Bryan, TX

Bryan treats short-term rentals as hotels under its occupancy tax code, requiring every STR operator to register an account with the city before collecting rent, at no charge, with one…

Bryan taxes short-term rental stays under 30 days at 7% of the rental price, collected under the city's hotel occupancy tax article.

Bryan classifies weeds or grass over 12 inches tall as a public nuisance, subject to city abatement, liens, and misdemeanor prosecution.

Bryan prohibits artificial plant materials, including turf, in landscaping required for site-plan-reviewed development, but exempts detached homes, patio homes, townhomes, and duplexes…

Bryan restricts lawn irrigation to designated days and hours only when the city manager activates Stage 1 or higher of the drought contingency plan.

In Bryan's Innovation Corridor overlay, removing a significant tree or clear-cutting a lot requires city approval first, and developers who don't protect qualifying trees must add an…

Bryan bars trees, shrubs, and other landscaping in the public right-of-way from ever blocking vehicle travel on the street or pedestrian travel on the sidewalk, or hiding traffic signs…

Texas Property Code 202.007 prohibits HOAs from banning rainwater harvesting systems, and Health & Safety Code 341.042 sets statewide standards for harvested rainwater used as a…

Bryan has no citywide spay/neuter mandate, but a dog formally declared dangerous by municipal court must be sterilized before release from impoundment.

Bryan confines livestock to properly zoned land, requires 6,000 square feet per animal, and bans staking or tethering.

Feeding feral cats outside a registered community cat colony is unlawful in Bryan, with only trap-neuter-return caregivers exempt.

Bryan prohibits keeping or harboring any wild animal within city limits, with narrow exceptions for licensed commercial dealers and zoos with proper restraint facilities.

Bryan pet shops and stores cannot sell dogs or cats sourced from breeders; every dog or cat offered must come from a city or county shelter or a registered nonprofit rescue.

Bryan households near the city limits may keep no more than four dogs, cats, or a combination of the two without an annual over-four permit.

Bryan regulates dogs by behavior, not breed. A dog declared dangerous after an unprovoked attack must be registered, insured, confined, and collared, or the city orders it euthanized.

Bryan lets residents keep backyard beehives without a permit, but hives must sit 50 feet from neighboring homes, or have a six-foot flyway barrier if closer to a property line, plus an…

Bryan prohibits operating any stationary loudspeaker or amplifier loud enough to disturb people nearby, and bars their use entirely on Sundays absent a council exemption.

Bryan bars noise above street-traffic intensity beyond an industrial property's line, as a zoning performance standard.

Bryan's noise ordinance makes it a nuisance to run a vehicle that rattles or grinds from disrepair, or to vent exhaust without an effective muffler.

Bryan has no fixed nighttime curfew: its noise ordinance bans any unreasonably loud, disturbing sound that disturbs people of ordinary sensibilities, day or night, with violators fined…

Bryan makes it unlawful for an animal's barking, howling, or crowing to disturb the peace and quiet of neighboring properties.

Bryan bars construction noise outside 7:00 a.m. to 7:00 p.m. on weekdays and Saturdays under the city's noise nuisance code.

Bryan requires RVs, boats, and trailers parked in a front yard to sit on a hard-surfaced or curbed-gravel driveway, not bare ground.

Bryan bans parking trucks over 12,000 lbs GVW, motor homes, trailers, truck-tractors, or RVs on any public street or right-of-way, with a five-day guest exception.

Bryan caps commercial loading-zone stops at 30 minutes and lets the city manager designate loading zones by sign after a traffic study.

Bryan prohibits parking trucks over 12,000 pounds, motor homes, trailers, and recreational vehicles on public streets and rights-of-way, with a five-day exception for visiting guests'…

Bryan requires driveways and car/light-truck parking areas to be paved in asphalt or concrete: no gravel, dirt, or grass parking for standard vehicles.

Bryan prohibits keeping a junked vehicle in public view on private property and bans inoperable vehicles on public streets past 24 hours.

Texas Occupations Code chapter 2308 sets the statewide rules for nonconsent towing and vehicle booting. A vehicle owner has 14 business days to demand a hearing in the justice court…

Bryan caps home occupation signage at one non-illuminated, one-square-foot wall sign per property.

