Lancaster, CA Sign Regulations: Holiday Displays (2026)
Key Facts
- Holiday decoration limit
- 60 days aggregate per year
- Governing section
- Municipal Code Sec. 17.08.120.A.5.b
- Applies in
- Residential (R) zones
- Industrial-zone version
- 90 days, Sec. 17.16.150
- Past the limit
- Treated as prohibited sign
Summary
Lancaster exempts holiday decorations from its residential sign rules, but only for a set stretch of the year. Municipal Code Sec. 17.08.120.A.5.b excuses 'holiday decorations in season' from the ban on pennants, banners, and similar attention-getting devices, capping their use at an aggregate of 60 days in any one calendar year.
5.Prohibited Signs. The following signs shall be prohibited in the R zones and may not be included in any sign plan....b.Any strings of pennants, banners or streamers, clusters of flags, strings of twirlers or propellers, flares, balloons, and similar attention-getting devices, including noise-emitting devices, with the exception of the following, not intended for advertising use: holiday decorations in season used for an aggregate period of 60 days in any one calendar year, or national, state, or other governmental or institutional flags properly displayed.
Official source re-checked September 7, 2026: no newer edition of the code had been published (publisher’s edition: Code of Ordinances: Supplement 10 - 2025).
Full Breakdown
' Because the exemption sits inside the sign code rather than a standalone holiday-lighting ordinance, it reaches decorative lights, inflatables, and similar attention-getting holiday displays the same way the prohibited-sign list would otherwise catch them, so long as the display is not used for advertising. The 60-day figure is a citywide aggregate, not a per-holiday allowance: a homeowner who puts up lights for Halloween and again for the December holidays has to track the combined days used across the calendar year rather than resetting the count for each occasion.
150. In the R zones covered here, though, the residential 60-day limit is what controls, and decorations left up past the aggregate cap lose the sign-code exemption and become subject to the same prohibited-sign treatment as a permanent banner or flag display.
Violations & Fines
Holiday decorations that stay up beyond the 60-day aggregate in any calendar year fall out of the Section 17.08.120.A.5.b exemption and are treated as a prohibited sign under Section 17.08.120.A.5, the same category as pennants, banners, and flashing attention-getting devices. Code enforcement can require removal of the display, and repeated or unaddressed prohibited-sign violations proceed through the city's general sign-compliance process rather than a holiday-specific citation track.
Frequently Asked Questions
How long can I keep holiday lights up in Lancaster?
Is the 60-day limit per holiday or for the whole year?
What happens if I leave decorations up too long?
Sources & Official References
Other rules in Lancaster
California rules heatmap·Compare Lancaster to another location·View the California sign regulations overview
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Holiday Displays in Nearby Cities
How other cities in Los Angeles County handle holiday displays.