Fresno County, CA Outdoor Lighting: Billboard Lighting (2026)
Key Facts
- Governing section
- Zoning Ordinance § 830.3.080(B)
- Core standard
- Concentrate light on sign, minimize glare
- Prohibited lighting
- Red, green, amber, blinking, or animated
- Approval needed
- Location, size, design approval before erection
- Enforcing agency
- Public Works and Planning / Code Enforcement
Summary
Fresno County caps how billboard and sign lighting may be aimed: illumination must concentrate on the sign face itself and minimize glare onto streets or neighboring parcels, under Zoning Ordinance Section 830.3.080(B).
B. Lighting, sound, and movement restrictions.
1. No sign shall endanger the health and safety of operators of motor vehicles on the streets or highways.
2. Lights used to illuminate signs shall be so installed as to concentrate the illumination on the sign and so as to minimize glare upon a public street or abutting property.
3. No sign shall be erected at the intersection of any streets in such a manner as to obstruct free and clear vision of operators of motor vehicles.
4. No sign shall be located where, by reason of the position, shape or color, it may interfere with any authorized traffic sign, signal or device.
5. No sign may make use of the words “Stop”, “Danger”, or any other word, phrase, symbol or character in such manner as to interfere with, mislead or confuse traffic.
6. Blinkers, flashing, unusual lighting or other means of animation which cause
Final Zoning Ordinance 3-88 March 2026 FRESNO COUNTY ORDINANCE CODE - DIVISION 6, ZONING ORDINANCE Signs
Full Breakdown
3. The rule requires that lights used to illuminate a sign or billboard be installed so the illumination concentrates on the sign face and minimizes glare spilling onto a public street or an abutting property. 3 (for example the C-1, C-2, C-3, and M-1 district sign sections), each of which repeats the same concentrate-and-minimize-glare directive for signs and advertising structures in that zone. 080(B) also folds in related sign-lighting limits: no sign may endanger the health and safety of vehicle operators, and colored lighting (red, green, or amber) or blinking, flashing, or animated illumination that could be mistaken for a traffic control device is barred throughout the county's unincorporated area.
080(A)(1)), and that approval process is where a lighting plan for an illuminated billboard face gets checked against the glare-control standard. Because the ordinance ties the lighting limit to glare and driver safety rather than to a numeric foot-candle cap, Fresno County's Department of Public Works and Planning evaluates illuminated billboard proposals case by case against this concentrate-the-light, minimize-glare test rather than a fixed brightness table.
Violations & Fines
A billboard or sign lighting installation that spills glare onto a public street or adjoining property, or that uses prohibited colored, blinking, or animated lighting, is a Zoning Ordinance violation enforceable by Fresno County Code Enforcement. The County can require the owner to re-aim, shield, or remove the offending fixture, and an uncorrected violation can be pursued as a public nuisance under the County's general nuisance-abatement authority.
Frequently Asked Questions
Can a billboard in unincorporated Fresno County be internally lit?
Are flashing or colored billboard lights allowed?
Who enforces billboard lighting glare complaints in Fresno County?
Sources & Official References
Other rules in Fresno County
California rules heatmap·Compare Fresno County to another location·View the California outdoor lighting overview
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