Clayton County, GA Ordinances (2026)

Open burning of natural vegetation is allowed only outside the summer burn ban and must be at least 25 feet from any structure or property line. You must first obtain a Georgia…

Recreational backyard fires such as campfires and grilling are exempt from Georgia's open-burning ban and are allowed year-round in Clayton County if attended and controlled. Burning…

Consumer fireworks are legal statewide in Georgia. Any day you may use them from 10:00 a.m. to 11:59 p.m., extended on July 3, July 4, New Year's Eve and to 1:00 a.m. on January 1…

Clayton County has no wildfire defensible-space mandate. If you clear brush, you may not burn the debris from May 1 through September 30 under Georgia's summer ozone burn ban. Outside…

Georgia state law requires an approved smoke detector in every dwelling. Detectors must be mounted centrally in the hallway serving bedrooms, on each sleeping level. Clayton County…

Clayton County's Quality of Life Code (Sec. 62-202) makes it unlawful to store appliances, furniture, machinery, scrap, or waste materials outdoors on any developed or undeveloped land…

Clayton County requires owners of abandoned or vacant buildings to board up and secure them against animals, vermin, and trespassers (Sec. 62-203). Vacant and undeveloped lots may not…

Clayton County's Litter Control Code (Sec. 62-30.1) makes it unlawful to dump or leave litter on any public or private property or waters in the unincorporated county without…

Clayton County requires its licensed sanitation contractors to pick up residential garbage at least once a week, and customers must follow strict placement rules under Code of…

Clayton County's zoning ordinance requires every permanent dumpster or trash refuse area in the unincorporated county to sit on a cement pad, stay behind the building, and be fully…

Clayton County's regular collection excludes large appliances, furniture, tires, and other bulky items that a regulation garbage truck cannot compact (Sec. 78-7(6)). Residents must…

Clayton County requires refuse contractors to collect residential solid waste at least once a week, using metal or plastic containers, under a nontransferable, privileged county…

In unincorporated Clayton County, refuse containers stay behind the building line until the scheduled pickup day, when they may be set out no closer than ten feet from the sidewalk or…

Georgia law, incorporated in Clayton County Sec. 78-7(4), bans yard trimmings from municipal landfills. Grass, leaves, and limbs must be separated from household garbage in cans (no…

Article XII sets no fixed guest headcount. Instead, short-term rental occupancy in unincorporated Clayton County is controlled by the county zoning ordinance and by building and fire…

Clayton County levies an 8% hotel-motel excise tax on the charge for short-term lodging. Operators collect it and remit monthly by the 20th, on top of Georgia's 4% state sales tax and…

Clayton County's short-term rental enforcement reaches beyond the property owner: County Code § 22-903 lets the county attorney send a certified cease-and-desist notice, and later seek…

In unincorporated Clayton County, a short-term rental unit, defined as any house, apartment, condo, room or lodging rented to the same tenant for less than 30 days, must sit inside or…

A Clayton County short-term rental permit can be pulled for good after just one uncorrected complaint cycle: the property manager gets 60 minutes to fix a reported problem, a second…

Clayton County allows short-term rentals only inside or adjacent to the owner's occupied dwelling on the same property. Non-owner-occupied, investor-run whole-house rentals are not…

Unincorporated Clayton County requires every short-term rental unit to hold a county permit. Before a permit issues, the property is inspected for compliance with all building and fire…

Clayton County requires every short-term rental to keep guest vehicles on the same lot as the rental unit under Code Sec. 22-901(d), and the county's vacation-rental zoning standards…

Every Clayton County short-term rental must post the county's noise ordinance inside the unit before it is ever rented, per Code Sec. 22-901(e), and the county's separate…

Clayton County has no breed-specific dog ban. Dangerous and vicious dogs are regulated by behavior under Georgia's Responsible Dog Ownership Law (O.C.G.A. 4-8-21) and the county's…

In unincorporated Clayton County, a dog off its owner's property must be leashed and under the direct control of a person able to restrain it. Confinement by fence, pen, cage, trolley…

Any grooming shop operating in unincorporated Clayton County is an "animal establishment" under county code and must hold an annual permit from the animal control unit before opening…

When Clayton County animal control releases a dog impounded for running at large, an unprovoked attack or as a vicious dog, it must implant a microchip and log the owner's contact…

Pet shops may legally sell dogs, cats and other animals in unincorporated Clayton County, but only after obtaining an annual animal-establishment permit and meeting the county's…

Anyone who adopts a dog or cat from a Clayton County shelter, animal control agency or humane society must have it sterilized, either before pickup or within 30 days of adoption (or of…

