Could summer heat lead to changes to the California State Fair schedule?

Carnival atmosphere during Jessica Simpson’s performance at the California State Fair at Cal Expo on August 25, 2008 in Sacramento, California. (Photo by Tim Mosenfelder/Getty Images)

(FOX40.COM) — The California State Fair experienced record-breaking heat this summer, leading to debate over why the annual event takes place during the hottest time of year in Sacramento.

The summer of 2024 has been hot for Sacramento. The first weekend of the fair was under an extreme heat warning. In addition, the city has already surpassed last year’s number of days with temperatures above 100 degrees Fahrenheit.

“They do a great job with fans for the cattle and they’ve started doing it for the public as well, you walk around and they have misters,” said FFA State Advisor Charles Parker. “Of course, on hot days, attendance has an impact. Attendance has gone down and when we had mild summers, attendance at the state fair was always higher.”

The California State Fair is a summer tradition in Sacramento, held in mid-July since 2010. The fair used to start in mid-August and end over Labor Day weekend, but has been moved to earlier dates because schools started classes earlier.

Due to the warm weather during recent state fairs, there has been talk of moving the fair’s start time. But that’s not as easy as most people think.

“It’s a three-year process at least, so we have to evaluate everything in terms of other fair schedules and our schedule,” California State Fair spokesperson Darla Givens told FOX40.com. “Horse racing plays a big role in that, as do our food vendors, carnival vendors, commercial vendors, and taking into account the part-time staff that we hire during the summer months.”

Givens added that there is currently no proposal from state fair staff to move the state fair dates, but it is “not off the table” as research is needed before a decision is made.

“There’s just a lot of work to do before and after an actual decision about when that happens,” Givens said. “It’s so much bigger than just yes or no. It’s a bigger picture. It’s a little more complex.”