Monroe County, FL Ordinances (2026)

In the unincorporated Florida Keys (Monroe County), a medical marijuana treatment center dispensing facility cannot locate within 500 feet of any public or private elementary, middle…

In the unincorporated Florida Keys (Monroe County), keeping a wild animal is banned outright unless you run a zoo, licensed exhibition or circus. A wild or exotic pet crossbreed also…

In the unincorporated Florida Keys (Monroe County), there is no cap on the number of dogs, cats or ferrets you can keep. Section 4-77 only requires them to be licensed, vaccinated…

In the unincorporated Florida Keys (Monroe County), pets generally don't need a microchip, but a dog once declared dangerous must be. Section 4-81(t)(5) requires the animal control…

In unincorporated Monroe County, a dog may not run at large on public property or on someone else's private property without permission, and a diseased dog can never be allowed to run…

Chickens, ducks, geese and other livestock cannot be kept, penned or loose, anywhere in unincorporated Monroe County unless the county permits it. Keeping livestock, other than a…

Monroe County has no breed-specific bans; instead a dog is regulated as "dangerous" based on its behavior, such as unprovoked bites, attacks, or dog-fighting use. Once the animal…

An unrestrained cat found roaming without an owner present or an identifying license tag can be judged feral by a Monroe County animal control officer and impounded. Once impounded…

Monroe County requires every dog, cat, and rabbit six months or older to be spayed or neutered unless the owner buys an exemption license. Owners who want to keep an intact pet must…

In the unincorporated Florida Keys (Monroe County), Section 12-119 of the County Code makes it unlawful to feed raccoons, opossums and other wild animals within the sea-turtle nesting…

In the unincorporated Florida Keys (Monroe County), beekeeping is listed as a permitted-by-right use in the Suburban Residential, Suburban Residential (Limited), Native Area, Mainland…

Monroe County created an eight-member Ad-Hoc Committee on Noise for Key West International Airport under Sections 5-26 through 5-31 to bring the county recommendations on aircraft…

A dog that habitually barks, howls, cries or screams at any time of day or night is a legal "nuisance" in unincorporated Monroe County. Once the owner gets notice, the county gives…

In the unincorporated Florida Keys (Monroe County), construction and demolition noise is exempt from the county's general disturbing-noise rule only between 8:00 a.m. and 7:00 p.m…

In the unincorporated Florida Keys (Monroe County), every motor vehicle, moped, scooter and motorcycle must run a properly maintained muffler in constant operation, and rapid throttle…

In the unincorporated Florida Keys (Monroe County), Sec. 17-129 defines amplified sound to cover radios, DJ and stereo equipment, microphones and loudspeakers, and Sec. 17-130(e)…

In the unincorporated Florida Keys (Monroe County), Sec. 17-130(a)(2) makes any sound of 75 dBA or 84 dBC or higher, for more than ten percent of a ten-minute-plus measurement, a…

Monroe County builds its noise curfew around defined 'customary sleeping hours': 10 p.m. to 8 a.m. most nights, 11 p.m. to 8 a.m. on Fridays and Saturdays, under Code Section 17-129…

In the unincorporated Florida Keys (Monroe County), a building the Building Official deems unsafe, fire-hazardous or unsanitary is declared illegal outright under Section 6-27 and must…

In the unincorporated Florida Keys (Monroe County), a shed is no longer exempt from permitting. Section 6-100's permit table has required a building permit for every shed since July 1…

In the unincorporated Florida Keys (Monroe County), Section 6-100 requires a permit for every category of work listed in its table, including all new construction and remodeling of…

In the unincorporated Florida Keys (Monroe County), Section 6-100's permit table requires a permit for all work in the electrical trade, with only normal maintenance or minor repairs…

Unincorporated Monroe County ties every building permit to a sequence of required inspections. The Building Official times and sequences each one, a surveyor-certified foundation…

Monroe County has not adopted a separate green building code for the unincorporated Florida Keys. Instead, the county's Rate of Growth Ordinance (ROGO) permit-allocation system rewards…

In the unincorporated Florida Keys (Monroe County), it is unlawful to possess or drink from an open container of alcohol on any public or semipublic road, right-of-way, parking lot…

