Katy, TX

Katy requires every permitted short-term rental to maintain qualifying general liability insurance and provide proof of coverage during the application and renewal process.

Katy STR Article 4.10 (adopted Mar 27, 2023) makes operators civilly and criminally liable for guest noise. Citywide Article 8.04 prohibits sound plainly audible 50 feet away between…

Katy imposes a 7% city hotel occupancy tax on short-term rentals, in addition to the 6% state HOT, with monthly reporting required from operators.

Katy STR Article 4.10 requires parking to comply with the zoning ordinance, prohibits required parking in public right-of-way, alleys, or access easements, and bars yards from being…

Katy requires every short-term rental operator to obtain a city-issued permit before listing or renting a dwelling for periods of less than thirty consecutive days.

Fort Bend County imposes no STR-specific occupancy limits in unincorporated areas. Texas counties lack general police power to regulate STRs under Local Gov't Code Ch. 233. Practical…

Katy's noise ordinance creates a prima facie nighttime quiet period from 11:00 p.m. to 7:00 a.m. for amplified sound and prohibits any noise that disturbs neighbors at any hour.

Katy makes it illegal to run a car stereo, radio, or amplifier so loudly it disturbs neighbors. Between 11:00 p.m. and 7:00 a.m., sound plainly audible 50 feet from the vehicle is…

Katy does not ban leaf blowers but requires noise-creating blowers, power fans, and internal combustion engines to be muffled enough to deaden the noise they produce.

Katy declares it a nuisance for an animal to bark, howl, whine, or otherwise disturb neighbors, and requires the complainant to give the owner prior written notice before filing.

Katy bans loudspeakers cast onto public streets for advertising and prohibits radios, stereos, and amplifiers loud enough to disturb neighbors, with a strict 11 p.m.-7 a.m. audibility…

Katy prohibits the manufacture, sale, possession, and discharge of all fireworks inside city limits under Article 5.07 of its Code of Ordinances. Violators face fines from $25 to $200…

Fort Bend County enforces TCEQ outdoor burning rules and the county Fire Code, with Commissioners Court burn bans triggered during drought conditions.

Selling, transporting, dispensing, or storing propane (LP-gas) in Texas requires a license from the Railroad Commission of Texas under Natural Resources Code Chapter 113. Only the…

Katy defines weeds as rank, uncultivated growth taller than nine inches and forbids them on residential and manufactured-home lots. After a 10-day notice, the city cuts the growth…

Katy's tree ordinance protects trees on public property and rights-of-way, not private lots. Article 1.13 requires protective guards around public trees during construction, controls…

Texas Property Code 202.007 prohibits HOAs from banning rainwater harvesting systems, and Health & Safety Code 341.042 sets statewide standards for harvested rainwater used as a…

Katy's parking article designates specific no-parking zones along Franz Road and Katy-Hockley Road and authorizes posted tow-away signs, with violations punishable as misdemeanors.

Katy prohibits parking commercial vehicles exceeding 10,000 pounds gross weight on any city street, right-of-way, or alley for longer than one hour, with exceptions only for active…

Katy's nuisance code requires owners to keep property free of junked vehicles and authorizes police to impound abandoned vehicles, with a 45-day inoperability test and mandatory…

Texas Occupations Code chapter 2308 sets the statewide rules for nonconsent towing and vehicle booting. A vehicle owner has 14 business days to demand a hearing in the justice court…

Katy classifies exotic animals as livestock subject to the one-acre rule and regulates dangerous wild animals under Texas Health and Safety Code Chapter 822, Subchapter E, with the…

Katy forbids keeping chickens or any fowl on a tract smaller than one acre. On an acre or more, you may keep up to 25 fowl, all confined to closed pens and sited at least 100 feet from…

Katy requires dogs to be on a leash or securely confined within a fence at all times, prohibits dogs from running at large, and authorizes animal control to impound any unrestrained…

