Walla Walla County, WA Ordinances (2026)

In unincorporated Walla Walla County, County Code § 9.20.050(E) makes it unlawful to run a musical instrument, whistle or sound amplifier so loudly that raucous sound from a band…

Walla Walla County Code § 9.20.050(A), (B) and (G) ban frequent honking or sirens except as warnings, loud starting, repair, rebuilding or testing of any motor vehicle, motorcycle or…

Walla Walla County Code § 9.20.030 caps ambient sound by district, from 49 dB(A) rural-to-rural up to 70 dB(A) industrial-to-industrial, and § 9.20.050(C) separately bans running a…

Walla Walla County Code § 9.20.050(F) makes it a public disturbance noise for any animal on a property to make frequent, repetitive vocal sounds lasting more than ten minutes between…

Walla Walla County Code § 9.20.040(A) cuts the general sound-level limits by ten dB(A) between 10 p.m. and 5 a.m. on weekdays, and 10 p.m. to 9 a.m. on weekends, whenever the receiving…

Walla Walla County Code exempts aircraft entirely from its noise chapter: § 9.20.060(A) excuses sounds from aircraft in flight and airport flight operations at all times, and §…

Walla Walla County Code § 9.20.070(E) exempts construction equipment and temporary construction-site sounds from the noise chapter between 5 a.m. and 10 p.m. on weekdays and 5 a.m. and…

Unincorporated Walla Walla County caps sound crossing property lines by district under Walla Walla County Code Section 9.20.030, ranging from 49 dB(A) rural-to-rural up to 70 dB(A)…

In unincorporated Walla Walla County, only a permitted fireworks sale stand may sell fireworks, and discharge is legal only during two narrow windows around July 4th and New Year's…

Walla Walla County requires any dwelling or accessory building moved into the unincorporated area to meet current fire and life-safety standards after relocation, including smoke…

Unincorporated Walla Walla County bans burning garbage, treated wood, plastics, tires and other listed materials outright, and limits legal residential yard-debris burns to permit…

New structures built within the Mill Creek Wildfire Protection Area of unincorporated Walla Walla County must use non-combustible, fire-resistant or fire-retardant roofing and exterior…

Permanent outdoor fireplaces and barbecues built as part of a new structure inside the Mill Creek Wildfire Protection Area of unincorporated Walla Walla County must carry a screen over…

New structures built inside the Mill Creek Wildfire Protection Area of unincorporated Walla Walla County must keep a thirty-foot fire break clear around the entire building and hold…

Recreational vehicles used as a primary residence in a mobile or manufactured home park in unincorporated Walla Walla County cannot add an external propane tank unless the RV's onboard…

Walla Walla County Code § 9.22.030 closes the area surrounding Quarry Pond, on the Columbia River near Burbank, to the public between 9 p.m. and 6 a.m. every night, making entry during…

In unincorporated Walla Walla County, the community development building official enforces the adopted International Building, Residential, Mechanical and Fire Codes and the Uniform…

Unincorporated Walla Walla County adopts the International Building, Residential, Mechanical, Fire and Fuel Gas Codes and the Uniform Plumbing Code as its state-mandated building code…

Unincorporated Walla Walla County requires a plumbing permit under the adopted Uniform Plumbing Code for regulated plumbing work, with fees set in Chapter 3.08, and starting work…

Unincorporated Walla Walla County regulates pool, spa and hot tub barriers through Appendix G of the International Residential Code, adopted at Code § 15.04.040 alongside the base IBC…

Building a residential swimming pool or hot tub in unincorporated Walla Walla County requires a Community Development building permit costing a $75 application fee plus a $205 permit…

Unincorporated Walla Walla County abates dangerous and blighted buildings under the 1997 Uniform Code for the Abatement of Dangerous Buildings, adopted at Code § 15.04.212, backed by…

A vacant lot in unincorporated Walla Walla County must keep grasses and weeds to an average height of twelve inches wherever it is visible from adjacent roads or properties, under…

In unincorporated Walla Walla County, a home occupation may see customers on-site only under strict caps written into the permit itself. A Type I permit allows just one customer per…

Unincorporated Walla Walla County treats a home business as a Type I or Type II 'home occupation,' each capped in size and confined to one operation per lot. A Type I permit tops out…

Unincorporated Walla Walla County bans exterior signage for any home occupation outright. Walla Walla County Code Section 17.08.260(B) requires that a permitted home business have no…

A licensed family day care home in unincorporated Walla Walla County can serve up to twelve children in a 24-hour period, must run out of the principal residence, fully enclose any…

Unincorporated Walla Walla County allows no marijuana business of any kind, zoned or otherwise. Walla Walla County Code Section 17.16.010 makes marijuana cooperatives, producers…

Unincorporated Walla Walla County bans overnight parking from 9:00 p.m. to 7:00 a.m. at two signed locations: the designated lot 225 feet north of the Rooks Park entrance and the north…

