Multnomah County, OR Sign Regulations: Digital Billboards (2026)
Key Facts
- Governing section
- MCC § 39.6770(E)(9)
- Banned features
- Moving parts, flashing, intermittent lights
- Billboard size range
- 288 to 672 square feet
- Height cap
- 50 feet or zone height, lower controls
- Permitted zones
- C-3 Retail Commercial, LM Light Manufacturing
- Civil fine
- $45 to $3,500 per day
Summary
Multnomah County Code § 39.6770(E)(9) bans any billboard with moving parts, flashing lights, or intermittent lights anywhere in unincorporated Multnomah County, which closes the door on digital and electronic message-center billboards. Only static poster-face and paint-face billboards qualify under the Planning Director's Total Billboard Allowance permit system. Code Compliance Services enforces the ban.
(A) Billboards are allowed in unincorporated Multnomah County as described in MCC 39.6700 through MCC 39.6820. ... (9) No billboard shall contain moving parts or flashing or intermittent lights.
Full Breakdown
6770(B). 6770(E)(9) draws a hard line inside that permit system: no billboard, static or relocated, may contain moving parts, flashing lights, or intermittent lights. That single sentence is what keeps LED digital billboards and electronic message centers out of the county's billboard inventory, since those displays function by cycling or flashing images. The same Development Standards subsection caps billboard size between 288 and 672 square feet (E)(3), limits height to 50 feet or the zone's allowable height, whichever is lower (E)(1), and restricts billboards to the C-3 Retail Commercial and LM Light Manufacturing base zones (D)(6).
Owners may still change a billboard's advertising message or add and remove temporary cutout extensions without a new permit under (E)(10), so the ban targets the display technology itself, not the content on it. A billboard that violates (E)(9) by installing an electronic message center or flashing panel is treated the same as any other zoning violation and referred to Code Compliance Services, which can order removal or modification to bring the structure back into conformance with the section.
Violations & Fines
Violations of MCC 39.6770 are processed under Chapter 39's enforcement code. Code Compliance Services issues a Notice of Violation under § 39.1530, and the respondent has 14 days to request a hearing under § 39.1545 or the notice becomes final. Under § 39.1560(A), a Hearings Officer can impose a civil fine of not less than $45 and not more than $3,500 for each day the violation continues, plus liens on the property for unpaid fines.
Frequently Asked Questions
Can a billboard in unincorporated Multnomah County use an electronic message center?
What kinds of billboards are still allowed?
Can I still change the ad on my billboard without breaking the rule?
What happens if a billboard is built with flashing lights anyway?
Sources & Official References
Other rules in Multnomah County
Compare Multnomah County to another location·View the Oregon sign regulations overview
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