Smoking, burning or possessing any lighted cigarette or pipe (unfiltered cigars are the sole exception) is banned in every county-owned public park and beach in the unincorporated…

Skateboarding, rollerblading and bicycling are barred in Monroe County's Key Largo Community Park and Big Pine Key Park except inside the posted skate-and-bike-park areas, where only…

In the unincorporated Florida Keys (Monroe County), Section 17-5 of the County Code makes it unlawful to loiter, stand, sit or lie on public sidewalks, streets, parks, boat ramps or…

In the unincorporated Florida Keys (Monroe County), Sec. 17-7 lets law enforcement cite, rather than arrest, an adult possessing 20 grams or less of marijuana or related paraphernalia…

In the unincorporated Florida Keys (Monroe County), Sec. 17-130 bans making or allowing disturbing noise on any property, and Sec. 17-134(b) puts liability on whoever controls the…

In the unincorporated Florida Keys (Monroe County), every pawnbroker must pay a $337.50 local business tax for each place of business before operating. The county tax collector will…

Tow companies that remove vehicles or vessels from private or public property in the unincorporated Florida Keys without the owner's consent operate under Monroe County's Nonconsensual…

Monroe County taxes junk dealers, scrap metal processors and traveling junk dealers as separate business classifications, and conditions their receipt on more than payment. Monroe…

Monroe County does not run its own massage establishment license; the state licenses massage therapists. The county's own rule requires every massage or bodywork business in the…

Sexually oriented businesses in unincorporated Monroe County must sit at least 500 feet from homes, churches, parks, schools and other adult businesses. Section 134-23 of the Land…

Short-term and vacation rentals in the unincorporated Florida Keys (Monroe County) pay a 1 percent tourist impact tax on top of the county's 4 percent tourist development tax, because…

In unincorporated Monroe County, every permitted vacation rental must silence noise audible off the property by 10 p.m. weekdays and 11 p.m. weekends, staying quiet until 8 a.m. and 9…

Vacation rentals in the unincorporated Keys must keep every vehicle, boat trailer and personal watercraft off the street and out of the yard. Land Development Code Section 134-1(e)…

A Monroe County vacation rental manager loses their license after two strikes in a single year: two unanswered complaints or two violations tied to the manager's duties. Section…

Renting a Florida Keys dwelling unit for under 28 days requires an annual special vacation rental permit under Land Development Code Section 134-1(a), issued by the Planning Director…

Every vacation rental in unincorporated Monroe County needs a licensed manager who lives in the same section of the Keys and answers complaints 24/7, under Land Development Code…

Every hotel, motel, and other short-term lodging in Monroe County, including the unincorporated Florida Keys, collects a 4 percent Tourist Development Tax on rent for stays of six…

On unincorporated Keys county roads, the Board of County Commissioners posts signs to restrict or prohibit parking, standing, or stopping, including one-ton-plus trucks in residential…

No vehicle may be stored on any public right-of-way in the unincorporated Florida Keys, and Monroe County Code § 25-35 presumes any vehicle parked there for more than 72 hours to be…

In the unincorporated Florida Keys (Monroe County), Section 17-2 of the County Code bars keeping an inoperative vehicle, or one unlicensed for ten days or more, on private property in…

In the unincorporated Florida Keys (Monroe County), Sec. 17-6 bars parking and storage of Class 7 and 8 heavy trucks (26,001 lbs. and up), tractor-trailers, and buses seating more than…

In the unincorporated Florida Keys (Monroe County), Sec. 17-6 allows only one RV, camper or cargo van per residential or mobile home lot, bans using it as housing, and bans…

In the unincorporated Florida Keys (Monroe County), any nonresidential building over 100 square feet that receives or ships goods by vehicle must provide off-street loading space. The…

Every owner or occupant of improved property in the unincorporated Florida Keys must use the collector holding the collection agreement for that service area; opting out is not…

Monroe County's franchised haulers give unincorporated Keys residents four free bulk-waste pickups per fiscal year, each capped at two and a half cubic yards, under Monroe County Code…

Every residential property in the unincorporated Florida Keys gets one 96-gallon garbage cart per solid waste assessment paid, and outside the Ocean Reef service area it is the only…

