Outdoor Lighting in Pennsylvania (2026)
30 rules on the books across Pennsylvania, 13 cities and counties. Select a rule to read the full details.
Severity: Few Restrictions · Light Restrictions · Some Restrictions · Significant Restrictions · Heavy Restrictions
Dark Sky Rules
Ordinances designed to reduce light pollution, including requirements for shielded fixtures, limits on brightness, and curfews for decorative lighting.
Allegheny County
Some RestrictionsNew subdivisions and land developments in Allegheny County must use IESNA full-cutoff fixtures aimed straight down over…
Read full rule →Allentown
Some RestrictionsAllentown's zoning performance standards require every outdoor light source, including signs, to be diffused and…
Read full rule →Franklin Township
Some RestrictionsIn Franklin Township, Chester County, Pennsylvania, every fixture in every zoning district must be effectively…
Read full rule →Montgomery County
Some RestrictionsMontgomery County has no dark-sky ordinance. Outdoor-lighting and full-cutoff fixture requirements, where they exist…
Read full rule →Philadelphia
Some RestrictionsPhiladelphia zoning requires exterior lighting on new commercial, multifamily, and parking-lot installations to be…
Read full rule →Pittsburgh
Some RestrictionsNew construction and major renovations in Pittsburgh must use shielded, full-cutoff outdoor light fixtures to cut glare…
Read full rule →Pottstown
Some RestrictionsPottstown requires downcast or cutoff-type fixtures on new development and subdivision projects reviewed under Chapter…
Read full rule →Reading
Some RestrictionsReading's zoning code requires all outdoor lighting to be shaded and shielded so it does not glare onto neighbors, caps…
Read full rule →Scranton
Some RestrictionsScranton requires every outdoor light fixture to be shielded and aimed so glare stays off neighboring lots and streets…
Read full rule →Light Trespass & Shielding
Rules preventing outdoor lights from shining onto neighboring homes, shielding and full-cutoff fixture requirements, aiming standards, and footcandle caps at the property line.
Allegheny County
Some RestrictionsAllegheny County's subdivision code requires all outdoor lighting in new developments to be aimed and shielded so it…
Read full rule →Allentown
Some RestrictionsAllentown's zoning code requires every outdoor light source, including signs, to be diffused and shielded so it isn't…
Read full rule →Bethlehem
Some RestrictionsBethlehem's zoning code bars any operation from producing glare that's visible beyond its own property line. Section…
Read full rule →Erie
Some RestrictionsErie's Zoning Ordinance Section 206.13(b)(1) requires every outdoor light in the Industrial Park district, spotlights…
Read full rule →Franklin Township
Some RestrictionsIn Franklin Township, Chester County, Pennsylvania, ambient light spilling from any property may not exceed 0.2…
Read full rule →Montgomery County
Some RestrictionsMontgomery County has no light-trespass rule. Whether stray light spilling onto a neighbor's property is limited…
Read full rule →Penn Hills
Some RestrictionsPenn Hills' swimming pool code bars artificial lighting that shines directly onto a neighbor's property and flatly bans…
Read full rule →Philadelphia
Some RestrictionsPhiladelphia zoning requires shielded, full-cut-off exterior lighting on commercial and multi-family sites so no light…
Read full rule →Pittsburgh
Some RestrictionsPittsburgh's Lighting Code requires new and majorly renovated outdoor lighting to use permanently installed shielding…
Read full rule →Pottstown
Some RestrictionsPottstown's land-development design standards bar exterior lighting that throws glare or light spillage onto…
Read full rule →Reading
Some RestrictionsReading requires off-street parking areas with five or more spaces to be lit for security between sunset and sunrise…
Read full rule →Scranton
Some RestrictionsScranton's zoning code requires every outdoor light fixture to be shielded and aimed so glare stops at the property…
Read full rule →Upper Darby
Some RestrictionsUpper Darby's parking area design standards bar glare from lighting fixtures from reflecting beyond the lot on which…
Read full rule →Billboard Lighting
Lighting standards for outdoor advertising, luminance limits, dwell time, sky-glow mitigation, and curfew hours after which billboards must dim or shut off.
Pittsburgh
Significant RestrictionsPittsburgh caps electronic billboards at 2,500 nits during the day and 250 nits at night, with automatic dimmers and…
Read full rule →Allegheny County
Some RestrictionsExternally lit billboards and signs reviewed under Allegheny County's subdivision code must be top-mounted…
Read full rule →Allentown
Some RestrictionsDigital billboards and other dynamic-display signs in Allentown can't run at full brightness after dark. Zoning…
Read full rule →Erie
Some RestrictionsErie requires every illuminated sign, including billboards regulated under the city's outdoor-advertising rules, to…
Read full rule →Franklin Township
Some RestrictionsFranklin Township, Chester County, Pennsylvania, limits when a freestanding sign or billboard may be lit and folds that…
Read full rule →Philadelphia
Some RestrictionsDigital billboards in Philadelphia must stay under 6,500 nits by day, 450 nits at night, and dim automatically to match…
Read full rule →Reading
Some RestrictionsReading's lighting-control ordinance requires new billboard illumination to be mounted at the top of the sign and aimed…
Read full rule →Scranton
Some RestrictionsScranton ties a billboard's required setback from housing directly to whether the sign is lit: an off-premises sign…
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