Bryan zoning treats in-home child care for six or fewer children as a permitted home occupation, letting residents run a home daycare without a special use permit in any residential…

Bryan allows home occupations by right in residential districts, but bars retail sales, employees outside the household, and any outward business signs beyond one small sign.

Bryan's zoning code allows home occupations only if no clients or customers come to the property, cutting off in-person client visits for most home-based professionals.

Texas does not license cottage food at all. Health and Safety Code Section 437.0191(a) declares that a cottage food production operation is not a food service establishment, and…

Bryan exempts one detached accessory structure under 120 square feet per residential lot from a building permit, if it meets siting rules.

Bryan allows one accessory dwelling unit per residential lot, but it requires a conditional use permit, caps size at 1,000 square feet, and bans renting or selling it separately from…

Texas has no tiny-home-specific statute. Any transportable, chassis-mounted dwelling that reaches 320 square feet is manufactured housing under Occupations Code Chapter 1201, built to…

Bryan requires a battery-powered smoke alarm in every sleeping area of manufactured homes under its residential code amendments.

Bryan's fire code amendments make bonfires illegal everywhere inside the city limits, and give the fire code official standing authority to order any open burning put out if it turns…

Texas Occupations Code Chapter 2154 governs fireworks sales and use, while Local Government Code Chapter 352 limits how counties can restrict consumer fireworks during drought. The…

Selling, transporting, dispensing, or storing propane (LP-gas) in Texas requires a license from the Railroad Commission of Texas under Natural Resources Code Chapter 113. Only the…

Bryan's zoning code caps residential fence height by setback: 36 inches within 25 feet of the street, 6 feet farther back in the front yard, and up to 8 feet once behind the required…

Bryan caps residential yard fences at 36 inches within 25 feet of the street, six feet farther back, and eight feet behind the required front setback line, per the zoning code's…

Under Texas Agriculture Code Chapter 143, Subchapter F, you cannot tear out a fence you jointly own with a neighbor, or one attached to a neighbor's fence, without mutual consent. To…

Bryan requires a building permit before any swimming pool or spa construction begins, enforcing the 2021 International Swimming Pool and Spa Code with a penalty five times the standard…

Bryan requires spas and pools to meet International Swimming Pool and Spa Code barrier standards, with a 48-inch minimum fence height for residential spas and permits required before…

Bryan's Building Standards Commission can order unsafe or dangerous buildings vacated, secured, repaired, or demolished, with the city empowered to abate and lien the property if the…

Bryan requires commercial dumpster pads and screening built to city specs at the owner's expense, with siting set by the city manager and roll-offs limited to permitted private haulers.

The City of Bryan collects residential trash once a week; carts must be curbside by 7:00 a.m. on your scheduled day or the pickup counts as missed and costs an added fee.

Bryan gives residential customers one scheduled load of brush and bulky trash per service day, with strict placement and prep rules the crew will skip if you miss them.

Bryan requires brush cut to 8-foot lengths, curbside by 7 a.m., and separated from bulky items for city collection.

Bryan residents enrolled in curbside recycling must keep the container lid closed at the curb, and only the customer, a private waste hauler, or a city employee may add, remove, or…

Bryan residents must set MSW and recycling carts at the curb by 7:00 a.m. on collection day, and no earlier than 12 hours before.

Dumping brush or municipal solid waste on streets, in drains, or on public or private property is a prohibited act under Bryan's solid waste code, punishable by a fine of up to $2,000…

Bryan requires a special use license before placing awnings, sidewalk cafes, decorative columns, or other private encroachments in the public right-of-way, backed by a $250 fee and…

Bryan prohibits posting, displaying, or carrying any sign in a way that obstructs or interferes with pedestrian or vehicular travel on sidewalks and rights-of-way, with unlawful signs…

Bryan puts sidewalk and driveway repair squarely on the abutting property owner once a defect is deemed unsafe, notice or not.

Bryan's zoning code defines deed restrictions as private covenants and expressly states the city does not enforce them.

