Richland, WA Outdoor Lighting: Billboard Lighting (2026)

RMC § 23.58.020 defines outdoor light fixtures to include but not be limited to lighting for billboards, street lights, shopping center parking area lights, externally or internally illuminated on-site or business advertising signs, and area-type lighting, so a billboard's lighting is not treated as a separate category outside Chapter 23.58's general standards. That means billboard lighting installed after the ordinance's enactment must meet the uplight shielding rule at RMC § 23.58.030(A), keeping the light source level with or above the fixture edge, and the Good Neighbor shielding rule at RMC § 23.58.030(B), which limits the direct line of sight to the lamp to the property where the fixture sits.

Beyond the general shielding standard, RMC § 23.58.040 makes specific conduct involving illuminated signs unlawful: subsection (C) bars illuminating an outdoor sign by floodlighting projected above the horizontal between midnight and sunrise, and subsection (B) applies the same midnight-to-sunrise floodlight ban to buildings, a rule that reaches an illuminated billboard face lit by an external floodlight rather than an internal source. Internally or externally illuminated advertising signs remain subject to RMC § 23.58.030's general fixture standards, including the light-pole height cap tied to the nearest streetlight under subsection (C).

Only a narrow exclusion list in RMC § 23.58.050 removes a fixture from these duties, covering pre-ordinance fixtures, low-lumen residential lighting, neon or gas-combustion signage, and translucent signs wholly illuminated from within that already comply with § 23.58.030. Development Services and the zoning administrator administer the chapter, and RMC § 23.58.070 sets a one-year limitation period for bringing an enforcement action.