Mason County, WA Ordinances (2026)

Anyone hosting a special event or gathering at a Mason County park in unincorporated Mason County needs a special event permit from the county's Parks and Trails office under Mason…

In unincorporated Mason County, Washington, any parade, fun run, cycling event, or other private event that extends into a county road right-of-way needs a Category 7 Road Use Permit…

Any street fair, festival or other outdoor event in unincorporated Mason County lasting more than four hours and involving an exchange of currency needs a county permit under Chapter…

In unincorporated Mason County, county parks are open during daylight hours only under Mason County Code § 2.53.030(15), unless the Parks and Trails Department has approved special…

In unincorporated Mason County, the Board of County Commissioners levies a special excise tax of 4 percent on the sale of or charge made for furnishing lodging, under Mason County Code…

In unincorporated Mason County, Washington, the Public Works Department, not a parking ordinance, controls how snow and ice are cleared from county roads. MCC §§ 12.06.010 and…

Mason County Code Section 10.52.405 bars stopping, standing, or parking on county roads at intersections, crosswalks, sidewalks, bridges, and railroad tracks, and adds distance buffers…

Mason County Code Section 10.72.010 defines an abandoned vehicle as one left on a highway or another's property without consent for twenty-four hours or more, and Section 10.72.020…

Mason County Code Section 10.52.410(b) bans overnight parking on Public Access Road No. 58110, defining it as occupying space along the road for more than two hours between 9:00 p.m…

Mason County Code § 17.03.022 allows level 1 and level 2 electric vehicle charging stations as an accessory use in every zoning district of unincorporated Mason County, WA, with no…

In the Allyn Urban Growth Area of unincorporated Mason County, single-family, duplex and triplex lots may keep a recreational vehicle, boat or trailer only beyond the front or…

In the Allyn Urban Growth Area of unincorporated Mason County, commercial vehicles cannot be parked or stored in residential zones except briefly for legitimate deliveries or pickups…

New commercial and industrial buildings in Mason County's Shelton urban growth area must provide dedicated off-street loading space under Mason County Code § 17.08.110: one loading…

Unincorporated Mason County bans being, remaining, or loitering in any county park, county-owned real property, or property held in trust while intoxicated, under Mason County Code…

Mason County designates all county parks, county-owned real property, and property held in trust as tobacco and vape free areas under Mason County Code Section 9.44.041. The ban…

In unincorporated Mason County, Washington, pedestrians crossing outside a marked or unmarked intersection crosswalk must yield to every vehicle on the roadway under Mason County Code…

Unincorporated Mason County bans open alcohol containers and drinking on its own park and trust land. Code Section 9.44.030 prohibits opening, possessing an open container of, or…

Mason County Code Section 10.52.215 bars standing in a roadway to solicit a ride, business, or employment from vehicle occupants, and bars soliciting to watch or guard a parked…

Unincorporated Mason County treats a loud house party as a public disturbance noise. Code Section 9.36.120(6) makes it unlawful for sound from a musical instrument, sound amplifier…

In unincorporated Mason County, any new construction adding 2,000 square feet or more of impervious surface, or disturbing under an acre, must follow the small parcel erosion and…

Mason County requires new and substantially improved residential structures in special flood hazard areas to elevate the lowest floor at least one foot above base flood elevation, the…

In unincorporated Mason County, no structure or land within a mapped special flood hazard area may be built, altered or filled without a development permit issued under Mason County…

Unincorporated Mason County regulates stormwater under Chapter 14.48, adopting Ecology's Stormwater Management Manual for Western Washington and requiring erosion and drainage plans…

Mason County limits waterfront property owners to one dock per lot under its Shoreline Master Program, and caps single-use dock length at sixty feet from the ordinary high water mark…

In critical area buffers across unincorporated Mason County, MCC 8.52.170(4)(B) lets landowners fell danger trees without a full habitat management plan, but only after describing the…

Mason County's landscaping code for the Shelton urban growth area, Mason County Code § 17.07.894, requires that any required landscaping be kept in a healthy growing condition, with…

Unincorporated Mason County shields established farm, forest and mining operations from nuisance lawsuits once they have run for more than five years without complaint, under MCC…

Unincorporated Mason County designates farmland as Agricultural Resource Lands under MCC 8.52.061 when it has a commercial agricultural use, at least ten acres, and prime farmland…

In unincorporated Mason County, Washington, the Sanitary Code requires residential garbage to be stored in rigid, water- and animal/rodent-proof upright containers with tight-fitting…

Unincorporated Mason County lets a Master Development Plan applicant request extra dwelling units above base zoning density under MCC 17.70.015(b)(2)(C). Rural applicants can reach the…

Mason County's Belfair Urban Growth Area design code, Chapter 17.30, requires new commercial and multi-family buildings to reduce bulk, add pedestrian-scale detailing, and "retain…

