The Seattle Municipal Code is a codification of the general and permanent ordinances of The City of Seattle, Washington. The first official compilation of the Seattle Municipal Code was adopted in 1980 by Ordinance 109560, under the authority in RCW 35.21.500-570. Municipal Code Corporation (Municode) maintains the Code at the direction of the Office of the City Clerk (under Article IV, § 13.B of the City Charter) and the Code Reviser (under Seattle Municipal Code Chapter 1.03).

The Code is printed in four volumes and organized by subject matter into Titles (such as Title 14), then Chapters (such as Chapter 14.16 in Title 14) and then Sections (such as Section 14.16.050 in Chapter 14.16). In most instances sections are numbered by tens (.010, .020, .030, etc.) to accommodate future provisions without disturbing the numbering of existing provisions. Similarly, Chapters and Titles are numbered to allow for internal expansion. Occasional use is made of divisions like "Subtitle" and "Subchapter" where further classifications are necessary.

In parentheses following each section is a legislative history identifying the specific sources for the provisions of that section. To save time in research, some legislative histories contain bracketed material that explains the effect of a particular ordinance, such as replacing the entire text or only amending the name of a department or head of a department. This legislative history is complemented by a Table of Ordinances Codified, listing by number the ordinances included in the Code, their subjects, and the Chapter(s) where they appear in the codification.

Footnotes and headnotes appear throughout the Code in several forms to explain a variety of different material that the text of the law does not cover.

A few severability clauses appear in footnote form rather than as a Code section. Most ordinances' severability clauses are not codified, in line with state practice under RCW 1.08.017(1).

A subject-matter index of the Code and Charter, with complete cross-referencing, is located at the end of the Code and is referenced to specific Code provisions by their individual section numbers.

This supplement brings the Code up to date through Ordinance 127155, passed November 21, 2024.

Municipal Code Corporation
P.O. Box 2235
Tallahassee, FL 32316-2235
800-262-2633