preservation chapter (Roseville Municipal Code ch. 19.66 (Tree Preservation)) is a native oak ordinance: it protects valley, blue, and interior live oaks, and regulates both removal and work around them. It also contains exemptions that matter a lot to homeowners — including one for oaks on lots already developed with a single-family or two-family home. Here's what the code says.

Which trees are protected in Roseville?

• Native oak tree: any valley oak (Quercus lobata), blue oak (Q. douglasii), interior live oak (Q. wislizenii), or hybrids of them.
• Protected tree: a native oak 6 inches or more in diameter at breast height (DBH), measured as the total of a single trunk or multiple trunks. DBH is measured 4.5 feet above ground on the high side of the tree (DBH = circumference ÷ 3.142).
• Coast live oak is not on the list. Roseville's definition names only valley, blue, and interior live oak (and their hybrids). A 2021 Roseville Planning Commission staff report noted coast live oaks on a site were not treated as native and so weren't subject to the ordinance. Other non-oak trees aren't covered by chapter 19.66 either — but check with the city if a tree is on public land, in a landscape corridor, or tied to a development approval.

The protected zone is a circle with a radius equal to the tree's longest dripline radius plus one foot. "Regulated activities" are activities within the protected zone — such as cutting, grading, irrigating, and trenching — that would adversely affect the oak's health. Routine maintenance (like deadwooding) done by or under the direct supervision of an ISA Certified Arborist is not a regulated activity.

When a permit is required

Under § 19.66.030, no one may conduct regulated activities in a protected tree's protected zone, or harm, destroy, kill, or remove a protected tree, without a Tree Permit or an exemption. There are two kinds of permit:

• Administrative Tree Permit: for regulated activity not associated with a discretionary project, not involving removal, and encroaching no more than 20% of any single tree's protected zone.
• Tree Permit: for encroachment over 20% of the protected zone, any regulated activity tied to a discretionary project, and the removal of any protected tree (unless exempt).

Exemptions for removal

Section 19.66.030(C) says a Tree Permit is not required to remove a protected tree in these circumstances:

1. Trees damaged by a storm, flood, earthquake, fire, or other natural cause and determined by a peace officer, firefighter, public utility official, civil defense official, or City code enforcement officer to present a danger to persons or property.
2. Removal found necessary by firefighters actively fighting a fire.
3. When compliance would interfere with a public utility's required safety work or service repairs (the Planning Manager must generally be notified first).
4. Dead trees: the Planning Manager may allow removal of a tree certified by an arborist to be dead, with no replacement or mitigation required.
5. Single-family and two-family lots: "A protected tree located on property developed with a single-family or two-family dwelling which has been granted occupancy."
6. Hazard trees: a living protected tree that presents a hazard to health and safety or structures due to its structural condition and location may be removed without replacement or mitigation — but an arborist must determine the hazard, and the Planning Manager must review that determination before approving removal.

What the single-family exemption does and doesn't cover: the exemption is written for removal. The permit requirement for other regulated activities in the protected zone (such as trenching, grading, or major root cutting for a pool or addition) is separate, and properties still under construction or tied to a discretionary project aren't "developed … and granted occupancy." Older approvals can also carry their own conditions. Before you rely on the exemption, confirm with the Roseville Planning Division — especially if your home is new, the lot is not a single- or two-family home, or the tree is partly on public land.

Applying for a Roseville Tree Permit

Under § 19.66.040, permits not tied to a discretionary project are filed with the Planning Division on city forms, with an arborist's report, a site plan, and any application fee set by City Council (check the city for the current amount; the site plan may be waived for dead or hazardous trees). Forms and checklists are on the Roseville Development Services – Applications, Forms & Handouts page. Section 19.66.050 says the arborist's report must identify each protected tree by number with its botanical and common names, location, DBH, dripline radius, condition rating, and recommendations. An approved Tree Permit is valid for six months, with one extension of up to six more months possible.

Replacement: under § 19.66.070, the city may require inch-for-inch replacement of the removed tree's DBH — a 15-gallon tree counts as 1 inch, a 24-inch box as 2 inches, and a 36-inch box as 3 inches — with at least half met with native oaks, or other options such as relocation, revegetation, or an in-lieu fee.

Penalties: violations can be charged as a misdemeanor or infraction, and the Planning Commission can require remediation or restitution for damaged or removed oaks (§ 19.66.080).

Working near roots and power lines

• Where work in a protected zone is permitted, the code's standard procedures say roots under 1 inch may be cut cleanly, but roots over 1 inch may not be cut without an arborist's approval, and trenching should be done with hand tools or as an arborist directs (§ 19.66.060).
• Branch near an overhead line? Roseville Electric Utility – Utility clearance asks residents not to trim it themselves and to call the utility. See Tree near power lines.

Practical checklist for Roseville homeowners

1. Confirm the species: valley, blue, or interior live oak (or hybrid)? Measure DBH at 4.5 ft.
2. Check whether an exemption fits (dead tree certified by an arborist, hazard tree reviewed by the city, or an existing single- or two-family home with occupancy) and confirm with the Planning Division.
3. If a permit is needed, hire an ISA Certified Arborist (ISA's Find an Arborist directory) for the report and expect replacement conditions.
4. Hire a licensed contractor (C-49 Tree and Palm Contractor) and verify at cslb.ca.gov; per the CSLB bulletin on the $1,000 minor-work limit, unlicensed persons can't take jobs of $1,000+ or jobs that need a permit.

For typical prices, see tree removal cost in Roseville.

Related guides

• Folsom tree removal permits
• Elk Grove tree removal permits
• Oak tree removal rules
• Trees near power lines
• Dead or hazardous trees

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