Under the Texas Residential Property Owners Protection Act, unpaid assessments become a lien (Tex. Prop. Code § 209.0094), but a Texas HOA may not foreclose that lien without first…

Texas Property Code Chapter 209 governs residential subdivision homeowners associations, not condominium associations and not associations that are themselves subject to the Public…

Property Code Section 202.007 voids any homeowners association rule that bans drought-resistant landscaping or water-conserving natural turf, and Section 202.008 bars fines for a brown…

Texas Property Code section 202.012 stops homeowners associations from banning display of the U.S. flag, the Texas flag, or an official U.S. armed forces flag. An association can…

Texas Property Code Chapter 209 governs HOA fines, but only for mandatory-membership subdivisions; condos fall under Chapter 82 instead. State law sets no dollar cap on a fine, only a…

A Texas property owners' association cannot sell your home at a trustee's sale the way a mortgage lender can. Tex. Prop. Code Section 209.0092 requires the association to obtain a…

Texas Property Code Section 209.016 sets no cap on how much of a subdivision an association can rent out, no minimum lease term, and no grandfather clause: a declaration can still ban…

Bryan caps how long mobile food vendors can sell on public streets and bars them from congested sidewalks, bike lanes, and larger arterials entirely.

Bryan requires every mobile food vendor to hold a city permit before operating, plus the Brazos County Health Department permit displayed on the unit.

Mobile food trucks, carts, and trailers in Bryan can't operate in single-family residential zones except when serving an active building permit, sitting on a retail lot, or in a park…

Bryan has no separate loud-party or social-host law; excessive noise from parties, music, or loudspeakers is prosecuted under the city's general noise nuisance ordinance.

Bryan does not ban public drinking outright: it's illegal only between 2:15 a.m. and 7 a.m. on weekdays, and 2:15 a.m. to noon on Sundays, tied to bar closing hours.

Bryan sets no decibel limit for data centers; instead any noise from cooling systems or generators that disturbs nearby residents' comfort violates the citywide nuisance-based noise…

Bryan zoning allows adult entertainment only as a conditional use in the I, industrial district, with 1,000-foot buffers from schools, hospitals, churches, homes, and other adult…

Towing companies need a $200 city permit before doing nonconsent tows on Bryan streets, plus a licensed storage lot and insurance.

Anyone selling e-cigarettes to Texas consumers must hold an e-cigarette retailer permit issued by the Comptroller, obtained for each place of business under Health and Safety Code…

Bryan closes every city park and recreation area to the public nightly from 11:00 p.m. to 5:00 a.m., with posted signs at each entrance marking the closed hours.

Bryan repealed its juvenile curfew ordinance in September 2023, and the city code currently has no curfew law restricting minors' hours in public.

Bryan limits homes in its R-NC, RD-7, and RD-5 residential districts to 35 feet, with no setback trade-up option: the flat cap applies citywide except for A-O lots, which allow 50 feet.

Bryan sets minimum front, side, and rear yard setbacks by zoning district in a standards table in the Land and Site Development chapter, ranging from 5 feet to 50 feet depending on…

In most Bryan zoning districts, total lot coverage, buildings, parking, driveways, and other impervious surfaces, cannot exceed 75% of the lot under the Chapter 62 building setback and…

Roof-mounted solar panels in Bryan require a building permit and a mandatory third-party special inspection before final approval.

Section 202.010 of the Texas Property Code voids any homeowners association rule that bans or restricts installing a solar energy device, a term that under Tax Code Section 171.107…

Bryan orders any structure, rental or owner-occupied, that is dilapidated, substandard, or otherwise unfit for human habitation to be vacated, repaired, secured, or demolished as a…

Under Tex. Prop. Code § 24.005, a Texas landlord must give a defaulting or holdover tenant at least three days' written notice to vacate before filing a forcible detainer (eviction)…

Under Tex. Prop. Code § 92.019 a residential late fee must be reasonable and may be charged only if written in the lease and the rent stays unpaid two full days after due. A fee is…

Under Tex. Prop. Code § 91.001, either party may end a month-to-month tenancy by giving notice, and the tenancy ends on the later of the date in the notice or one month after notice is…

Texas law forbids cities from adopting rent control. A municipality may not establish rent control unless its governing body finds a housing emergency caused by a disaster and the…

Texas places no statutory limit on how much a landlord can charge for a security deposit. However, the landlord must refund the deposit within 30 days after the tenant surrenders the…

In Texas a squatter can claim title only through adverse possession, with periods that shorten as the claim strengthens: 3 years under title or color of title (§ 16.024), 5 years with…

Bryan enforces carbon monoxide alarms under its amended 2021 IRC Section R315, and closes an exception so plumbing and mechanical permit work also triggers the requirement in existing…

Bryan requires a permit for nearly all electrical work under its adopted 2020 National Electrical Code, issued only to state-licensed contractors or qualifying homeowners.

