Austin, TX Code Violation Reporting: Common Violations (2026)

Austin City Code § 10-5-21 puts the burden on whoever controls the land. Subsection (A) sets the duty to keep property in a safe, sanitary condition. Subsection (B) names three things nobody can let accumulate: weeds or grasses more than 12 inches tall, garbage, rubbish, or brush, and filth, carrion, or any other unsightly, objectionable, or unwholesome matter. The rule reaches past the property line to the adjacent curbline, so the strip between a sidewalk and the street counts. Subsection (C) separately bars stagnant water likely to promote disease and orders the person to drain, fill, or re-grade the property.

The 12-inch weed rule has a narrow affirmative defense in § 10-5-21(D). The weeds or grasses must not have reduced visibility or line of sight for the right-of-way, vehicles, cyclists, or pedestrians, and they must sit in one of three places: an area within or adjacent to a stream, waterway, or water quality facility; a landscaped area managed under a City-accepted plan with native or adapted vegetation and periodic maintenance; or city parkland, a greenbelt, nature preserve, or other publicly maintained open space. The defense does not cover trash or filth. The City Manager can also authorize departments to adopt alternative compliance rules that require only specified perimeters to be maintained on large, undeveloped, or minimally developed parcels.

Litter is a separate offense under Article 3. Section 10-5-42 makes it an offense to deposit or throw litter on a street, alley, sidewalk, premises, vacant lot, or public property, including a park or playground. Section 10-5-41 defines litter as garbage, trash, rubbish, ashes, manure, waste, cloth or rags, paper or cardboard, leaves, grass cutting, or refuse. Under § 10-5-43, the owner or occupant of a business or residence must remove litter from the half of the street adjacent to the property within 24 hours after becoming aware of it.

Building work is governed by Chapter 25-12. Section 25-12-3 amends Building Code § 105.2 to list the work that needs no permit, such as a one-story shed of 120 square feet or less, a fence not over seven feet high, a retaining wall not over four feet, and a sidewalk or driveway not more than 30 inches above grade, and most of those exemptions end inside a flood hazard area. Exempt work must still meet the code.