Dumping solid waste illegally in unincorporated Mason County draws a two hundred fifty dollar fine per offense under Mason County Code § 6.72.032(c), rising to five hundred dollars for…

Unincorporated Mason County has no curbside bulk pickup; residents haul large items to a transfer station instead. Mason County Code § 6.72.041 sets the drop-off fee for a 'misc. large…

In unincorporated Mason County, curbside recycling must run on the same day as garbage collection under Mason County Code Section 13.30.030(A)(3). A certificated hauler can only shift…

Unincorporated Mason County requires every certificated hauler to offer every-other-week single-stream curbside recycling to households on automated garbage service. Mason County Code…

Mason County Code Section 13.30.030(D) sets a minimum list of recyclables every certificated hauler must accept curbside from single-family residences in the unincorporated county…

In the Belfair Urban Growth Area of unincorporated Mason County, garbage and recycling collection areas visible from a public street, park, or neighboring property must be enclosed by…

Mason County treats gas fire pits as 'exempt appliances/devices' under Section 2.162.020, and lets wood or charcoal recreational fires in a metal, concrete, or rock circle proceed…

Mason County requires either a written permit or compliance with a general rule burn program for outdoor fires under Mason County Code Section 9.48.020, with the outdoor burning…

Unincorporated Mason County requires a permit from the fire marshal's office before anyone imports, sells, stores or discharges fireworks, and consumer fireworks may be discharged only…

Unincorporated Mason County regulates wildfire risk to structures through the 2021 International Wildland-Urban Interface Code, adopted at Mason County Code Section 14.04.010(h) as…

Mason County Code § 6.72.090 makes it unlawful to let junk, trash, discarded furniture, or construction debris pile up on a vacant lot in unincorporated Mason County, and separately…

In unincorporated Mason County, Community Development enforces the 1997 Uniform Code for the Abatement of Dangerous Buildings under Mason County Code Chapter 14.15, with the building…

Mason County requires every motor vehicle on public highways to run a working exhaust system and muffler under Section 9.36.130(b), caps in-use sound levels by vehicle category under…

In unincorporated Mason County, Washington, every property carries an Environmental Designation for Noise Abatement (EDNA) class of A, B or C, and Mason County Code Section 9.36.060…

Unincorporated Mason County does not shut off noise at a set clock hour, but Code Section 9.36.080 grants a narrow exemption only between seven a.m. and ten p.m. for specific…

Unincorporated Mason County does not regulate aircraft noise under its local decibel table. Code Section 9.36.100(2) exempts sounds originating from aircraft in flight and sounds that…

In unincorporated Mason County, construction noise is not capped by a decibel table at all. Code Section 9.36.090, headed 'Daytime residential exemption,' excuses sounds from temporary…

Unincorporated Mason County restricts amplified sound used to sell or advertise on public streets. Code Section 9.36.120(4) bans a sound amplifier or similar device used on public…

In unincorporated Mason County, a dog or other animal that habitually howls, barks, yelps or makes other prolonged sounds disturbing a neighborhood's quiet is a public nuisance under…

Mason County Code Section 10.52.580 requires cyclists on a roadway to ride as near the right side as practicable, bars riding more than two abreast except on a bike-only path, and…

Mason County Code Section 10.72.040 lets the sheriff appoint bonded tow truck operators as agents to remove and store abandoned vehicles, requiring a three-thousand-dollar surety bond…

Mason County Code § 17.03.021 lists automobile service stations and recreational vehicle repair as prohibited cottage industry uses, so no home-based auto repair shop may operate in…

An erotic dance studio in unincorporated Mason County needs a $100 county license, and every dancer needs a separate $50 dancer's license under MCC Chapter 5.19. Studios must close…

Mason County Code Section 12.05.030 requires a Category 4 Road Approach/Encroachment Permit before any property owner builds a driveway, road, parking area, or other private facility…

Unincorporated Mason County bans a car horn or alarm that will not stop. Code Section 9.36.120(2) makes the frequent, repetitive or continuous sounding of any horn or siren attached to…

In unincorporated Mason County, new residential and commercial construction must include an automatic fire sprinkler system whenever its fire apparatus access road exceeds 12 percent…

In unincorporated Mason County, a commercial day care center is not a by-right use in rural residential zones. Mason County Code Section 17.04.212 lists "commercial day care center" as…

Unincorporated Mason County regulates plumbing work through the 2021 Uniform Plumbing Code (UPC), adopted by reference at Mason County Code Section 14.04.010(e) under Washington…

Mason County Code Section 14.08.030 supplements IBC/IRC Section 105.1 with specific permit-required categories for the unincorporated county: docks, piers, floats, seawalls, and…

Cottage industries in unincorporated Mason County, WA must accommodate up to ten on-site parking spaces for residents, customers and employees combined, and Community Development will…

Mason County Code § 17.03.021(5) limits a home-based cottage industry in unincorporated Mason County, WA to a single sign no larger than twelve square feet, and bars any other exterior…

