Marion County, OR Ordinances (2026)

Marion County does not license cats or set an at-large rule for them the way it does for dogs. Cats fall under the zoning 'pet' definition, but keeping four or more cats over four…

Marion County does not ban any dog breed. Regulation is behavior-based: state law ORS 609.098 makes it a crime to maintain a 'dangerous dog,' defined by what a dog does, inflicting…

In Marion County, animals raised for food, fur or monetary gain are livestock and a farm use. Farm use is allowed in the rural farm and forest zones (EFU, SA, FT, TC) and the Acreage…

Marion County's Rural Zone Code prohibits beekeeping in the Single Family Residential (RS) zone. Keeping honeybees is treated as a farm use, allowed in the rural farm and forest zones…

In Marion County's Rural Zone Code, a conditional use permit is required in the RS and AR zones if there are more than 10 mammals over four months old. Keeping four or more dogs, cats…

Marion County prohibits dogs from running at large. A dog off the keeper's property and not under immediate control, restraint or command is 'at large.' It is a civil infraction under…

Oregon bars new exotic-animal ownership. Under ORS 609.341 you may not keep an exotic animal without a valid State Department of Agriculture permit issued before January 1, 2010. ORS…

In Marion County, an attached garage converted to living space is treated as part of the dwelling and must meet the same zoning and building-code standards. A detached garage turned…

A carport is a residential accessory structure in Marion County. Its peak height is nine feet at the lot line, increasing with setback to 35 feet, and it counts toward the 25 percent…

Oregon law requires Marion County and its cities to allow at least one accessory dwelling unit (ADU) for each detached single-family home in urban-growth-boundary residential zones…

Marion County has no tiny-home-specific ordinance. A permanent tiny house on a foundation is regulated as a dwelling or accessory dwelling unit under state law and county zoning; a…

Salem's development code requires exterior lighting not to shine or reflect onto adjacent properties or cast glare onto the right-of-way. Fixtures must be shielded from direct view, or…

Salem's code states exterior lighting shall not shine or reflect onto adjacent properties or cast glare onto the right-of-way. Where no local standard applies, a neighbor's severe…

Inside the Salem-Keizer UGB, industrial sources may not exceed 70 dBA day / 65 dBA night at commercial or industrial receivers, and only 55 dBA at noise-sensitive homes. Impulse sound…

Idling an engine over ten consecutive minutes so it's plainly audible in a dwelling at night is unlawful in Salem. Dynamic (jake) braking is banned except to avoid danger, and loud…

Marion County's noise ordinance protects nighttime quiet between 10:00 p.m. and 7:00 a.m. Sound that is plainly audible inside a neighbor's dwelling during those hours is unlawful in…

Salem sets a clear standard: it is unlawful to keep any dog that barks, cries or makes other sound on a frequent, repetitive or continuous basis for ten minutes or longer. Marion…

In Salem it is unlawful to construct, demolish, alter, excavate or repair buildings, streets or utility lines between 10:00 p.m. and 7:00 a.m. Marion County exempts daytime commercial…

Leaf blowers count as 'domestic power equipment.' In Salem it is unlawful to run them between 10:00 p.m. and 7:00 a.m. Marion County likewise bars domestic power tools that are plainly…

In Salem, amplified sound audible 150 feet or more from the device on public property or a right-of-way is unlawful without written government authorization. Outdoor events may need a…

Marion County's noise ordinance does not regulate aircraft. MCC 8.45.080(K) exempts sounds regulated by federal and state law, including railroads and aircraft, so complaints go to the…

Unincorporated Marion County requires no permit to remove a private tree. Inside the City of Salem, protected trees and native vegetation may not be removed without a tree and…

Marion County requires no permit to trim trees on your own property, but vegetation that blocks the view of a public right-of-way is a traffic-hazard nuisance you must cut back. In…

Marion County itself sets no residential watering schedule. In Salem, the Public Works Director may curtail water use whenever a supply shortage or emergency threatens delivery, and…

Marion County does not require any particular plants and does not ban native or xeric landscaping. Ornamental landscape grasses that are not a fire or traffic hazard are expressly…

Within the unincorporated Salem-Keizer urban growth boundary, Marion County Code 8.15 defines nuisance vegetation as weeds and grasses more than 10 inches tall, dead or dying…

Oregon law lets you collect rain and snowmelt from a rooftop or other artificial impervious surface without a water right. Marion County has no ordinance banning rain barrels; large…

Along a public right-of-way, Marion County measures fence height from the sidewalk, or the curb, or the finished shoulder grade if neither exists. All other fences are measured from…

Marion County's zoning code exempts fences from the minimum yard-setback requirements, so a conforming fence needs no land-use permit. Under Oregon's building code a structural…

