Bexar County has no dedicated defensible-space ordinance, but burn bans, San Antonio weed-lot rules, and Firewise programs encourage 30-foot clearance around structures, especially in western Hill Country neighborhoods.
There is no numeric brush-clearance ordinance for unincorporated Bexar County, so property owners are not forced to create defensible space by law. However, the Bexar County Fire Marshal can declare burn bans during elevated drought and fire weather, and Texas Local Government Code 352.081 prohibits outdoor burning during those periods. San Antonio City Code Chapter 14 treats weeds, rubbish, and brush over 12 inches tall on improved residential lots as a nuisance that the city can abate after notice and lien the costs against the property. Fire-prone Hill Country communities on the western side of the county, including Helotes and Grey Forest, promote Firewise USA practices such as a 5-foot noncombustible zone adjacent to structures, 30-foot lean-clean-green zone, and 100-foot extended zone with spaced tree canopies. Camp Bullis and Government Canyon perform periodic prescribed burns and request adjacent landowners to maintain compatible vegetation buffers.
Contact your local code enforcement office for specific penalty information.
San Antonio, TX
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San Antonio, TX
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San Antonio, TX
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San Antonio, TX
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San Antonio, TX
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San Antonio, TX
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Side-by-side rule comparisons with other cities in Bexar County.
See how other cities in Bexar County handle brush clearance.
See how San Antonio's brush clearance rules stack up against other locations.
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