Brown County, WI Ordinances (2026)

In unincorporated Brown County, Wisconsin, any habitable structure near a mapped floodplain must set its lowest opening at least two feet above the base or regional flood elevation…

Land-disturbing construction or grading in unincorporated Brown County needs a Chapter 40 permit and $100 fee from the County Highway Commissioner, reviewed within 20 business days…

Brown County Code Chapter 23 (Floodplains), revised 02-15-2023, regulates development in unincorporated areas under Wis. Stat. §87.30 and FEMA NFIP. Three districts: Floodway (FW)…

New developments in unincorporated Brown County disturbing 20,000+ square feet of impervious surface must cut post-construction sediment runoff 80% and control peak discharge under…

Brown County lets storage sheds and other accessory structures sit inside the 20-foot critical slope setback, but caps their combined footprint at 500 square feet in the unincorporated…

Brown County caps how much sound an industrial or commercial source can push across the line into a residential zone, with separate decibel ceilings for daytime and nighttime hours…

Brown County exempts construction sites and public-works projects from its daytime noise-level caps, but the equipment still has to be run and maintained to minimize noise, and long…

Brown County's noise ordinance exempts animal noise, including barking dogs, from its Chapter 39 decibel standards, so a dog's barking alone isn't a Chapter 39 violation.

At night, Brown County bars radios, jukeboxes and other electric sound-amplification devices on commercial or industrial property from being audible 75 feet past the lot line into a…

Brown County's noise ordinance sets sound-level limits for stationary sources but expressly exempts motor vehicles: vehicle stereos, mufflers, and engine noise face no county decibel…

Land within Brown County's District A aircraft noise contour, 65 LDN or greater near Austin Straubel International Airport, is off-limits to new residential, schools, hospitals and…

Brown County Code Chapter 39 (revised 5-1-2002) sets daytime and nighttime sound pressure limits for unincorporated areas. Nighttime amplified sound from commercial/industrial zones…

Dumping garbage, tires, appliances, or other unacceptable materials at a Brown County drop-off recycling center, or leaving recyclables loose on the ground, draws a $200 to $500…

Brown County limits its drop-off recycling centers to single-family and 2-4 unit households; multi-family and commercial properties are barred, and only mixed paper, coded #1/#2…

Brown County exempts noise from residential air conditioners in good working order from its Chapter 39 decibel limits, so a normally functioning home AC unit can't trigger a noise…

When a Brown County shoreland permit requires mitigation, restoring the shoreline buffer's tree and shrub layer earns the full three points; a grass-only buffer without trees earns…

When Brown County landowners restore a shoreland vegetative buffer, every plant species must come from the county's approved Native Plant List, with substitutions requiring sign-off…

Direct sellers and solicitors working the unincorporated towns of Brown County must register with the County Clerk and hold a license before going door to door; Green Bay and the…

Brown County's Health Officer can condemn and placard any dwelling as unfit for human habitation when it is dangerously damaged, decayed, unsanitary or vermin infested, forcing…

Pawnbrokers doing business in unincorporated Brown County, Wisconsin operate under Wis. Stat. § 134.71 as adopted by the county, plus local daily-transaction reporting and…

Brown County adopts the state tattoo and body-piercing code (Wis. Admin. Code ch. HFS 173) by reference, regulating tattooists, body piercers, and their establishments countywide to…

Brown County caps impervious surface at 15% of any lot or parcel within 300 feet of a navigable water's ordinary high-water mark, in the unincorporated towns and shoreland zone, with…

Brown County bans structures over 35 feet within 75 feet of a navigable lake, river or stream's ordinary high-water mark in the unincorporated towns and shoreland zone, not inside…

Brown County requires a 75-foot setback from the ordinary high-water mark for every building and structure in the unincorporated towns and shoreland zone, unless a specific exemption…

Brown County Code § 31.02 bans boisterous, unreasonably loud conduct in public or private places that provokes a disturbance, punishable by up to a $500 forfeiture plus 90 days in jail…

Brown County Code § 31.16(2) bans open containers of alcohol on the streets, sidewalks and parking lots ringing the Brown County Veterans Memorial Arena near Lombardi Avenue and South…

Brown County bans smoking, vaping, and similar inhaling of any plant or e-liquid material anywhere in Fonferek's Glen County Park and within 50 feet of any playground in its parks.

Brown County, WI gives Sheriff's deputies authority to tow any vehicle left unattended over 48 hours in the unincorporated towns, treating it as a public nuisance subject to…

Brown County's public health code bans letting trash, rotting lumber or other debris pile up if it becomes a breeding place for rats or other vermin, enforced countywide by the Health…

Brown County's Health Officer inspects every restaurant and requires the inspection report to be posted inside the restaurant, not hidden from customers or altered.

A parade or procession through a Brown County park or parkway needs a written Parks Director permit filed at least 14 days ahead, with an appeal to the Education and Recreation…

Brown County requires a written Parks Director permit for any public meeting, assembly, or organized sporting event held in a county park or parkway, with longer notice required for…

Brown County bans flashing or illuminated advertising signs and billboards within three miles of Austin Straubel International Airport that could confuse or glare pilots, covering…

Brown County Code § 31.23 sets a 10 p.m. to 6 a.m. curfew for anyone under 17 in public places or business premises, with separate offenses for the minor, the parent, and any…

Brown County shuts every outdoor park area to the public and to motor vehicles from dusk until dawn under County Code § 8.04, unless the Education and Recreation Committee or Parks…

Wis. Stat. §167.10 requires a user's permit for nearly all consumer fireworks (firecrackers, bottle rockets, Roman candles, mortars, aerial repeaters). Permits issued by the mayor…

Wis. Stat. §66.1014 preempts local STR bans for stays of 7 consecutive days or more. Hosts renting more than 10 nights per year must hold a state Tourist Rooming House license from…

Brown County imposes a 10% room tax on short-term rentals under authority of Wis. Stat. §66.0615. Operators must obtain a Tourist Rooming House (TRH) license from Brown County Public…

Brown County does not publish a county-wide STR occupancy cap. Maximum guest counts are governed by the property's state Tourist Rooming House license under Wis. Admin. Code ATCP 72…

Brown County requires a Health Officer license for public swimming pools and applies the state pool sanitation code adopted by reference under its Public Health Ordinance.

Brown County requires a special shoreland permit for decks, patios, gazebos and screen houses built inside the 75-foot shoreland setback, capping their combined floor area at 200…

In unincorporated Brown County, no private on-site wastewater treatment system (POWTS) may be backfilled until the county inspects it. The installing plumber must give at least 24…

Brown County bars pets from county parks generally, allowing dogs only in Parks Director-designated on-leash or off-leash Dog Exercise Areas approved by the County Board.

Brown County treats a new fence in the shoreland zone as development requiring a shoreland permit, unless it is a roadway fence meeting a narrow height and placement exemption in the…