Clayton County's Mountain View Overlay District, the zoning tier wrapped around Hartsfield-Jackson, bans animal hospitals, veterinary clinics, animal boarding, pet supply stores and…

Clayton County Code Chapter 14, Article III (Wild and Exotic Animals) prohibits keeping listed wild and exotic species, including primates, big cats, wolves, bears, venomous and…

Clayton County runs a community cat program under Sec. 14-350 through 14-352 that traps, sterilizes, rabies-vaccinates and ear-tips free-roaming cats instead of euthanizing them, then…

Horses, cattle, pigs, goats, sheep, and similar livestock are 'farm animals' under Clayton County zoning. A 'farm' means at least three acres, so livestock is limited to…

Clayton County treats a household with more than five dogs or five cats (or a combination of five) over four months old as a 'private kennel.' Keeping animals above that threshold…

In unincorporated Clayton County, grass, weeds, and similar plants on developed land may not exceed ten inches in height (Sec. 62-202(b)). Owners must also keep the property clear of…

Clayton County's Urban and Market Gardens Ordinance (Sec. 6.41) lists rain barrel systems as a permitted structure for any registered urban or market garden and requires garden-permit…

Clayton County's tree ordinance tells builders which species satisfy a tree-density permit, and it makes native species the preferred pick. Sec. 86-70 sets a countywide selection list…

Removing a tree six inches or larger in diameter anywhere in unincorporated Clayton County requires a tree removal permit under the county's Tree Protection Ordinance. Homeowners get a…

Clayton County's Tree Protection Ordinance defines pruning and puts a continuing duty on private property owners to keep trees and shrubs in a safe condition under Code of Ordinances…

Clayton County bars outdoor watering of lawns, gardens and landscaping between 10:00 a.m. and 4:00 p.m. year-round under Code § 98-51, a standing local rule enforced separately from…

Wrecker and towing service operators in unincorporated Clayton County cannot get a business license until the county police department completes a criminal records investigation of the…

Clayton County requires a county license before anyone can operate a sexually oriented business in the unincorporated county, and the business must sit at least 1,000 feet from another…

Anyone who wants to work as a massage therapist or operate a massage establishment in unincorporated Clayton County must first get a license from the county department of community…

Anyone who buys, sells or trades used jewelry, gold or silver items, guns, musical instruments or bicycles in unincorporated Clayton County as a secondhand dealer falls under the same…

Clayton County caps pawnbroker permits at 11 for the entire unincorporated county, and no pawnshop may open without both a current occupation tax certificate and a pawnshop permit…

Tattoo and body-piercing shops in unincorporated Clayton County must follow the county Board of Health's Body Art Rules and Regulations, adopted September 5, 2024 and enforceable under…

Clayton County will not issue a home occupation license for automotive repair, auto sales, or any mobile oil-change business anywhere in unincorporated territory, per Zoning Ordinance…

Clayton County regulates stormwater from new construction under County Code § 38-111.2: any new development adding 5,000 square feet or more of impervious surface, or disturbing one…

Clearing, grading or otherwise disturbing land in unincorporated Clayton County requires an erosion, sedimentation and pollution control permit before work starts. County Code § 38-29…

In Clayton County's Lake Marina District, no one may moor or anchor a watercraft in the mooring area without first registering with the Marina Manager, who assigns slips only by…

Any development activity on land in Clayton County's mapped area of special flood hazard needs a floodplain permit before work starts, under Sec. 46-108 of the county's 2017 Floodplain…

New and substantially improved homes built in Clayton County's mapped future-conditions floodplain must have their lowest floor, including any basement, at least three feet above the…

Clayton County enforces the 2018 International Property Maintenance Code, as locally amended, against every rental property in the unincorporated county, requiring working heat from…

Unincorporated Clayton County requires a mechanical permit before installing solar collectors, charged under the county's per-unit fee schedule. Solar collector panels cost $3.50 each…

In unincorporated Clayton County, a county code inspector, not a resident's own complaint form, is the legal trigger for enforcement. Once the inspector finds a violation of any county…

Clayton County's Code Enforcement Board handles reported violations of zoning ordinances, subdivision regulations, environmental rules, state minimum standard codes, litter and debris…

Once Clayton County gives proper notice of a quality-of-life code violation, the property owner has five business days to fix it. If the deficiency is not corrected in that window, the…

Clayton County requires a permit before anyone builds, alters, moves, demolishes or changes the occupancy of a building, or installs an electrical, gas, mechanical or plumbing system…

Clayton County enforces the National Electrical Code, as adopted and amended by the state, for every electrical installation in the unincorporated county, and Sec. 18-41 requires a…

