Internal Operations Division

Law Enforcement personnel respond to thousands of false alarm calls yearly. These unnecessary responses result in an enormous burden in manpower and expense; which in turn reduces the time available to respond to real emergencies.

Visit the Santa Barbara Police Prevention and Administration Site for more information.

Our hours of operation and contact number are:

Monday - Friday
8:00 AM to 5:00 PM
805-963-1513 - Non-Emergency Only

For emergencies - after hours, call the Santa Barbara Police Department Dispatch Center at 805-882-8900

Animal Control Supervisor: Sgt. A. Montojo, 805-897-2332

For animal control issues outside of the City limit, contact the Santa Barbara County Animal Shelter at 805-681-5285. They are located at 5473 Overpass Road (next door to Humane Society).

View City Animal Control for more details.

Crime Analysis is defined as a set of systematic, analytical processes directed at providing timely and pertinent information relative to crime patterns and trend correlations to assist operational and administrative personnel in planning the deployment of resources for the prevention and suppression of criminal activities, aiding the investigative process, and increasing apprehensions and the clearance of cases.

The Crime Analysis Unit produces crime summaries, crime profiles, beat statistics, neighborhood statistics, bulletins for wanted persons, crime trend reports and many other informational reports.

The Crime Analysis Unit also enforces the alarm ordinance. All alarms require a city permit. Owners, whose alarms have an excessive amount of false alarms, are billed for each police response.

Click here for the Crime Activity Reports page.

WHICH BUSINESSES ARE REGULATED?

Off-Sale. The City’s alcoholic beverage regulations apply to both new and existing retail business with a Type 20 or Type 21 Alcoholic Beverage Control (ABC) License that conduct retail sales of beer, wine, and distilled spirits for consumption off the premises. Typical uses include liquor stores, beer and wine stores, convenience markets, mini-markets/service stations, supermarket, neighborhood markets, and retail sales establishments.

On-Sale. The City’s alcoholic beverage regulations do not apply to on-sale alcohol establishments such as a restaurant, bar, or alcohol beverage manufacturers such as a winery, brewery or microbrewery that sells alcohol for off-site consumption.

WHAT RULES APPLY?

Businesses legally existing prior to the effective date of the City’s ordinance (November 5, 2021) are considered nonconforming (grandfathered) and may be continued, repaired, and maintained, subject to the operational requirements listed below. The right to continue may be revoked or revised; and if revoked, a Conditional Use Permit is needed in order to continue the sale of alcohol.

Operational Requirements Applicable to Existing Establishments:

1. The establishment cannot create a public nuisance

2. The use cannot be discontinued (use ceases for 12 consecutive months or ceases to be licensed by the California Department of Alcoholic Beverage Control – ABC)

3. The establishment cannot violate the Municipal Code or other applicable laws or regulations

4. Substantial modifications to the mode or character of operation cannot take place including, but not limited to:

• A change in activity so that ABC requires a different type of license.

• An increase in floor area or shelf space devoted to the display of alcoholic beverages

• Extending the hours of operation

• A change in ownership or transfer of an ABC license, which includes new owners or licensees added to the establishment.

• Changes to the conditions provided under an existing Conditional Use Permit

• Changes from the License Applications submitted to the ABC

Contact Information:

For complaints or questions regarding a retail establishment, please contact Santa Barbara Police Department Deemed Approved Coordinator:

Phone: 805-897-3747

Email: deemedapproved@sbpd.com

For billing questions regarding your retail establishment, please contact Santa Barbara Police Department Deemed Approved Coordinator:

Phone: 805-897-3747

Email: deemedapproved@sbpd.com

To apply for a new Conditional Use Permit or for planning-related questions, please contact City of Santa Barbara Community Development Department, Planning Division:

Phone: (805) 564-5578

Email: PlanningCounter@SantaBarbaraCA.gov

Police Department Information Technology Mission Statement

I.T. takes pride in providing excellent customer service by leveraging technology that is in line with our core business functions and delivers highly available mission critical systems that aid first responders to protect and serve the community of Santa Barbara and the neighboring cities within Santa Barbara County.

Special Event Permitting is handled by the Parks and Recreation Department, questions regarding permits can be answered by calling Sarah Knowles, 805-897-1926. 

Special Event Permits are required for any event that infringes upon the public right of way or is likely to disrupt the normal flow of vehicular or pedestrian traffic. Section 15.17.010 of the Municipal Code requires a person seeking issuance of a Special Event Permit to file an application.  Please visit the City of Santa Barbara permitting process page for more information: Santa Barbara - Permitting Process (santabarbaraca.gov). 

Special Events are extraordinary events that impact the City and Department beyond regular day-to-day operations. Some Special Events are planned (e.g. filming productions, parades, athletic events, festivals, etc.), some recur each year (e.g. Fiesta, Summer Solstice, 4th of July celebrations, Santa Barbara County Bowl Concerts, etc.), and some are unplanned (political and religious demonstrations, disasters, etc.). Department staff review special events to determine if police officers outside the regularly scheduled police officer deployment should be assigned to protect public safety or perform traffic control. These are extra-duty assignments compensated at an overtime rate. There are Special Events which may not require dedicated extra-duty officers but the organizer requests them. Staff evaluates those requests to determine if they serve the City's interests and may assign officers.

Overtime salaries for Special Events are paid out of the Department's allocated funds. In most cases of planned Special Events, the organizer is billed for the overtime costs. For most unplanned (and a few planned) events the Department absorbs the overtime costs from its existing overtime budget. 

Events Featuring Alcohol
Events featuring alcohol may require a Daily License from the California Alcohol Beverage and Control Agency, (ABC).  Please refer to the ABC website for requirements, instructions and forms.  The local ABC office currently requires at least 10 business days to process requests for permits.  Submit your ABC-221 form to the local ABC office; do not submit this form to the Santa Barbara Police Department.

The ABC may require that applications receive an endorsement from the law enforcement agency under whose jurisdiction the event takes place.  In order to obtain a letter of endorsement from the Santa Barbara Police Department, a SBPD Special Event Endorsement Application (see below) must be completed and submitted. Download the Endorsement Application and submit it to the Santa Barbara Police Department.

The Santa Barbara Police Department requires a $40.00 processing fee for each Endorsement Application.  Payment may be submitted with the application, or the applicant may be invoiced.  Request for Endorsement letters are normally completed within 5 business days.

Police Officer Requests
Events may contract with the Santa Barbara Police Department for officers to supplement private security and event staff at events. Officers may be contracted for on an overtime basis to handle law enforcement related matters only and should not be looked upon to provide services best handled by private security. Persons wishing to contract for officers need to complete and submit a Santa Barbara Police Department Officer Request Form.

You may download an Officer Request Form below:

This section is responsible for the hiring of new Police Officers, Lateral Police Officers, Reserve Police Officers, Records Clerks, Professional Staff, Parking Enforcement Officers, and Dispatchers. The Training and Recruitment Section also responsible for the background investigations on all personnel employed by the Police Department.

Additionally, we are responsible for all mandated training, whether it be POST, City, State, or Federal that is necessary to ensure that the Santa Barbara Police Department is in compliance with legal requirements. 

See our Employment page for additional information, or call the SBPD Recruitment Hotline at 805-897-2450, or email hometeam@sbpd.com with direct questions.