Bryan enforces the 2021 International Plumbing Code with local amendments, and starting work without a permit triggers a fivefold fee penalty.

Bryan requires a building permit before any interior renovation, remodel, alteration, or repair under its adopted 2021 International Building/Residential Code, and contractors doing…

Bryan requires new and substantially improved residential structures in mapped flood zones to elevate the lowest floor at least one foot above base flood elevation.

Bryan bans non-stormwater discharges into its storm drain system and requires permits and pollution controls for construction sites under its MS4 program.

Bryan requires a city development permit and active erosion and sediment controls, like silt fences, stabilized entrances, and inlet protection, on construction sites until final…

Any construction in Bryan's mapped floodplain needs a floodplain development permit, and new homes must sit at least one foot above the base flood elevation.

Texas prohibits damaging, destroying, or removing a sand dune or its vegetation seaward of a dune protection line or within a critical dune area unless a permit authorizes the work…

Bryan limits window signs to 25 percent of the window surface, with lettering capped at 12 inches tall citywide.

Bryan prohibits garage-sale signs in the public right-of-way and bans stapling them to utility poles, trees, benches, or streetlights citywide; the city seizes and impounds unlawful…

Bryan prohibits billboard signs and all off-premises signs citywide, including changeable-copy digital billboard displays, throughout the city limits and extraterritorial jurisdiction…

Texas Election Code 259.003 and Election Code Section 259.002 protect political signs on private residential property. Cities cannot regulate compliant signs at any time, and HOAs…

Closing a public street for a block party in Bryan requires a street closing event permit from the city manager's office before the gathering can happen.

Bryan requires a special event permit for any festival, street fair, carnival, or similar gathering expected to draw 100 or more visitors, issued by the city manager under Chapter 106…

Bryan requires a special use license before placing a sidewalk cafe with removable chairs and planters on the public right-of-way in downtown, reviewed by the site development review…

Bryan requires a permit before anyone holds a parade, run, race, motorcade or other special event, including any event that closes a public street.

Bryan requires city approval to reserve park pavilions, shelters, ballparks, or hold an organized group gathering in a city park.

Bryan doesn't require a garage sale permit, but city code limits residents to one sale per property every four months, caps sales at 72 hours, and restricts merchandise to used…

Bryan doesn't run a do-not-knock registry, but a posted "No Solicitation," "No Peddlers or Vendors," or "No Trespassing" sign is legally binding, and licensed solicitors must limit…

Door-to-door solicitors, itinerant vendors, and handbill distributors in Bryan must hold a city inspections department license before working, with a $25 fee, $250 bond, and sales…

In Bryan's Innovation Corridor overlay district, outdoor lighting is capped at 0.5 to 1.0 lumens at the property line and every fixture must be shielded with a cutoff angle no greater…

Bryan limits outdoor lighting in its Innovation Corridor overlay to 0.50 lumens at the property line next to homes and 1.0 lumen near nonresidential lots, with all fixtures shielded…

Bryan prohibits camping on any public street or public place, defined to include erecting shelter, sleeping, storing belongings, or living in a parked vehicle, with narrow exceptions…

Bryan requires convenience stores to install and operate a video or digital recording system covering sales areas, retain footage for at least 30 days, and post surveillance signs at…

Texas Health & Safety Code Chapter 487 limits cannabis dispensing to state-licensed Compassionate Use Program providers: expanded to as many as 15 organizations by HB 46 (2025). There…

Texas Health & Safety Code 481.121 makes it a crime to possess or grow marijuana anywhere in the state. Home cultivation is illegal in every Texas city and county regardless of plant…

Texas Government Code Chapter 423 occupies the field of unmanned aircraft regulation. Cities and counties cannot adopt their own recreational drone ordinances, though limited municipal…

