Roanoke County, VA Business Licensing & Operations: Towing Companies (2026)
Key Facts
- Governing section
- Roanoke County Code § 12-14
- State authority
- Va. Code § 46.2-1217
- Board seats
- Law enforcement, tow operators, public
- Appointment
- By board of supervisors resolution
- Compensation
- Members serve unpaid
- Removal
- With or without cause, any time
Summary
Roanoke County doesn't license towing and wrecker companies directly. Instead, County Code § 12-14 creates a towing advisory board, formed under Virginia Code § 46.2-1217, to advise the board of supervisors on the county's towing ordinances and contracts. The board seats representatives of local law enforcement, towing and recovery operators, and the general public.
Pursuant to Code of Virginia § 46.2-1217, there is hereby created a County of Roanoke towing advisory board to advise the board of supervisors with regard to the appropriate provisions of the County of Roanoke's ordinances or contracts related to towing services. ... The members of the towing advisory board shall be appointed by the board of supervisors, by resolution, and shall include representatives of local law enforcement agencies, towing and recovery operators, and the general public. The members shall be appointed by the board of supervisors for such terms as the board of supervisors may direct. Any vacancy shall be filled by the board of supervisors for the unexpired portion of a term. The members shall serve without compensation. Any member of the towing advisory board may be removed by the board of supervisors with or without cause at any time.
Full Breakdown
Section 12-14 is the only provision in the county code dealing with towing companies as a business; it does not set non-consent tow rates, notification rules or a wrecker license. 2-1217, the state law that lets a locality set up such an advisory body. Membership is drawn from three groups named in the ordinance: representatives of local law enforcement agencies, towing and recovery operators, and the general public. The board of supervisors appoints every member by resolution and sets each member's term; if a seat opens up mid-term, the board of supervisors fills the vacancy only for the remainder of that term.
Members serve without pay, and the board of supervisors can remove any member, with or without cause, at any time. 2 of the Code of Virginia, rather than to a county-issued towing permit.
Violations & Fines
Section 12-14 carries no penalty clause: it neither requires a towing company to hold a county permit nor punishes one for skipping a step, because it only creates the advisory board. A board member appointed by the board of supervisors can simply be removed, with or without cause, at any time; there's no fine or misdemeanor tied to this section for a towing operator.
Frequently Asked Questions
Does Roanoke County license towing companies?
Who sits on Roanoke County's towing advisory board?
Are towing advisory board members paid?
Sources & Official References
Other rules in Roanoke County
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