Sign Regulations in Hawthorne, CA (2026)
5 verified sign regulations for Hawthorne, California, sourced directly from the municipal code and official government pages.
Verified from official government sources
Political Signs
Hawthorne Municipal Code § 9.62.040 makes it a misdemeanor to take, confiscate, damage, deface or otherwise remove someone else's political or campaign sign, banner or the like without the owner's permission, or to direct anyone else to do so. Adopted by Ordinance 2254 in October 2024, the law protects candidate and ballot-measure signage from theft and vandalism rather than regulating where such signs may be placed.
Hawthorne Bans Removing Political Campaign Signs
Some RestrictionsHawthorne Code § 9.62.040
A. Any person who unlawfully takes, confiscates, possesses, moves, damages, defaces or uses political or campaign signs, banners, and the like, or directs any other person to do any of the foregoing, without the permission of the owner, is guilty of a misdemeanor. B. The prohibition in subsection A does not apply to law enforcement officers, local government officials, or an authorized represen...
Garage Sale Signs
Hawthorne bans garage-sale signs in the public right-of-way outright and limits private-property signage to one double-face sign no larger than five square feet per face, displayed only while the sale permit is active, under HMC § 5.46.040.
Hawthorne Garage Sale Sign Size Limit
Some RestrictionsHawthorne Code § 5.46.040
Signs. No signs or devices used in connection therewith shall be placed on or in any public right-of-way. Placement. No signs or devices advertising the sale shall be placed on any private property, except one double-face sign not to exceed five square feet in area (24? x 30?) on each face may be displayed at the site of the sale during the period of time that the garage sale permit is in force...
Digital Billboards
Hawthorne Municipal Code Chapter 12.38 caps every digital sign face on the city's own municipal message center network at 7,500 nits and limits the network to no more than six locations, each needing city council approval. The same chapter freezes new private billboards near the 105 and 405 freeways and bars any message center from residential-zoned property.
Hawthorne Digital Billboard Brightness and Siting Rules
Significant RestrictionsHawthorne Code § 12.38.030
A. The municipal message center network shall be comprised of up to six municipal message centers. The location of each municipal message center shall be subject to the final approval of the city council. [...] C. No municipal message center shall be located on any property zoned primarily for residential purposes, including, but not limited to: R-1, R-2, R-3 and R-4 zoning. [...] H. The bright...
Window Signs
Hawthorne caps permanent window signs at 25% of window area and limits temporary window signs to the smallest of 25% of window area, 200 square feet per wall segment, or one square foot per lineal foot of window, capped at 30 display-days per year.
Hawthorne Window Sign Area Limits
Some RestrictionsHawthorne Code § 17.35.110(G); § 17.35.240(N)
Permanent Window Signs. The cumulative total area for permanent window signs displayed for a business shall not exceed twenty-five percent of the area of the window on which the signs are displayed. ... Temporary Window Signs. There shall be no maximum number of permits issued for temporary window signs, although each twenty-five square feet of sign area, or fraction thereof, of temporary windo...
Freeway-Facing Signs
New or relocated billboards facing Hawthorne's freeways are confined to the Freeway Overlay Zone under Chapter 17.88, and none can go up until the operator negotiates a signed agreement with the city and secures a permit; new signs are barred outright from any area designated a landscaped freeway.
Hawthorne Freeway Overlay Zone Billboard Rules
Significant RestrictionsHawthorne Code § 17.88.030
The requirements of this chapter shall apply to any project involving installation or construction of a new or relocated billboard... Billboards shall be permitted in the freeway overlay zone only after an agreement has been negotiated and executed between the billboard operator and city and a permit has been issued in accordance with the terms of this chapter. ... In accordance with California...
Looking for Los Angeles County county-wide rules?
County ordinances apply to unincorporated areas and may supplement Hawthorne city rules.
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