Davis, CA Outdoor Lighting: Light Trespass & Shielding (2026)

17 of the Davis Municipal Code, the Outdoor Lighting Control ordinance, defines light trespass as artificial light that produces unnecessary and unwanted illumination of an adjacent property, distinct from glare, which is light causing annoyance, discomfort, or loss of visibility. 030(a) requires every outdoor light fixture installed after the ordinance's effective date on commercial, industrial, or multifamily property to be fully shielded, and further requires that light trespass and glare be limited to a reasonable level through shielding and directional lighting methods, including fixture location and height.

Subsection (b) applies the identical fully-shielded and reasonable-trespass standard to fixtures on public property and in the public right-of-way. The building official enforces the article for private commercial, industrial, and multifamily development and public buildings, while the public works director enforces it for street lighting, bike paths, and public parking lots. Fixtures legally installed before the ordinance took effect are exempt unless replaced or structurally altered, and the article separately exempts flame-fueled fixtures such as gas lamps, luminous tube lighting, temporary holiday decoration lights, and temporary construction or emergency lighting. 010.