Marion County allows any ordinary fencing material, wood, vinyl, chain link, masonry, so long as it is not hazardous. Barbed and electric wire are permitted only as stock or wildlife…

Marion County sets no boundary-fence cost-sharing rule. Oregon's statewide partition-fence law (ORS 96.010) governs: a neighbor who encloses their land against your line fence must pay…

In rural Marion County you may burn your own yard debris only on DEQ burn days, and local fire districts close backyard burning entirely during summer. Marion County Fire District #1…

Oregon is restrictive. Legal retail fireworks may not fly into the air, explode, or travel far. Bottle rockets, Roman candles, and firecrackers are illegal statewide, even in…

Outdoor debris burning is banned inside the Salem/Keizer Urban Growth Boundary and in burn barrels. Elsewhere you may burn only your own yard debris on DEQ-authorized burn days with a…

Oregon law, not a Marion County ordinance, sets smoke-alarm rules. Landlords must supply, install, and maintain working smoke alarms, and homes cannot be sold or rented without…

On unincorporated Marion County roads no vehicle may be parked for three consecutive days or longer. Within cities like Salem, streets follow municipal code plus adopted Oregon Vehicle…

Marion County treats trucks over 25 feet long, over 8.5 feet wide, or over the axle weight table as "large vehicles" that cannot park within 200 feet of an intersection, near homes at…

You may cross a curb, sidewalk, or planting strip only at an authorized driveway, and you are liable for any damage you cause. Salem also bans parking within the landscape strip. New…

There is no blanket overnight ban, but Salem prohibits leaving a vehicle in one spot for more than five days, and large vehicles cannot park by homes 9 p.m.-7 a.m. On county roads, no…

In Salem, a motorized RV over 20 feet long or 8 feet wide may not park on a residential street between 10 p.m. and 6 a.m. Marion County's rural roads have no specific RV rule beyond…

Oregon law (ORS 819.100) makes abandoning a vehicle a Class B traffic violation. A vehicle left on a public way over 24 hours may be towed and impounded. Report abandoned vehicles to…

In Salem, parking in a public alley is allowed only for loading or unloading and only up to 30 minutes. Oversized vehicles may stop on restricted streets solely while actively loading…

Only the City of Salem may paint curbs to control parking; residents cannot paint or mark curbs themselves. Parking against a City-painted red or yellow curb is unlawful. Report needed…

Standard rural setbacks are 20 feet front, side, and rear. But on farmland a new dwelling must sit 200 feet from any abutting parcel in farm use or timber production, and accessory…

In Marion County residential zones, all accessory structures combined may cover no more than 25 percent of the rear yard area, with fences in RS-zone uses excluded from that…

Dwellings in Marion County's rural zones are capped at 35 feet. Accessory structures start at 9 feet at the lot line, rising one foot per foot of setback up to 35 feet. Farm buildings…

In Marion County, residential garbage and recycling collection is provided by private franchised haulers (such as Valley Recycling/Loren's) regulated under the county Solid Waste…

Marion County Code 8.05.140 requires carts to be placed at the curb or roadside before collection time, with no part of a cart in the street more than three feet from the curb, and…

Marion County residents can self-haul bulky waste to the Salem-Keizer Recycling & Transfer Station, 3250 Deer Park Dr. SE, Salem, open 7 days a week. General garbage is $130.00 per ton…

Dumping solid waste on any public or private land, or into ditches and waterways, is unlawful in Marion County under MCC 8.05.160 and the county nuisance code, and is a crime statewide…

Rural Marion County offers two paths: a Limited Home Occupation, allowed by meeting set standards, and a Conditional Home Occupation, which needs a Conditional Use permit. Resource…

In unincorporated Marion County, Oregon, accumulating solid waste or inoperable vehicles that are offensive, hazardous, smelly, or unsightly is a public nuisance under the county…

Marion County has no separate vacant-lot registry, but owners of vacant land within the unincorporated Salem-Keizer urban growth boundary must keep it free of nuisance vegetation…

Salem's sign code is content-neutral, so political yard signs follow the same rules as other lawn signs: up to six square feet and 30 inches tall, displayed in two 60-day periods per…

In Salem, garage-sale signs are temporary lawn signs: up to six square feet and 30 inches tall on private property. They cannot be attached to utility poles, trees, or fences, or…

Marion County's curfew ordinance bars minors under 16 from any park or public place between 10:00 p.m. and 6:00 a.m., and minors 16 or 17 between midnight and 6:00 a.m., unless with a…

Every Oregon short-term rental owes the state transient lodging tax of 1.5 percent under ORS 320.305. Rentals within Salem also owe the City's 9 percent transient occupancy tax under…