San Angelo, TX Outdoor Lighting: Dark Sky Rules (2026)
Key Facts
- Max intensity
- 0.25 footcandles at residential property line
- Beam height limit
- not directed above 3 feet across line
- Holiday exemption
- 45 days before to 14 days after holiday
- Compliance deadline
- 1 to 3 months for nonconforming fixtures
- Enforcement
- neighborhood and family services director
- Max fine
- up to $500 per day of violation
Summary
San Angelo caps outdoor lighting at 0.25 footcandles measured at a property line next to a home, and every luminaire must be shielded so its beam stays below three feet in height at that line. The neighborhood and family services director enforces the rule on written complaint, with violators guilty of a misdemeanor.
Any luminaries shall be located, adequately shielded, and directed so as not to produce glare or direct illumination across a bounding property line of such intensity as to create a nuisance or detract from the use or enjoyment of adjacent property. All outside lights shall be made up of a light source and reflector so selected that acting together the light beam is controlled and not directed across any bounding property line above a height of three feet. The allowable maximum intensity measured at the property line abutting a residential use shall be 0.25 footcandles.
Official source re-checked September 7, 2026: no newer edition of the code had been published (publisher’s edition: Code of Ordinances: Supplement 10).
Full Breakdown
11 defines an 'adequately shielded' luminaire as one whose opaque components keep light rays on the parcel where it originates so the source isn't visible from a neighboring property or the public right-of-way, and defines 'light trespass' as light that spills onto another property, into the right-of-way, into a driver's eyes, or upward into the sky. 25 footcandles. 003 exempts eight categories from those limits: law enforcement and emergency lighting; lighting on publicly owned parks, schools, streets and sidewalks; authorized monument lighting; lighting required by state or federal law; holiday lighting run no more than 45 days before and 14 days after the holiday; lighting for city-sponsored or city-authorized special events; open-flame fixtures like kerosene lanterns and gas lamps; and neon fixtures.
006 allows motion- or noise-triggered security lighting so long as it still meets the article's shielding and intensity limits. 004 requires the director, the neighborhood and family services director or a designee, to investigate and determine whether a light trespass violation occurred. 008 lists: redirection, shielding, redesign or relocation, replacement, or removal.
Violations & Fines
Section 8.11.010 makes it unlawful for any owner or person controlling a property, including a building contractor, to let a noncompliant outdoor luminaire remain there. Section 8.11.011 makes a violation a misdemeanor punishable under the general penalty in section 1.01.009, up to $500.00 per offense, with each day of a continuing violation counted as a separate offense. Section 8.11.009 assigns primary enforcement to the director.
Frequently Asked Questions
How bright can my outdoor lighting be in San Angelo?
Is holiday lighting exempt from San Angelo's outdoor lighting rules?
How long do I have to fix a noncompliant light fixture?
Who enforces San Angelo's dark-sky lighting rules?
Sources & Official References
Other rules in San Angelo
Texas rules heatmap·Compare San Angelo to another location·View the Texas outdoor lighting overview
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