Richland, WA Swimming Pools & Spas: Fencing & Safety Requirements (2026)

Under RMC § 21.01.010, Richland adopts the latest published editions of the state's building codes as amended by the Washington State Building Code Council, and subsection E specifically names the International Swimming Pool and Spa Code, adopted through the International Residential Code and International Building Code, as one of those adopted codes. That adoption makes the ISPSC's barrier, gate, and enclosure requirements for swimming pools and spas part of Richland's own building code, enforced the same way as any other adopted building-code chapter: through the city's building permit and inspection process rather than a separate pool-specific ordinance.

Richland's zoning code layers an additional siting rule on top of the adopted barrier standard: RMC § 23.42.300 requires private pools capable of holding 24 inches or more of water in the AG, SAG, R-1-12, R-1-10, R-2, R-2S, and R-3 zones to sit in the back half or rear yard, or at least 75 feet from a street right-of-way, with a reduced 20-foot setback allowed on corner or double-frontage lots. A related provision, RMC § 23.42.310, requires any private pool used for swimming instruction to be separated from adjoining properties by a six-foot sight-obscuring fence.

Any violation of the adopted building codes in Title 21, including pool barrier noncompliance identified during permitting or inspection, is enforced under RMC § 21.01.050 as either a civil infraction with a minimum $250.00 fine or, for violations outside the civil-infraction track, a criminal misdemeanor under RMC § 9.02.020(C).