Who inspects commercial kitchens in Sonoma County?

Sonoma County Environmental Health & Safety, Consumer Protection Program is the food safety authority for Sonoma County. Reach them at (707) 565-6565. California Retail Food Code provides the statutory base; the agency conducts inspections, scores them per local methodology, and posts results to the public.

How are inspection results communicated in Sonoma County?

Sonoma County Environmental Health & Safety, Consumer Protection Program documents inspections per color placard methodology. Results are available to the public through the agency's published portals.

Who enforces fire and hood-cleaning rules in Sonoma County?

In Sonoma County, fire code authority rests with Permit Sonoma Fire Prevention and Hazardous Materials Division. Enforcement covers the 2025 California Fire Code and NFPA 96 (2021 edition) for commercial kitchen exhaust. Hood cleaning default frequency: quarterly.

What fire code edition applies in Sonoma County?

The 2025 California Fire Code is the adopted edition. NFPA 96 (2021) governs commercial kitchen exhaust systems. Ask Permit Sonoma Fire Prevention and Hazardous Materials Division whether Sonoma County has adopted local amendments to the 2025 California Fire Code.

California Health Department

Sonoma County commercial kitchen compliance

Sonoma County Environmental Health & Safety, Consumer Protection Program is the authority. Here's the methodology, the thresholds, and the fire code overlay.

Authority chain

Sonoma County → Sonoma County Environmental Health & Safety, Consumer Protection Program → California Retail Food Code

Inspection cadence and methodology in Sonoma County track the state framework with local agency-specific implementation. The health department oversees approximately 3,950 permitted food facilities. Santa Rosa Fire: (707) 543-3500. CAL FIRE Sonoma-Lake-Napa Unit for unincorporated areas. City of Santa Rosa Fire Department, Petaluma Fire, Rohnert Park Department of Public Safety are separate city authorities having jurisdiction.

Standard 01

Food Safety

Authority

Sonoma County Environmental Health & Safety, Consumer Protection Program

Phone: (707) 565-6565
Website: sonomacounty.gov/health-and-human-services/health-services/divisions/public-health/environmental-health/programs-and-services/food-safety-program/food-facility-inspections
Scoring type: Major Violation Count
Grading type: Color Placard
Permitted facilities: ~3,950
Office: 463 Aviation Blvd, Santa Rosa, California 95403

Methodology

Sonoma County (California) operates a Green/Yellow/Red color-coded placard program enforced under the California Retail Food Code and Sonoma County Code Chapter 14 by Sonoma County Environmental Health & Safety (Consumer Protection Program, within the Department of Health Services Public Health Division). The program is operational since July 1, 2015. Placard determination is driven by the count of major violations observed during inspection. Green Placard = PASS ("An acceptable level of compliance was achieved. No more than one major violation was observed and corrected at the time of inspection."). Yellow Placard = CONDITIONAL PASS ("Two or more major violations were observed and corrected at time of inspection."). Red Placard = CLOSED (facility closure). Sonoma County does not publish a public-facing numeric score; placard color is the sole public display. Placards must be posted in the front window within 5 feet of the front door, in a display case mounted on the outside front wall within 5 feet, or at another approved location. Inspection reports use Sonoma County Food Facility Official Inspection Report Form A — 48 numbered violation categories cross-referenced to Health & Safety Code sections with per-item status codes IN / N/O / N/A / Major / Minor / corrected onsite. All food facilities are inspected at least once per year, with extensive-preparation and moderate-preparation categories inspected approximately twice per year. New food facility permits trigger initial inspection within 30 days. Approximately 3,950 retail food facilities are permitted countywide.

Inspection results published by the agency are mirrored at Sonoma County on ScoreTable.

Primary source

https://sonomacounty.gov/health-and-human-services/health-services/divisions/public-health/environmental-health/programs-and-services/food-safety-program/food-facility-inspections

Last verified by JIE: May 21, 2026

Published inspection data for Sonoma County is mirrored on ScoreTable, direct from the agency.

Health department detail

What makes Sonoma County distinct

Standard 02

Fire Safety

Authority having jurisdiction

In Sonoma County, fire code authority rests with Permit Sonoma Fire Prevention and Hazardous Materials Division.

Phone: (707) 565-1152
Website: sonomacounty.ca.gov/fire
Fire code edition: 2025 California Fire Code
NFPA 96 edition: 2021
Hood cleaning default: Quarterly
Permit type: Operational Fire Permit — annual renewal, pass/fail

Hood cleaning frequencies

Frequencies enforced by Permit Sonoma Fire Prevention and Hazardous Materials Division per NFPA 96 (2021).

Cooking volume / type	Frequency
Solid-fuel cooking	Monthly
High-volume / 24-hour / charbroil / wok	Quarterly
Moderate-volume	Semiannually
Low-volume / seasonal / place of worship	Annually

Hood cleaning enforcement

MODERATE

Reference

Frequently asked

Who inspects commercial kitchens in Sonoma County?: Sonoma County Environmental Health & Safety, Consumer Protection Program is the food safety authority for Sonoma County. Reach them at (707) 565-6565. California Retail Food Code provides the statutory base; the agency conducts inspections, scores them per local methodology, and posts results to the public.
How are inspection results communicated in Sonoma County?: Sonoma County Environmental Health & Safety, Consumer Protection Program documents inspections per color placard methodology. Results are available to the public through the agency's published portals.
Who enforces fire and hood-cleaning rules in Sonoma County?: In Sonoma County, fire code authority rests with Permit Sonoma Fire Prevention and Hazardous Materials Division. Enforcement covers the 2025 California Fire Code and NFPA 96 (2021 edition) for commercial kitchen exhaust. Hood cleaning default frequency: quarterly.
What fire code edition applies in Sonoma County?: The 2025 California Fire Code is the adopted edition. NFPA 96 (2021) governs commercial kitchen exhaust systems. Ask Permit Sonoma Fire Prevention and Hazardous Materials Division whether Sonoma County has adopted local amendments to the 2025 California Fire Code.
Where can I verify Sonoma County inspection records?: Primary source: https://sonomacounty.gov/health-and-human-services/health-services/divisions/public-health/environmental-health/programs-and-services/food-safety-program/food-facility-inspections. EvidLY ScoreTable mirrors the latest health-department-published results at https://www.getevidly.com/scoretable/california/sonoma.

Related coverage

What to do with this data

EvidLY

Predict the failure. Reduce the cost. Prove the work.

EvidLY reads the regulations for Sonoma County, identifies what's about to slip, and documents what got done — before an inspector or insurer asks.

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ScoreTable

Sonoma County inspection data — direct from the agency.

Real inspection results for Sonoma County, mirrored from the health department's own published portals. No aggregation, no conversion.

View Sonoma County on ScoreTable

FTC disclosure: Stovio Advisors is a Cleaning Pros Plus, LLC company. Cleaning Pros Plus, HoodOps, and EvidLY (with ScoreTable) are commonly owned. Links to these sister brands are editorial references, not paid placements, and do not influence coverage. Vendor Network placements are paid and labeled as such; they do not influence editorial coverage.

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