Dothan, AL Fire Regulations: Outdoor Burning (2026)

The permit track runs through Sec. 38-33 through Sec. 38-40: applications go to the fire official at least three days before the requested burn date (Sec. 38-34), fees are waived for individual residents but run $50 plus $10 per acre for commercial developments (Sec. 38-36), and a granted permit expires within ten days, though commercial burns can extend to ten days for weather delays. The fire official can revoke any permit for noncompliance, and Sec. 38-40 specifically lists a state-declared outdoor fire ban tied to weather or drought as its own revocation ground, so a statewide burn ban overrides an already-issued city permit.

Several activities need no permit at all: residents may burn leaves and small limbs under three inches where curbside collection is unavailable, but the fire must sit at least 50 feet from the owner's own buildings and 500 feet from any neighboring structure (Sec. 38-32(b)). Contractors may run worker warming fires between October 1 and April 30 in a noncombustible container of 55 gallons or less, kept 25 feet from structures and electrical lines, with an extinguisher within ten feet (Sec. 38-32(d)(2)). Training fires, agricultural burns at least 1,000 feet from occupied buildings, and health-department pest-control burns need only 24 hours' notice (Sec. 38-32(e)). Sec. 38-26 defines open burning as combustion whose byproducts vent directly into the air without passing through an adequate stack, duct or chimney.