Yavapai County, AZ Fire Regulations: Brush Clearance (2026)
Key Facts
- Clearance zone
- 30 feet from structures, lines, roads
- Trigger
- Zoning Inspector fire-hazard determination
- Self-help remedy
- county clears brush, bills owner
- Penalty
- up to $750-$10,000 per day
- Governing ordinance
- Ordinance No. 2025-9 Section 302.4
Summary
Yavapai County treats dry, overgrown vegetation as a fire hazard under Property Maintenance Code Section 302.4, once the Zoning Inspector determines it qualifies. Owners must clear all tall dry weeds within 30 feet of any structure, property line, roadway, easement, or right-of-way, or face the same notice-and-abatement process used for ordinary weed violations.
302.4: Weeds. ... This term also includes dry vegetation, constituting a fire hazard as determined by the Zoning Inspector. All tall dry weeds shall be cleared within 30' of any structure, property line, roadway, easement or right-of-way. Upon failure of the owner or agent having charge of a property to cut and destroy weeds after service of a notice of violation, they shall be subject to prosecution in accordance with Section 107.3 and as prescribed by the authority having jurisdiction. Upon failure to comply with the notice of violation, any duly authorized employee of the jurisdiction or contractor hired by the jurisdiction shall be authorized to enter upon the property in violation and cut and destroy the weeds growing thereon, and the costs of such removal shall be paid by the owner or agent responsible for the property.
Full Breakdown
4 of Ordinance No. 2025-9, the International Property Maintenance Code adopted for unincorporated Yavapai County effective January 1, 2026, folds a wildfire clearance rule into the county's general weeds provision. The section states that the definition of regulated weeds also includes dry vegetation constituting a fire hazard as determined by the Zoning Inspector, and that all tall dry weeds shall be cleared within 30 feet of any structure, property line, roadway, easement, or right-of-way. Unlike the flat 6-inch height cap that applies to ordinary weeds, this clearance duty is triggered by the Zoning Inspector's fire-hazard determination and reaches a specific 30-foot buffer around anything the county wants protected, whether that is a building, a fence line, a road, or a utility easement.
4 violation: the owner or responsible agent is served a notice of violation, and if the dry vegetation is not cleared, the county or a contractor it hires may enter the property, clear it, and charge the cost back to the owner. 6 for a violation that continues after notice.
Violations & Fines
Failing to clear tall dry vegetation within 30 feet of a structure, property line, roadway, easement, or right-of-way after the Zoning Inspector flags it as a fire hazard is a Section 302.4 violation. The county can enter the property, clear the brush itself, and bill the owner for the cost, and a Hearing Officer may add fines up to $750 a day for an individual or $10,000 a day for a corporation under Section 107.6.
Frequently Asked Questions
Does Yavapai County require defensible space around my house?
Who decides whether my brush counts as a fire hazard?
What if I don't clear the brush after being notified?
Sources & Official References
Other rules in Yavapai County
Compare Yavapai County to another location·View the Arizona fire regulations overview
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