Tacoma, WA Outdoor Lighting: Dark Sky Rules (2026)
Key Facts
- Trigger distance
- within 100 feet of R District
- Standard
- IES cutoff light distribution spec
- Code section
- TMC § 13.06.090J.3.b
- Purpose
- control and minimize glare
Summary
Outdoor light fixtures within 100 feet of a residential district in Tacoma must use full cutoff luminaires meeting the Illuminating Engineering Society's cutoff distribution spec to control glare.
Residential light pollution. To ensure control of and to minimize glare, any lighting within 100 feet of an R District shall use luminaires which meet the Illuminating Engineering Society's cutoff light distribution specification.
(3) General light pollution. To control and minimize glare, all other luminaries for area and/or off-street parking shall meet the Illuminating Engineering Society's semi-cutoff light distribution specification. Lighting shall be directed toward the site, with cutoff shields or other means, to prevent spillover glare to adjacent properties or vehicular traffic. Luminaires with a light source not greater than 1800 lumens (100 watt incandescent) are exempt from this requirement.
5. Landscaping Buffers:
a. Applicability.
b. Purpose.
Landscaping buffers are intended to function as a substantial vegetative screening providing physical and visual separation between dissimilar districts in order to soften visual and aesthetic impacts. Buffers also provide the aesthetic and environmental benefits of vegetation.
c. Exceptions.
Home In Tacoma - Phase 2 - Planning Commission Public Review Draft (02-05-24) Page 200 TMC Title 13 Land Use Regulatory Code Tacoma Municipal Code
(1) When there is a 20 foot vertical grade difference between a development site that is located across the street
Official source re-checked September 7, 2026: no newer edition of the code had been published (publisher’s edition: rev 4946110; v22 updated 2026-07-28).
Full Breakdown
Tacoma's zoning code requires any outdoor lighting within 100 feet of a Residential District to use luminaires meeting the Illuminating Engineering Society's cutoff light distribution specification: fixtures engineered to direct light downward and prevent it from spilling upward or sideways. The requirement sits in the same lighting subsection as the city's light-trespass and glare standards, and functions as Tacoma's shielding rule for fixtures near homes even though the code doesn't use the phrase 'dark sky.' It applies to lighting on non-residential and higher-intensity sites that sit close to residential districts, not to residential properties themselves.
Violations & Fines
Reviewed during land use permitting for sites near residential districts; fixtures that don't meet the IES cutoff specification must be replaced or retrofitted before final approval.
Frequently Asked Questions
Does Tacoma require shielded outdoor lighting near homes?
Does this shielding rule apply everywhere in Tacoma?
Sources & Official References
Other rules in Tacoma
Compare Tacoma to another location·View the Washington outdoor lighting overview
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Dark Sky Rules in Nearby Cities
How other cities in this county handle dark sky rules.