Downey, CA Sign Regulations: Political Signs (2026)

1, the Schedule of Exempt Signs, so putting one up does not require a sign permit from the City Planner. That exemption comes with fixed numbers, though. 1 caps a political sign at 9 square feet with a 36 square-foot ceiling per parcel, and requires "a minimum setback of five feet from the front or street side property line," cross-referencing Section 4118 of the Downey Municipal Code. On nonresidential property the caps roughly triple: 32 square feet per sign, 96 square feet per parcel, with the same five-foot setback measured from the public right-of-way instead of the front property line; buildings or fenced vacant sites with no setback may affix the sign directly to the building face or fencing as long as it does not block access or pedestrian movement.

Both categories share the same removal clock: the tenant or property owner must take the sign down within 10 days of the election it was posted for, and sign copy must conform to the State Election Code. The table also folds in a safety rule that applies regardless of size: a political sign cannot obstruct fire hydrants, block visibility of traffic signs or signals, interfere with directional signage, or sit in the sightline of an intersection or sidewalk. A separate clause makes clear the ordinance does not authorize trespassing to post a sign, so a resident's or property owner's consent still controls where a sign can go.