Clayton County inspects every phase of construction under Section 18-48, requiring a foundation inspection after excavation and before concrete, a frame inspection once framing and…

Clayton County adopts the International Plumbing Code with local amendments under Section 18-71, adding requirements the base code doesn't cover: a catch pan under every washing…

Clayton County's fire code requires an approved automatic sprinkler system throughout all new construction and every new multi-family residential building in the unincorporated county…

A day care center operating out of a commercial building or commercial zoning district in unincorporated Clayton County must give each child at least 35 square feet of indoor play…

Closing any street, sidewalk or public way for a block party in unincorporated Clayton County needs sign-off from the county traffic engineer working with the chief of police under…

A parade or march on any public street or right-of-way in unincorporated Clayton County is a 'special event' under Sec. 22-701 and needs a permit from the director of community…

A festival or celebration in unincorporated Clayton County is a 'special event' requiring a permit, and street vendors selling food, drink or merchandise at it must be authorized in…

Any group of more than 15 people wanting to use a Clayton County park for a picnic, party, sports event, or performance must first get a permit from the parks and recreation…

Anyone going door to door in unincorporated Clayton County to sell, solicit donations or canvass must first obtain a solicitor's permit from the business license division. The permit…

A visible 'no solicitation,' 'no peddling' or 'no trespassing' sign at a Clayton County residence legally bars any permitted door-to-door solicitor from approaching, under Sec. 22-608…

Clayton County's MX Mixed Use District, Sec. 3.35 of the Zoning Ordinance, sets traditional downtown-style design standards: buildings pulled to a zero-foot front setback, storefront…

Clayton County's Code of Ordinances names roller skates, roller blades and skateboarders as authorized users of the county's paved recreation paths and sidewalks, but only "daylight…

Smoking or using any tobacco product, including snuff and chewing tobacco, is unlawful in any Clayton County park. The parks department posts no-smoking signs countywide, and lighting…

Clayton County makes it a misdemeanor to loiter on public property, or on private property open to the public, in a way that breaches the peace, blocks pedestrians or vehicles, or…

Clayton County treats a home hosting loud parties, gunfire, or other disturbances more than four times in twelve months as a "common ill-governed and disorderly place" under Sec…

Clayton County bans drinking alcohol on any public way, including sidewalks, streets, and private parking areas open to the public, and on any county-owned property, under Sec. 62-8…

Clayton County decriminalized possessing less than one ounce of marijuana under Sec. 62-48, effective September 2, 2025. Instead of an arrest, violators face only a civil fine of up to…

Clayton County bans anyone from standing in or entering a street, roadway or highway to solicit money or anything of value from passing traffic, a blanket prohibition adopted in 2000…

Clayton County requires pedestrians in the unincorporated county to cross streets at right angles on marked crosswalks, obey traffic officers and operating signal lights, and look both…

Clayton County requires every new conveyor car wash to install an operational recycled water system before opening, recycling at least 50 percent of the water it uses, under Code §…

Clayton County lets residents keep one unoccupied, currently-tagged travel trailer, motor coach, or pleasure boat for recreational use, but where it can go depends on lot size: rear…

In Clayton County's unincorporated area, an RV, motor coach or boat parked in a front yard must sit on the paved driveway itself, not on grass, gravel or dirt. Sec. 62-204(c) lets…

In Clayton County's commercial and office-institutional zoning districts, a commercial vehicle can only park if it is actively loading or unloading, owned by an on-site business, or…

In unincorporated Clayton County, the fire chief or a designee decides which curbs get painted red under Sec. 42-5(d) of the fire code, marking fire lanes that property owners must…

Passenger cars may generally park on residential streets, but Clayton County cities prohibit heavy and commercial vehicles from parking on any public street within a residential zoning…

Clayton County bars parking on narrow two-lane rights-of-way in the unincorporated county during weekday rush hours, 6:00-8:30 a.m. and 2:15-5:30 p.m., Monday through Friday, under…

Under Georgia's abandoned-vehicle law, a car left unattended on public property for at least five days, or left on private property 30 days without a claim, is 'abandoned' and may be…

Clayton County bans parking most commercial vehicles, buses, and heavy trailers in residential zoning districts outright: limousines, dump trucks, tow trucks, tractor trailers, and…

In the Mountain View Overlay District near Hartsfield-Jackson, Clayton County requires at least one EV charging station for any new development with 100 or more parking spaces, and it…

Every business operating in unincorporated Clayton County must hold an occupation tax certificate, and Section 22-49 requires each business to be classified by its dominant line of…