Unincorporated Walla Walla County defines an electric vehicle battery charging station in WWCC 17.08.212A and lists it as a permitted, P, accessory use across every industrial and…

Commercial and industrial development in unincorporated Walla Walla County must provide off-street loading spaces sized under WWCC § 17.20.120. Each space must measure at least thirty…

In unincorporated Walla Walla County, keeping more than one abandoned or inoperable vehicle in the same spot for over 60 days is an unlawful nuisance if it sits in the front, side or…

Vehicle repair, painting and auto detailing shops cannot operate as a home occupation anywhere in unincorporated Walla Walla County. Walla Walla County Code Section 17.08.260(J)(7)…

Unincorporated Walla Walla County does not write its own tow-truck rules; WWCC 10.34.010 adopts 26 numbered sections of the state vehicle-towing statute, RCW 46.55, by reference for…

Unincorporated farmland across Walla Walla County is protected through the Primary Agriculture zoning district, created specifically to keep irrigated and non-irrigated resource lands…

A farm operation in unincorporated Walla Walla County cannot be found a public or private nuisance if it follows generally accepted agricultural and management practices, or if it…

Unincorporated Walla Walla County's only dedicated bicycle-facility ordinance covers the Whitman Drive Bike Path, a 60-foot-wide former rail corridor near the Whitman Mission Donation…

Industrial and commercial development in unincorporated Walla Walla County cannot let its lighting spill onto neighbors or public roads. Walla Walla County Code Section…

Unincorporated Walla Walla County's sign chapter, WWCC § 17.28.010.A, requires the light from any illuminated sign, billboards included, to be shaded, shielded or directed so its…

Unincorporated Walla Walla County does not regulate rainwater harvesting directly, but WWCC 11.04.070(B) rewards it: a new or remodeled commercial building with a properly built and…

In areas of unincorporated Walla Walla County mapped as high-density wintering birds-of-prey habitat, a development permit other than for a single-family dwelling limits tree and perch…

In unincorporated Walla Walla County, WWCC 12.26.050.B.5 bans trees, plants, shrubs or any part of them from overhanging and interfering with the use of a public road, sidewalk, path…

On developed, urban-zoned lots in unincorporated Walla Walla County, grasses and weeds cannot average more than twelve inches tall under Walla Walla County Code Section…

Unincorporated Walla Walla County carves household compost piles out of its debris-nuisance rule: a pile kept outside the front or side yard for the household's own use does not count…

Unincorporated Walla Walla County bans dumping anything but stormwater into its storm drainage system or into surface and groundwater under WWCC 11.05.020. The rule lists thirty…

Construction sites in unincorporated Walla Walla County disturbing an acre or more, including smaller sites that are part of a larger common plan, must submit a stormwater site plan…

Building or developing land in a mapped special flood hazard area of unincorporated Walla Walla County requires a development permit under Chapter 18.12 of the county code before work…

In unincorporated Walla Walla County, a new dock on a river, lake or other water body is limited to public access, a water-dependent use, or a single-family residence under WWCC…

In special flood hazard areas of unincorporated Walla Walla County, new construction and substantial improvement of a residential structure must have its lowest floor, including any…

In unincorporated Walla Walla County, WWCC 12.10.040 puts sidewalk and path upkeep on the abutting property owner, or a homeowner's association where one exists, not the county. Owners…

Before staging equipment, materials or construction work in a county right-of-way in unincorporated Walla Walla County, WWCC 12.26.020.D requires the county engineer's authorization…

In unincorporated Walla Walla County, WWCC 12.26.050 bans a specific list of obstructions in the public right-of-way, from any improvement that blocks free use of a sidewalk or road to…

In unincorporated Walla Walla County, residential building height tops out at 35 feet in most single-family and rural zones, rising to 50 feet in the Multiple Family Residential zone…

In unincorporated Walla Walla County, lot coverage caps run by zoning district under the density and dimensional requirements table at WWCC § 17.18.020. Single Family Residential R-72…

Minimum yard setbacks in unincorporated Walla Walla County are set zone by zone in the WWCC § 17.18.020 dimensional table. Single Family Residential R-60 lots require a fifteen-foot…

Unincorporated Walla Walla County allows one accessory dwelling unit per lot under WWCC 17.08.015: the primary home must be at least 800 square feet, the ADU is capped at 1,100 square…

In unincorporated Walla Walla County, an accessory dwelling unit is allowed only if either the primary residence or the ADU itself is occupied by a property owner for at least six…

Unincorporated Walla Walla County lets owners rent out an accessory dwelling unit once it meets the county's other ADU conditions: one extra off-street parking space, one ADU per lot…

Walla Walla County charges $744 in Community Development planning fees to add an accessory dwelling unit in the unincorporated area, on top of the regular building permit fee scale…

Walla Walla County lets a detached garage or similarly sized accessory building sit as close as five feet from a side or rear property line in unincorporated zones. WWCC § 17.18.020…

