Auburn, WA Sign Regulations: Political Signs (2026)

Auburn City Code Chapter 18.56 (Signs) treats temporary political or campaign signs as a protected form of noncommercial speech and allows them on private property with the owner's consent. Consistent with the U.S. Supreme Court decision in Reed v. Town of Gilbert, Auburn's sign code is content-neutral as to political messages, meaning the same size, placement, and duration rules that apply to other temporary noncommercial signs apply to political signs. Key provisions include: signs cannot be placed in the public right-of-way (planting strip, sidewalk, or utility poles) or on publicly owned property including parks, schools, or city buildings; signs cannot obstruct traffic sight-distance triangles at driveways and intersections; each sign is typically limited to six square feet per face in residential zones and up to 32 square feet in commercial zones; illumination is prohibited for temporary signs; signs may not be attached to street trees, traffic signs, utility poles, or other public fixtures. There is no pre-election posting date cutoff in Auburn code, but most Washington jurisdictions require removal within seven to ten days after the election to which the sign relates. Washington state RCW 42.17A prohibits placing political signs in state right-of-way, and the Washington Public Disclosure Commission enforces campaign-finance disclosure requirements that may apply to sign sponsors. Contact Auburn Planning at 253-931-3090 for sign-code questions.