Riverside County Approves 100,000 Dollar Public Awareness Campaign Targeting Illegal Fireworks

RIVERSIDE, California — The Riverside County Board of Supervisors voted unanimously on Tuesday to approve a 100000 dollar contract aimed at cracking down on the use of illegal fireworks ahead of the summer holiday season. In a swift five to zero vote without public comment, county supervisors finalized an agreement with Fountain Valley-based marketing firm 3 Olives Media LLC to spearhead a comprehensive public awareness campaign emphasizing the severe financial and criminal penalties associated with unpermitted pyrotechnics.

The upcoming educational blitz will deploy a combination of roadside digital billboards, newspaper advertisements, satellite and conventional radio spots, and targeted social media messaging to reach residents across the region. County administrators noted that 3 Olives Media LLC previously managed the county's public safety messaging campaigns during the 2023, 2024, and 2025 seasons, making them well-equipped to execute the specialized outreach. The primary objective of the initiative is to enhance neighborhood safety by lowering the risk of accidental structure fires and devastating vegetation blazes during peak dry conditions.

Public safety officials are utilizing the new marketing campaign to remind all residents that personal pyrotechnics, including items commonly perceived as benign such as sparklers, are entirely illegal throughout unincorporated areas of Riverside County. Under the rigorous guidelines of county Ordinance No. 858, enforcement teams do not issue warnings. Instead, personnel from the Department of Code Enforcement, the Riverside County Sheriff's Department, and Cal Fire law enforcement are authorized to issue immediate civil citations.

The financial consequences for violating the local ordinance are steep, with civil fines ranging from 1000 dollars to 5000 dollars per infraction. The specific penalty amount depends directly on the number of previous violations recorded against an individual within a rolling 36-month window. Furthermore, structural amendments implemented to strengthen the ordinance hold property owners legally and financially liable if they knowingly permit guests or tenants to detonate illegal explosives on their premises. Beyond the initial civil citations, officials warned that anyone responsible for sparking a wildland fire can be criminally charged and held legally accountable for all subsequent emergency suppression costs.

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