The Tri-Cities see little snow, but the duty exists where cities adopt it. Richland requires property owners to clear snow and ice from the public sidewalk fronting their property within a reasonable time.
Snow clearing is a city rule, not a county one, and Benton County's mild, low-elevation Tri-Cities rarely get heavy snow. Still, the City of Richland's municipal code (RMC 12.16.020) makes the person in charge of any premises responsible for removing snow and ice from the abutting public sidewalk within a reasonable time after it forms. Kennewick likewise treats sidewalk snow and ice removal as the adjacent property owner's responsibility. Unincorporated Benton County imposes no general sidewalk-clearing duty on abutting owners. When the occasional storm does hit, clearing matters because negligent non-clearance creates slip-and-fall liability.
In cities like Richland, failing to clear an abutting sidewalk can bring a code-compliance notice, and the city may clear it and bill the owner. Negligent non-clearance also creates slip-and-fall liability.
Other ordinances people look up for this city. Green dot = verified primary-source excerpt.
Benton County, WA
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Benton County, WA
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Benton County, WA
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Benton County, WA
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Benton County, WA
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Benton County, WA
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See how Benton County's snow & sidewalk clearing rules stack up against other locations.
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