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Bossier Parish, LA Fire Regulations: Outdoor Burning (2026)

Significant Restrictions
Compiled from the official code textEditor Martyn O'NeillLast verified September 2026

Outdoor burning rules in Bossier Parish, LA, also called the burn ban, open burning, or fire restriction ordinance, set when you can burn yard waste, debris, or run a recreational fire.

Key Facts

Penalty
Up to $500 fine, 6 months jail, or both
Authority
Each Bossier Parish Fire District, not the Police Jury
Ban scope
All outdoor burning within the district
Duration
Until the fire district lifts it
Notice
Police Jury, sheriff, dispatch, news media notified

Summary

In unincorporated Bossier Parish, the Police Jury authorizes each Bossier Parish Fire District to declare a temporary burn ban within its own district boundaries whenever weather conditions warrant it. Once declared, the ban prohibits all outdoor burning until the fire district itself determines conditions are safe enough to lift it.

These county ordinances apply to unincorporated areas of Bossier Parish. Incorporated cities within the county may have their own rules that take precedence over county-level regulations.

(a)The Bossier Parish Police Jury hereby does authorize the Bossier Parish Fire Districts to impose a temporary burn ban within their district's legal boundaries when weather conditions so warrant.(b)Any temporary burn ban so imposed by the local fire district shall prohibit all outdoor burning until such time as the fire district determines that weather conditions are safe enough to cancel the burn ban.(c)Any person or persons or company or corporation or any person or persons who are individually representing or acting as an agent for any person or persons or company or corporation who violates this ordinance shall be guilty of a misdemeanor and punishable by a fine not to exceed $500.00 plus all costs of court or a jail sentence not to exceed six months or both.

Full Breakdown

Bossier Parish Code § 50-1 gives the Bossier Parish Fire Districts, not the Police Jury directly, the power to impose a temporary burn ban within their own district's legal boundaries whenever weather conditions warrant it. Once a district declares a ban, the ordinance prohibits all outdoor burning in that district until the fire district itself determines conditions are safe enough to lift it, so the duration is tied to weather, not a fixed calendar. The parish is carved into numbered fire protection districts (East-Central Bossier Parish Fire District No.

1, South Bossier Parish Fire District No. 2, Benton Fire District No. 4, Northeast Bossier Parish Fire Protection District No. 5, and Fire Protection District No. S. and each empowered to call its own ban, so an active burn ban in Benton's district does not automatically apply outside its boundaries. Section 50-1(e) requires the district to notify five parties both when a ban is issued and when it is lifted: the Bossier Parish Police Jury, the police juror representing the district where the ban is issued, the Bossier Parish Sheriff's Department, Bossier Parish Communications District No.

1 (the 911 dispatch authority), and all local news media. The ordinance sits under Chapter 50, Fire Prevention and Protection, and cross references the parish's civil emergencies chapter (ch. S. governing state fire marshal authority.

Violations & Fines

Burning outdoors during an active district ban, or causing an unauthorized outdoor fire covered by a ban, is a misdemeanor under § 50-1(c), punishable by a fine of up to $500.00 plus all costs of court, or a jail sentence of up to six months, or both. Prosecution under the ordinance does not affect a violator's civil liability to any party harmed by a fire the violator set, so a criminal fine does not bar a separate damages claim.

Frequently Asked Questions

Who can declare a burn ban in unincorporated Bossier Parish?
The Bossier Parish Fire Districts, not the Police Jury itself, hold that authority under Code § 50-1(a). Each numbered district (East-Central No. 1, South No. 2, Benton No. 4, Northeast No. 5, or District No. 7) can impose a ban within its own boundaries when weather conditions warrant it, so coverage depends on which district you live in.
What happens once a district declares a burn ban?
Section 50-1(b) prohibits all outdoor burning within that district's boundaries. The ban stays in effect until the fire district itself determines weather conditions are safe enough to cancel it; there is no fixed expiration date written into the ordinance.
What is the penalty for burning during a ban?
Violating § 50-1 is a misdemeanor punishable by a fine of up to $500.00 plus court costs, up to six months in jail, or both. Each violator, whether acting personally or as an agent for a company, is individually subject to the penalty, and criminal prosecution does not erase civil liability for fire damage.
How do residents learn that a ban is in effect?
Section 50-1(e) requires the fire district to notify the Bossier Parish Police Jury, the district's police juror, the Sheriff's Department, Bossier Parish Communications District No. 1, and all local news media both when a ban is issued and when it is lifted, so local news outlets are the practical way residents find out.

Sources & Official References

Other rules in Bossier Parish

All Bossier Parish rules

How Bossier Parish compares: Cities with the Strictest Outdoor Burning Rules·Compare Bossier Parish to another location·View the Louisiana fire regulations overview

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