Dumping solid waste anywhere but the county's disposal facility is banned outright under Monroe County Code § 21-76, and waste traced back to a non-subscribing property by mail or…

In the unincorporated Florida Keys (Monroe County), Land Development Code § 114-14 requires every nonresidential, mixed-use and multi-family project to set aside a sized recycling and…

In the unincorporated Florida Keys (Monroe County), every improved property must use the franchised collector for its service area, and Sec. 21-70 requires all domestic solid waste to…

In the unincorporated Florida Keys (Monroe County), Sec. 114-14 of the Land Development Code (Part II) requires every nonresidential, mixed-use, or multi-family development to build a…

In the unincorporated Florida Keys (Monroe County), yard waste and horticultural trash must go in a 32-gallon receptacle and gets picked up once a week under Sec. 21-74(1)(d), capped…

Monroe County classifies every business, profession or occupation by size or type and charges a local business tax keyed to that classification, from flat per-occupation fees to…

Anyone operating a mobile food vending business in the unincorporated Florida Keys, no matter what vehicle is used, must pay Monroe County a $250.00 business tax under Code § 23-89(b)…

In the unincorporated Florida Keys (Monroe County), new and replacement roofs on major structures must be designed to the Florida Building Code's windload standards. After a declared…

After a declared disaster, Monroe County can enter private rights-of-way, gated communities, and canals in the unincorporated Keys to remove debris that threatens health or safety, but…

Motion picture, commercial, and television crews working in the unincorporated Florida Keys need a special, no-fee Monroe County Building Department permit before erecting sets…

Installing solar panels on a single-family home in the unincorporated Florida Keys skips the county's growth-management concurrency review, but it still needs a Building Department…

Monroe County Code Compliance enforces land development, zoning, building, waste disposal, sign, and occupational license violations in the unincorporated Keys. A first citation runs…

In the unincorporated Florida Keys (Monroe County), no one may hold an outdoor public assembly, defined to include flea markets and any gathering expected to draw more than 250 people…

Anyone planning a gathering, tournament or assembly at a Monroe County park must apply and schedule it through the parks and recreation coordinator at least seven days ahead, per Sec…

County parks and beaches in the unincorporated Florida Keys close nightly at 11:00 p.m. and reopen at 7:00 a.m.; anyone who enters or stays past closing violates Sec. 18-1. Harry…

Monroe County treats electric bicycles, motorized scooters and other micromobility devices as one regulated category, "recreational devices," distinct from ordinary bicycles, and Sec…

In the unincorporated Florida Keys (Monroe County), Section 17-4 of the County Code bans camping on any county-owned property, including parks and recreation facilities, at all times…

Flying a drone from the grounds of several named Monroe County parks, including Murray E. Nelson Government Center Park, Rowell's Waterfront Park and Pine Channel Nature Park, is…

In the unincorporated Florida Keys (Monroe County), landscape irrigation that draws solely from reclaimed water, treated wastewater effluent, cistern water, or desalinated water is…

In the unincorporated Florida Keys (Monroe County), Section 12-82 of the County Code bans landscape irrigation between 10:00 a.m. and 4:00 p.m. year-round and limits sprinkler use to…

In the unincorporated Florida Keys (Monroe County), grass and weeds counted as a code violation once they pass eight inches tall under Sec. 21-19, and Sec. 21-20 requires every…

In the unincorporated Florida Keys (Monroe County), property owners can earn landscaping credits for extra native plantings through the County Biologist. A qualifying butterfly garden…

In the unincorporated Florida Keys (Monroe County), property owners can swap turf grass or sod for artificial turf or a native plant bed and count it as a landscaping credit. The…

In the unincorporated Florida Keys (Monroe County), removing any tree, of any size, or heavily pruning one over six inches in trunk diameter requires a development permit. The code…

In the unincorporated Florida Keys (Monroe County), rainwater collection systems are regulated by tank size. Systems over 275 gallons need a building permit with a site plan, while…

In the unincorporated Florida Keys (Monroe County), Section 13-3 of the County Code requires a county fire marshal permit, filed at least 30 days ahead, for any fireworks display, and…

In the unincorporated Florida Keys (Monroe County), Land Development Code § 114-3 requires every stormwater management plan to meet the county's Manual of Stormwater Management…

