Murrieta, CA Sign Regulations: Holiday Displays (2026)

Section 16.18.110(H) lists five "Permanent Exceptions" to the Mount Palomar Lighting Standards, and the third is holiday decorations: "Lights used for holiday decorations are exempt from the requirements of this section." That single sentence pulls seasonal lighting entirely out of the dark sky zone's Class I/II/III lamp-lumen table, the fully-shielded and partially-shielded definitions, and subsection G's curfew that otherwise forces Class I and Class III fixtures off "between eleven (11:00) p.m. and sunrise." The same subsection also exempts fossil-fuel light sources like kerosene lanterns and gas lamps, portable emergency lighting used by police and fire personnel, and pre-existing fixtures installed before the development code's effective date, though those older fixtures lose the exemption once "reconstructed or replaced." Because the holiday exemption sits inside the lighting chapter rather than the sign code, it treats illuminated holiday displays as a lighting question, not a sign-permit question, meaning a homeowner or business stringing seasonal lights doesn't need the outdoor lighting plan submittal that subsection F otherwise requires for nonexempt fixtures showing fixture cut sheets, locations and lighting patterns to the department.