Clayton County requires commercial and industrial waste containers to carry a cover sturdy enough to keep out flies, insects, and rodents under Code of Ordinances Sec. 78-10…

Anyone installing or maintaining utility lines, pipes, cables, or poles in a Clayton County public road must first get a permit under Code of Ordinances Sec. 82-27. The county director…

In unincorporated Clayton County, a property owner required to build a sidewalk under the county's sidewalk standards can ask the zoning administrator for permission to pay the county…

Clayton County makes it disorderly conduct to obstruct a highway, road, street, sidewalk, passage, or parking area so that it becomes impassable without reasonable inconvenience or…

Clayton County bans unreasonably loud truck parking, loading, and unloading noise, along with outdoor loudspeakers, between 10:00 p.m. and 7:00 a.m. under Sec. 62-3.3(17). The…

Clayton County singles out large, old, or historically significant trees as 'specimen trees' for extra protection under Code of Ordinances Sec. 86-71. Qualifying hardwoods 24 inches in…

Every Clayton County subdivision must line its streets with trees: Sec. 86-160 requires one street tree for every 40 feet of frontage, each at least 2 1/2 inches in caliper, planted…

Clayton County can designate a building, structure, site, or work of art as a protected "landmark" if it is architecturally outstanding, historically or culturally significant, or a…

Clayton County bars anyone 17 or younger from unsupervised public places between 11:00 p.m. and 6:00 a.m. on Sunday through Thursday, and between midnight and 6:00 a.m. on Friday and…

Clayton County parks are open only from sunrise to sunset, and it is unlawful to enter a park or facility outside posted hours. Separately, a countywide youth curfew bars anyone 17 or…

Clayton County doesn't enforce a subdivision's private CC&Rs itself: Sec. 86-139(d) only requires the homeowners association to register with the Department of Community Development…

Clayton County's subdivision ordinance makes homeowners association dues mandatory, not optional: Sec. 86-139(c) says 'homeowner association dues shall be collected regardless of the…

In Clayton County, a subdivision's developer starts out running the homeowners association, not the homeowners. Sec. 86-139(a) has the developer or its representative serve as…

In the East-West Corridor Overlay District's OI, UV and GB zoning districts, Clayton County caps window signage at 10 percent of the window area facing road frontage. The rule sits…

Clayton County allows LED 'Electronic Multiple Message Signs' under Zoning Ordinance Sec. 8.20, but each message must hold for 10 seconds, brightness can't exceed 0.30 foot-candles…

A billboard visible from I-75, I-285 or I-675 in unincorporated Clayton County must sit within 660 feet of the highway right-of-way on a commercial or industrial lot of at least 22,000…

Clayton County bans posting any poster, sign or advertisement, political or otherwise, on or within the right-of-way of any public road under Code § 62-30.7(b). A separate 1971 local…

Clayton County lets you post 'weekend signs' (yard-sale and similar temporary signs) without a permit, but only from 6 p.m. Friday to 8 p.m. Sunday, no larger than 4 square feet per…

In the TOD Residential Support (RT) Overlay near future transit stations, Clayton County requires the lot holding an accessory dwelling unit to be owner-occupied, with the owner free…

Clayton County treats habitable garage quarters as an accessory dwelling. Converting a garage into living space, or building an apartment over a detached garage, is allowed only as a…

Clayton County caps residential sheds and mini-barns at no more than three accessory structures per lot, limits their combined size to half the house's finished floor area, and sets a…

Clayton County allows one accessory dwelling per lot as a conditional use, either inside the primary home or as a freestanding unit over a garage, but only in the AG, ER, and RS-180…

Clayton County has no separate 'tiny home' ordinance. A freestanding backyard living unit is treated as an accessory dwelling: rear yard only, one per lot, and only on lots of at least…

Clayton County caps internally illuminated billboard faces at 20 foot-candles measured 10 feet from the sign structure under Zoning Ordinance Sec. 8.18.L. Externally lit billboards…

Clayton County requires every exterior light fixture to be fully shielded, full cutoff, and aimed downward under the Zoning Ordinance's Outdoor Lighting Standards (Sec. 6.36, OL)…

Clayton County caps how much light can cross onto neighboring property under the Zoning Ordinance's Outdoor Lighting Standards (Sec. 6.36(B)(2)). Light intensity may not exceed 1.0…

Clayton County lets food truck businesses operate countywide once they hold an occupational tax certificate under the county's Food Truck Business Ordinance (Sec. 6.40). Operators must…

Clayton County limits food trucks to commercial property with the owner's written, notarized permission, dedicated food truck courts in non-residential parking lots, or residential…

