Amarillo, TX Fence Regulations: Material Restrictions (2026)

Section 4-10-271(a) makes barbed wire and razor wire a default prohibition on fencing citywide, then carves out three exceptions. The first covers fencing on property used for agricultural or grazing purposes, common on the ranch and feedlot land ringing the city in cattle country. The second lets nonresidential uses in the Light Commercial, Heavy Commercial, Central Business, Light Industrial and Heavy Industrial Districts run barbed wire as security fencing, but only where the wire sits five feet or more above ground level, keeping it clear of pedestrians at eye level.

The third exception mirrors that same five-foot rule for a site operated by a local, State or federal government agency or by a franchised utility company, covering fenced substations, pump stations and similar infrastructure sites. None of the three exceptions reach ordinary residential fencing: a homeowner in a Residential District cannot add barbed or razor wire to a backyard fence even for security, regardless of height. Subsection (b) separately requires electrical fences, the kind used to contain livestock or deter intrusion with a low-voltage charge, to be installed to the National Electrical Code as adopted by the City, tying compliance to the same electrical inspection process used for wiring and equipment elsewhere in the Code.

Combined with the general fence height and screening rules in Division 7 of Chapter 4-10, this section governs what a fence in Amarillo may be made of, not just how tall it can stand.