Franklin County, WA Business Licensing & Operations: Adult Entertainment (2026)
Key Facts
- Allowed zone
- Industrial (I-1) only
- Sensitive-use buffer
- 1,320 feet from schools, churches, parks, homes
- Buffer between SOBs
- 750 feet from another sexually oriented business
- License fees
- $500 application plus $500 annual
- Hours limit
- Closed 6 p.m. to 6 a.m. weekdays/Saturday
- Licensing agency
- Franklin County planner, with sheriff review
- Criminal penalty
- Up to $1,000 fine or 1 year jail
Summary
Franklin County confines sexually oriented businesses to the Industrial (I-1) zone and keeps them at least 1,320 feet from churches, schools, day cares, parks and residential areas, 750 feet from any other sexually oriented business, and licensed under Chapter 5.16 by the county planner for a $500 fee.
A.A person commits an offense if that person operates or causes to be operated a sexually oriented business in any zoning district other than the Industrial (I-1) zone described in the Franklin County Ordinance 2-99.B.A person commits an offense if the person operates or causes to be operated a sexually oriented business within one thousand three hundred twenty (1,320) feet of:1.A church; or2.A public or private school; or3.A public or private day care center, preschool, nursery, kindergarten, or similar use; or4.A boundary of a residential district as defined in this chapter; or5.A public park; or6.The property line of a lot devoted to a residential use as defined in this chapter; or7.An establishment having a Washington State liquor license with a bar, or beer and wine classification.
Full Breakdown
120(A) makes it an offense to operate a sexually oriented business in any zoning district other than the Industrial (I-1) zone under Franklin County Ordinance 2-99. Subsection (B) adds a 1,320-foot buffer measured in a straight line from a church, a public or private school, a day care, preschool, nursery or kindergarten, a residential district boundary, a public park, a residential lot line, or an establishment holding a Washington liquor license with a bar or beer-and-wine classification. Subsection (C) bars a new sexually oriented business from opening within 750 feet of an existing one, and subsection (D) bars stacking more than one inside the same building.
A business lawfully operating before the chapter took effect gets a one-year grace period under subsection (F) but cannot expand during that year. 040. 050 sets a $500 nonrefundable application and investigation fee plus a $500 annual license fee, while employees pay $50. on weekdays and Saturdays, except for adult motels. 090.
Violations & Fines
Violating Chapter 5.16, including the I-1 zoning confinement or the distance buffers, is a misdemeanor under Section 5.16.190 punishable by up to a $1,000 fine, up to a year in jail, or both, with each day of a continuing violation a separate offense. Section 5.16.200 also declares any violation a public nuisance per se, which the Franklin County prosecuting attorney can abate through a civil injunction on top of criminal prosecution.
Frequently Asked Questions
Where can a sexually oriented business legally operate in unincorporated Franklin County?
What does a sexually oriented business license cost in Franklin County?
What hours can these businesses stay open?
Sources & Official References
Other rules in Franklin County
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