Building, altering or relocating a fence or wall in unincorporated Clayton County requires a fence permit from the Community Development Department under Zoning Ordinance Sec. 6.30…

Barbed-wire, razor-wire and electrified fences are prohibited on residential property throughout unincorporated Clayton County under Zoning Ordinance Sec. 6.30 (FW-01)(D), with the…

In unincorporated Clayton County, residential chain-link and privacy fences may reach 6 feet in side and rear yards; ornamental fences 4 feet front and 6 feet elsewhere. Any fence in…

Clayton County lets a side- or rear-yard fence sit on the property line only with written consent from all adjacent owners or a certified boundary survey (Sec. 6.30). Fences with one…

Clayton County's zoning ordinance sets no dedicated retaining-wall height limit. Retaining walls are structures needing a building permit, and Sec. 6.34 bars retaining walls from…

Clayton County limits garage and yard sales to three per residential lot in any twelve-month period, with each sale capped at three consecutive days, under the county's Garage and Yard…

Running a home-based business in unincorporated Clayton County means keeping only one customer on-site at a time, since Zoning Ordinance Sec. 6.10 (HO-02)(A)(16) bars any home…

Clayton County zoning permits family day care homes in residential districts subject to state licensing plus local standards: at least 35 square feet of indoor and 200 square feet of…

Clayton County home businesses must hold the appropriate occupational licensing, including a Clayton County business license, and cannot employ anyone who does not reside at the home…

Georgia lets residents make non-potentially-hazardous foods in their home kitchen and sell them directly to consumers. A cottage food operator produces only in their primary…

A home business in unincorporated Clayton County may post one sign, but it cannot exceed 2 square feet and must be mounted to the primary structure under Zoning Ordinance Sec. 6.10…

Clayton County defines an 'electric bicycle' as a two- or three-wheel pedal bike with a motor capped at 1,000 watts that cannot push it past 20 mph and must cut off when the brakes are…

Clayton County's police department may deploy red-light traffic cameras at intersections in the unincorporated county under Sec. 94-37, issuing a civil citation, not a criminal charge…

Clayton County exempts qualifying student films, shot in eight hours or less by currently enrolled students under an accredited school's sponsorship, from the filming permit fee. The…

A Clayton County filming permit that closes any street or lane triggers mandatory off-duty police and can be denied outright if the Director of Public Works finds the closure risks…

Clayton County requires a film or still-photography permit from the Community Development office before shooting on public property, and on private property too if filming interferes…

Clayton County confines residential-zone filming to weekdays, 7 a.m. to 6 p.m., and holds every permitted production to the county's Noise Ordinance standard. Night scenes need…

In unincorporated Clayton County, playing a radio, stereo or other sound device between 11:00 p.m. and 7:00 a.m. that is plainly audible 50 feet away is prima facie evidence of a noise…

Clayton County sets no fixed daily start/stop hours for construction. Loud or prolonged construction noise is judged by the 50-foot reasonable-person standard, and a special noise…

Persistent animal noise is not exempt from Clayton County's noise ordinance. The § 62-3.4(11) farm-noise exception expressly does not cover animal noise within 500 feet of a…

Leaf blowers, mowers, edgers and other domestic power equipment are exempt from Clayton County's noise ordinance only when they have a working muffler and are used 8 a.m.–9 p.m. on…

Clayton County cannot regulate aircraft noise. Section 62-3.4(8) exempts aircraft-related noise while planes are in flight under FAA or Department of Defense jurisdiction…

Outdoor concerts, parades, fireworks displays and other special events are exempt from Clayton County's noise ordinance only when a county permit is obtained, and only within the hours…

Clayton County prohibits loud vehicle exhaust, unnecessary horn use and rattling loads. Modified or special exhaust devices that increase or change a vehicle's sound are banned, and…

Clayton County sets no general decibel meter reading for everyday noise; Sec. 62-3.2 instead bans sound audible 50 feet from its source that disturbs a reasonable person. The code's…

Clayton County requires front, side and rear yard setbacks for every structure, set individually for each zoning district in Article 3 of the zoning ordinance (Sec. 6.4). The exact…

Clayton County sets a maximum building height for each zoning district in the Article 3 layout (Sec. 6.5). Certain features may exceed it: church steeples, private water towers and…

Clayton County caps the maximum lot coverage for every zoning district, but the percentage is set individually for each district in the Article 3 layout (Sec. 6.4). Check your parcel's…

Building a residential pool in unincorporated Clayton County requires a building permit, with fees of $105.00 for a private pool and $280.00 for a public one under Section 18-47(d)(5)…