In the unincorporated Florida Keys (Monroe County), Land Development Code § 114-3(j) requires an erosion-and-sediment-control inspection during and after construction on any project…

In the unincorporated Florida Keys (Monroe County), a private dock cannot exceed ten percent of the waterbody's width and needs both a county shoreline-setback permit and Florida DEP…

In the unincorporated Florida Keys (Monroe County), the Floodplain Management Ordinance in Land Development Code Chapter 122 regulates nearly every kind of development within a mapped…

In the unincorporated Florida Keys (Monroe County), an at-grade detached accessory structure in a special flood hazard area is capped at 600 square feet and one story, and its…

In the unincorporated Florida Keys (Monroe County), Land Development Code § 114-13(a) caps fences and walls at six feet, measured from the highest adjacent finished grade, but cuts…

In the unincorporated Florida Keys (Monroe County), Land Development Code § 114-13(f) lets fences be built of brick, lumber, stone, metal, plaster, concrete or masonry, but bans barbed…

In the unincorporated Florida Keys (Monroe County), Land Development Code § 114-13(h) requires a building permit from the county building department before any fence or wall goes up…

In the unincorporated Florida Keys (Monroe County), Land Development Code § 114-13(d) caps retaining walls at four feet, measured from the lowest existing adjacent grade, and applies…

In the unincorporated Florida Keys (Monroe County), you need a county right-of-way use permit before building or maintaining any driveway, culvert, pavement, structure, or utility line…

In the unincorporated Florida Keys (Monroe County), Sec. 21-20(a) requires every parcel, vacant or improved, to be kept clear of debris, garbage, litter, and refuse that tends to…

In the unincorporated Florida Keys (Monroe County), outdoor lighting is capped by footcandle limits measured right at the property line: 0.3 footcandles for noncutoff fixtures and 1.5…

In the unincorporated Florida Keys (Monroe County), outdoor lighting other than fixtures serving public athletic facilities is capped at 18 feet for noncutoff lights and 35 feet for…

In the unincorporated Florida Keys (Monroe County), the Land Development Code bans planting invasive exotic species anywhere in the county, naming melaleuca, Australian pine, Brazilian…

In the unincorporated Florida Keys (Monroe County), new development and redevelopment along Keys streets must plant native canopy street trees in the front yard setback area. The rule…

In the unincorporated Florida Keys (Monroe County), any development on land within U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service critical habitat or potentially suitable habitat for a federally…

Monroe County limits lot coverage in the unincorporated Florida Keys through a minimum open space ratio rather than a flat percentage cap. Under Land Development Code Section 130-157…

Every parcel in the unincorporated Florida Keys must meet a minimum front, side and rear yard setback set by its land use district under Land Development Code Section 131-1. A Suburban…

Monroe County caps building height at 35 feet across the unincorporated Florida Keys under Land Development Code Section 131-2, with only narrow exceptions for chimneys, antennas and…

Monroe County's home occupation permit flatly bars retail sales or service that brings customers to the residence, and the address cannot appear on any business card or ad. Section…

Running a business from a residence anywhere in unincorporated Monroe County requires a home occupation special use permit from the Planning Director. Section 134-2 caps the use at 20…

A Monroe County home occupation cannot post any sign advertising the business, and none of its activity can be visible from a neighboring dwelling. Section 134-2(d)(6)-(7) keeps a…

The Florida Keys have no interstate freeway, so Monroe County's largest ground-mounted commercial signs are keyed to frontage on U.S. 1, the Overseas Highway. Land Development Code…

In the unincorporated Florida Keys, electronic message centers and digital signs must display static, motionless messages only, with no video, flashing or audio, and are capped at 0.3…

Window signs in the unincorporated Florida Keys are capped at 35 percent of the glass surface and need no sign permit. Land Development Code Section 142-8(a)(12) sets that general…

Monroe County's Historic Preservation Commission can recommend any building, site or object for historic landmark status if it is tied to significant history, notable people…

Beyond a permit, every Monroe County vacation rental must stay registered while operating: Land Development Code Section 134-1(e) requires a signed lease and a guest and vehicle…

In the unincorporated Florida Keys (Monroe County), the Agricultural/Aquacultural Use Overlay layers onto any underlying zoning district but overrides its density and intensity rules…