Unincorporated Mason County allows a family child care center, in-home care for children by a resident of the dwelling and licensed under WAC 388-150, as a listed use in its own zoning…

Mason County Code § 17.03.029 caps an accessory dwelling unit in unincorporated Mason County's rural lands at eighty percent of the primary residence's floor area or 1,200 square feet…

In shoreline jurisdiction within unincorporated Mason County, WA, Mason County Code § 17.03.029(2) requires the owner of an accessory dwelling unit to live on the lot, in either the…

A storage shed in unincorporated Mason County skips the building permit only if it is single-story, five hundred seventy-six square feet or smaller, no taller than ten feet at the…

Mason County Code § 17.03.202(E) bans animated or flashing signs in the rural areas and Shelton urban growth area, but carves out changing message center signs if each image or message…

Under Mason County's Allyn Sign Code, commercial tenants in the Allyn Urban Growth Area may display window signs, blade signs and A-board signs of no more than twelve square feet, and…

In unincorporated Mason County's Allyn urban growth area, a political sign is defined under Mason County Code § 17.15.040 as a temporary sign advertising a candidate, political party…

In unincorporated Mason County, retaining walls come with their own permit track: Mason County Code § 14.44.050(b)(2) only exempts wall-footing excavation from a grading permit when a…

Unincorporated Mason County's zoning definitions set the working fence height line at seven feet: a fence of that height or less is not a regulated "structure" and does not trigger the…

In unincorporated Mason County, a code violation moves forward once the director has 'reasonable cause to believe that a violation has been or is being committed' under Mason County…

Mason County Code § 15.13.020 treats non-conforming structures and unpermitted construction as continuing violations, with every day counted separately and no vesting for work done…

Mason County Code sets firm clocks on code enforcement: § 15.13.035 gives a warning notice recipient twenty days to respond, § 15.13.045(b) lets the county cancel a scheduled hearing…

Unincorporated Mason County bans letting a dog or other animal run at large on public property, the road right-of-way, or private land without permission, backed by a $250 civil…

Mason County does not require every pet dog to carry a microchip. But once the county sheriff's animal control authority formally declares a dog potentially dangerous or dangerous, the…

Mason County does not ban or restrict dogs by breed. Instead, MCC 4.08.020 defines 'dangerous dog' and 'potentially dangerous dog' by what the animal actually does: unprovoked bites…

In the Village Commercial (VC) district of the Allyn Urban Growth Area, in unincorporated Mason County, a veterinary clinic cannot open by right. Mason County Code Section 17.12.140…

In the Neighborhood Residential (NR) district of Mason County's Shelton urban growth area, Mason County Code § 17.07.120(G)(2) sets numeric limits on backyard poultry and livestock: on…

In the Neighborhood Residential (NR) district of Mason County's Shelton urban growth area, Mason County Code § 17.07.120(G)(4) caps the keeping of common household pets, other than…

Unincorporated Mason County prohibits social card rooms outright. MCC 5.10.020 bars any person, firm or corporation from conducting or allowing a social card game, as defined by state…

A food truck or other mobile food service unit operating in unincorporated Mason County is a 'food service establishment' under MCC 6.08.030 and needs a health officer's permit before…

In unincorporated Mason County's Rural Residential 2.5 zone, Mason County Code Section 17.04.213 sets the front yard setback at twenty-five feet and the side and rear yard setback at…

In unincorporated Mason County's Rural Residential 2.5 zone, Mason County Code Section 17.04.214(b) caps residential structures at thirty-five feet in height, with exceptions for…

In the R-1 Single-Family Residential district of Mason County's Allyn urban growth area, Mason County Code § 17.11.150 caps lot coverage at 40 percent, alongside a maximum density of…

Mason County's Water Leak Credit Policy, Mason County Code Section 13.34.030, requires a customer to notify the Public Works Finance Department of a leak as soon as it is found and…

Mason County has not opted out of recreational marijuana. Under Mason County Code Section 17.17.008, licensed marijuana retail is confined to a specific list of nonresidential zoning…

Licensed marijuana production and processing operations in unincorporated Mason County's rural residential zoning districts must keep a one-hundred-foot buffer from the operation to…

In the Mixed Use district of the Belfair Urban Growth Area, in unincorporated Mason County, new development along primary pedestrian walkways next to driveways or parking lots must…

Mason County treats data centers as a straight permitted use in its two Shelton urban growth area industrial-type zones. The Commercial-Industrial (CI) district's use list names data…

In the Belfair Urban Growth Area, Mason County requires commercial and multi-family outdoor lighting to be directed downward with cutoff shields that prevent spillover into residential…

Within Mason County's shoreline jurisdiction, illuminated signs and billboards must be hooded, shaded, or aimed so they don't glare onto neighboring properties or the water, under…

Mason County's Historic Preservation Ordinance, Chapter 17.40, lets the county board designate buildings, sites, structures, objects, and districts to the Mason County Register of…