A bed and breakfast guesthouse in unincorporated Walla Walla County, the county's zoning category for short-term lodging, cannot have more than ten guest rooms, and no traveler or…

Operating a bed and breakfast guesthouse in unincorporated Walla Walla County requires a zoning permit whose type depends on the county's permitted-use table: a Type I guesthouse in…

Walla Walla County levies a four percent lodging tax on hotels, rooming houses, tourist courts, motels, and trailer camps under Code § 3.15.010, in addition to state sales tax. The…

Installing a residential solar array in unincorporated Walla Walla County requires a Community Development building permit under the state energy code adopted at Code § 15.04.030. A…

Unincorporated Walla Walla County bars keeping a wild animal, defined in Section 6.04.010.G to include monkeys, bears, cougars, coyotes, foxes, poisonous snakes, lions, wolves, and any…

In unincorporated Walla Walla County, a single parcel may hold no more than four dogs or cats combined if it is a half acre or smaller, rising to six combined on any larger parcel…

Inside Walla Walla County's dog control zone, established under RCW Chapter 16.10 and currently covering the Touchet area, every dog must be kept under restraint at all times. Section…

Walla Walla County does not ban any dog breed by name; instead Chapter 6.04 uses a behavior-based declaration. Section 6.04.350 lets a dog be found "potentially dangerous" for an…

Keeping bees in unincorporated Walla Walla County requires a conditional use permit under WWCC § 17.26.020, which caps density at one colony per 2,000 square feet of open space and 50…

In unincorporated Walla Walla County, WWCC § 17.26.020 caps combined dogs and cats at four on a parcel of half an acre or less, rising to six on any larger parcel, with pens set back…

In unincorporated Walla Walla County, development-related tree removal in Raptor Ferruginous Hawk Habitat is limited to the non-nesting season of August through January and to hazard…

Unincorporated Walla Walla County limits backyard chickens and other fowl under WWCC § 17.26.020: a combined total of up to fifty birds is allowed per 6,000 square feet of dedicated…

Walla Walla County's peddler and hawker license does not cover food carts or sidewalk stands: licensed food vendors are exempt under Code § 5.06.020.B.9, and sidewalk refreshment…

Every mobile food unit operating in unincorporated Walla Walla County must carry mechanical refrigeration sized to hold all potentially hazardous food, and Section 8.04.012 bars using…

Walla Walla County does not license or ban card rooms, but it taxes card playing at ten percent of the gross fees charged to play under Code § 3.10.020. Operators must file a sworn…

Door-to-door peddlers and hawkers in unincorporated Walla Walla County need a Community Development Department license under Code § 5.06.020, costing $25.00 plus a $500.00 deposit for…

Unincorporated Walla Walla County runs no curbside trash pickup; residents self-haul to county drop box sites, and Section 8.08.010 limits those sites to noncommercial collectors who…

Walla Walla County's resident drop box sites will not take every load: Section 8.08.020 bars dumping trees, limbs, and brush, along with waste building materials or demolition debris…

Illegal dumping in unincorporated Walla Walla County covers more than trash: Section 8.08.020 bars dumping dead animals, explosives, raw sewage, and burning materials anywhere covered…

Standby power generators installed at wireless communication facility sites in unincorporated Walla Walla County must carry mufflers or other attenuation devices under WWCC 17.34.070…

Anyone in unincorporated Walla Walla County who spots a zoning violation, from an illegal use to an unpermitted structure, can file a written complaint with the county's director of…

A garage sale or yard sale sign in unincorporated Walla Walla County is a temporary-event sign under WWCC § 17.28.020: allowed for up to three days without paperwork, or longer with…

Unincorporated Walla Walla County has no window-sign coverage cap, but WWCC § 17.28.090.A.10 bans any sign on a door, window or fire escape that restricts free ingress or egress. Signs…

Electronic message center signs in unincorporated Walla Walla County are capped at one double-faced sign per street frontage, up to 150 square feet per face, under WWCC § 17.28.100…

Holding a parade, staged sale, promotional event or neighborhood gathering that obstructs a sidewalk, path, curb, gutter, planting strip, shoulder or road in unincorporated Walla Walla…

A restaurant in unincorporated Walla Walla County that wants tables on a sidewalk, path, curb, gutter or planting strip needs the county engineer's authorization under WWCC 12.26.020.B…

In unincorporated Walla Walla County, industrial-zoned properties cannot store animal or vegetable waste that draws insects or rodents. Section 17.16.014(D)(2)(f) of the Walla Walla…

Food workers in unincorporated Walla Walla County must hold a valid food worker card, and the county Department of Community Health charges $10.00 for the card and $5.00 to reprint a…

Unincorporated Walla Walla County caps front yard fences at WWCC § 17.24.010: solid fences run no higher than forty-two inches to the front property line, including on corner lots…

Walla Walla County allows up to two strands of barbed wire or electric fence on animal enclosures in residential zones under WWCC § 17.26.020, but only above a required wood or woven…