San Jacinto, CA Sign Regulations: Holiday Displays (2026)

Section 8.44.050 is the nuisance list for the City of San Jacinto, and item C.20 is the only display-duration rule for holiday decorations the code prints. It covers any seasonal or holiday decorations, naming Christmas lights and Halloween props as examples, that are visible from public rights-of-way. Two clocks apply. A decoration is a nuisance if it is put on display over sixty days before the holiday for which it is displayed, and it is a nuisance if it is not removed within thirty days after that holiday. The rule is tied to the particular holiday: Christmas lights are measured against Christmas, and Halloween props against Halloween. Decorations that cannot be seen from a public right-of-way fall outside the item, though subsection L reaches hidden conditions once the city has received more than one complaint.

The lighting itself is treated separately. Section 17.300.080, Outdoor Light and Glare, requires exterior lights to be shielded and controlled so they do not spill onto adjoining properties, and its subsection E states that lights used for temporary holiday decorations are exempt from the requirements of that section. The exemption removes the shielding and glare standards for holiday lights, while the sixty and thirty day timing remains in § 8.44.050.

A citation does not come first. Under § 8.44.070 the code enforcement officer, who is the city manager and authorized representatives under § 8.44.020, notifies the owner, lessee or occupant and sets an abatement period of not less than ten days. Taking the decorations down inside that period ends the matter once the officer inspects under § 8.44.110. Penalties in § 8.44.230 apply to failing to comply with an abatement order.