Snohomish County, WA Sign Regulations: Digital Billboards (2026)
Key Facts
- Governing section
- SCC 30.27.080(8)
- Digital sign area cap
- 500 sq ft per structure
- Non-digital sign area cap
- 1,344 sq ft per structure
- Minimum message hold
- 8 seconds
- Malfunction rule
- Off/full black above 50% area failure
Summary
SCC 30.27.080(8) caps a digital billboard face at 500 square feet, requires an eight-second minimum message hold with a one-second transition, and forces the display dark or a 'full black' image if more than half the sign malfunctions. Non-digital billboards may run up to 1,344 square feet under subsection (7).
(8) Digital billboards shall have a maximum sign area not to exceed a total of 500 square feet per sign structure and are subject to the following: (a) For the purposes of this subsection sign structures with single-faced, back-to-back and v-type signs are considered one structure. The maximum sign area for a single sign face shall not exceed 500 square feet. (b) The minimum message display time shall not be less than eight seconds during all hours of operation, unless the director or hearing examiner specifies a longer display time. (c) The transition time between messages shall be completed in no more than one second. ... (i) A digital billboard shall be operated with systems and monitoring in place to either turn the display off or show a "full black" image on the display in the event of a malfunction that affects more than 50 percent of the sign area.
Official source re-checked September 8, 2026: no newer edition of the code had been published (publisher’s edition: current through legislation passed August 12, 2026).
Full Breakdown
080 is the county's dedicated billboard section. Billboards generally cannot sit closer than 15 feet to the front or rear property line or five feet from a side line, cannot stand within 1,000 feet of another billboard structure, and are barred outright from every shoreline environment designation. Subsection (8) layers additional standards on top of that for digital billboards specifically: the sign area for a digital face is capped at 500 square feet per structure (versus 1,344 square feet allowed for a non-digital face under subsection (7)), messages must display for at least eight seconds unless the director or hearing examiner allows longer, and the transition between messages must finish in one second or less.
210 unless the county engineer finds the sign will not create a safety problem, and an existing digital billboard must be shut off if the county engineer later determines it caused or contributed to such a designation. Every digital billboard must also carry a monitoring system that forces the display off or shows a full black image if a malfunction affects more than 50 percent of the sign area, and owners may, but are not required to, coordinate with law enforcement to display Amber Alerts or other regional emergency information during a public emergency. 22 SCC.
Violations & Fines
A digital billboard installed or operated outside these standards, including one that exceeds the 500-square-foot face limit or fails to darken on malfunction, is processed as a Title 30 zoning violation under chapter 30.85 SCC. Non-commercial violations start at a $500 monetary penalty escalating to a $10,000 cap, while commercial violations, which billboards almost always are, start at $1,500 and can reach $25,000 if not corrected.
Frequently Asked Questions
How big can a digital billboard be in unincorporated Snohomish County?
How fast can messages change on a Snohomish County digital billboard?
What happens if a digital billboard malfunctions?
Sources & Official References
Other rules in Snohomish County
Compare Snohomish County to another location·View the Washington sign regulations overview
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