Texas Labor Code Section 62.0515 expressly preempts municipal and county minimum wage ordinances. The state minimum wage equals the federal floor of $7.25 per hour, and political…

Texas appellate courts have struck down municipal paid sick leave ordinances in Austin, Dallas, and San Antonio as preempted under the Texas Minimum Wage Act. HB 2127 (2023) further…

Texas authorizes License to Carry (LTC) holders to carry concealed handguns statewide under Government Code Chapter 411. Since 2021, permitless constitutional carry under HB 1927 also…

Texas Local Government Code Section 229.001 broadly preempts municipal regulation of firearms, ammunition, knives, and related accessories. Cities cannot adopt or enforce ordinances…

Texas authorizes open carry of holstered handguns statewide for adults 21 and older under Penal Code 46.02 and HB 910 (2015). Long guns may be openly carried subject to disorderly…

Texas Penal Code 46.02(a-1) lets any non-prohibited adult carry a handgun inside a personally-owned or leased motor vehicle or watercraft without a License to Carry. Since HB 1927…

Texas nonprofits can conduct bingo only under a license from the Texas Department of Licensing and Regulation, which absorbed the Texas Lottery Commission's charitable bingo program on…

Texas Local Government Code Chapter 234, Subchapter E lets any county's commissioners court license, zone, and inspect "game rooms": for-profit businesses with six or more skill or…

Texas Penal Code § 47.02(a) makes betting at cards, dice, or any game of chance a Class C misdemeanor. Section 47.02(b) supplies a defense: gambling that happens in a private place…

Texas licenses no retail sportsbook and no betting app. Placing a wager on the outcome of a game, contest, or a player's performance is a criminal offense under Penal Code §…

The Texas Legislature has authorized exactly one vehicle checkpoint program, and it has nothing to do with alcohol. Government Code Section 411.0095 lets the Department of Public…

Texas has never enacted an express statutory right to film police, so the legal boundary for a bystander with a phone is set by the offense of Interference with Public Duties, Texas…

Texas Penal Code Section 38.02 makes it a crime to refuse your name, residence address, or date of birth only after a peace officer has already lawfully arrested you. Being detained on…

No Texas statute obliges a driver to consent to a vehicle search, and none requires an officer to warn you that you may refuse. What Texas law does require is a paper trail: Article…

Texas lets golf carts onto public roads in four defined situations rather than by general permission: inside a platted master planned community, on a beach open to vehicular traffic…

Texas Local Government Code Chapter 212 and Agriculture Code Chapter 251 limit municipal authority to zone or regulate land qualified for agricultural use appraisal. Counties have no…

The Texas Right to Farm Act, Agriculture Code Chapter 251, protects established agricultural operations from nuisance lawsuits and local regulations after one year of operation. HB…

The Texas Supreme Court in City of Laredo v. Laredo Merchants Association (2018) held that Health and Safety Code Section 361.0961 preempts municipal plastic bag bans. Cities and…

Texas Health and Safety Code Chapter 161 sets the minimum age for purchasing or possessing tobacco and e-cigarette products at 21 statewide, aligned with federal Tobacco 21. Active…

Texas regulates extra lighting by color, count, height and aim rather than by naming underglow. Transportation Code Section 547.305 bars any lamp showing red from directly in front of…

Texas grants no square inches of windshield to a camera. Transportation Code Section 547.613(a)(1) makes it a misdemeanor to operate a vehicle with an object or material placed on or…

Texas banned motorcycle lane splitting in plain words on September 1, 2023. Transportation Code Section 545.0605(a)(3)(B), added by House Bill 4122 of the 88th Legislature, says the…

Texas outlaws license plate covers in Transportation Code Section 504.945(a)(7), which makes it an offense to display a plate carrying a coating, covering, protective substance or…

Texas does not prohibit owning, mounting or using a radar detector in a private passenger vehicle. The one radar offense in the vehicle equipment chapter, Transportation Code Section…

Texas is one of the states that never wrote a studded tire calendar. Transportation Code Section 547.612(c) is the whole of the law: a tire on a moving vehicle may not carry a block…

Texas allows film down to 25 percent light transmission on both front side windows and on the windshield strip, with a matching ceiling of 25 percent luminous reflectance, and it sets…