Katy declares any livestock, fowl, or animal kept in conditions that disturb neighbors or create unsanitary conditions a public nuisance, allowing animal control to investigate and…

Fort Bend County follows Texas state law allowing beekeeping as a qualifying agricultural use on tracts of 5 to 20 acres, granting agricultural valuation for property tax purposes when…

Fort Bend County cannot ban or restrict any dog breed. Texas Health and Safety Code 822.047 forbids breed-specific local rules; a county may only add stricter requirements on…

Texas lets hunters bait and feed game animals, including deer, on private property statewide. Baiting is unlawful on most public land, for wild turkey in the East Zone, and for all…

Katy's Code of Ordinances and Zoning Ordinance (Exhibit 14A) do not set a numeric maximum fence height for residential lots and require no building permit for fence construction…

Under Texas Agriculture Code Chapter 143, Subchapter F, you cannot tear out a fence you jointly own with a neighbor, or one attached to a neighbor's fence, without mutual consent. To…

Katy regulates signs through Article 3.06 of Chapter 3, restricting moving and intermittent lights and prohibiting unpermitted off-premises signs in residential districts where home…

Katy's zoning ordinance separates commercial daycare from residential uses, classifying "Commercial Daycare, Pre-School, Childcare, Nursery" as a distinct category requiring proper…

Texas does not license cottage food at all. Health and Safety Code Section 437.0191(a) declares that a cottage food production operation is not a food service establishment, and…

Above-ground pools in Katy must obtain the same building permit and meet the same 2021 ISPSC standards as in-ground residential pools.

Katy adopted the 2021 International Swimming Pool and Spa Code and 2021 IRC (effective Jan 1, 2024), which require a 48-inch barrier with self-closing/self-latching gates around…

Texas has no tiny-home-specific statute. Any transportable, chassis-mounted dwelling that reaches 320 square feet is manufactured housing under Occupations Code Chapter 1201, built to…

Christmas displays and similar non-advertising holiday decorations are expressly exempt from Katy's sign regulations but must comply with fire safety rules.

Katy prohibits posting garage sale signs and other bandit signs in public rights-of-way, on utility poles, traffic signs, or attached to public infrastructure.

Fast-changing electronic billboards visible from a county toll road are banned; slow-changing displays and permitted off-premise signs are allowed.

Texas Election Code 259.003 and Election Code Section 259.002 protect political signs on private residential property. Cities cannot regulate compliant signs at any time, and HOAs…

Katy requires every food truck and mobile food unit to obtain a city Mobile Food Vendor permit under Ordinance 3086, valid for one year. Operators must also display a current Harris…

Since July 1, 2026, Katy no longer issues its own mobile food vendor licenses. Every food truck, concession trailer, or pushcart working in the city must hold a statewide Mobile Food…

Mobile food units in unincorporated Fort Bend County vend on private property only with the owner's notarized written permission, or set up in public rights-of-way and parking lots…

Owners of vacant lots in Katy must keep weeds under nine inches and prevent rubbish, stagnant water, or pest harborage on the parcel.

Katy treats high weeds, accumulated rubbish, and unsanitary conditions as nuisances when weeds exceed nine inches or harbor pests.

Katy has adopted the 2021 International Building Code and International Residential Code by reference, so a permit issued by the city's Permit and Building Services Division must be…

New construction and substantial improvements in Katy's FEMA special flood hazard area must set the finished floor at least 12 inches, one foot of freeboard, above the base flood…

Katy's minimum construction standards require storm sewers to contain a two-year storm without surcharging at minimum 0.1% gradient using Class III concrete pipe and follow Harris…

Texas prohibits damaging, destroying, or removing a sand dune or its vegetation seaward of a dune protection line or within a critical dune area unless a permit authorizes the work…

Texas Water Code Section 16.3145 orders the governing body of every Texas city and county to adopt the floodplain-management ordinances or orders needed to qualify for the National…

Texas Water Code Section 26.040 lets the TCEQ issue general permits for storm water discharges. Regulated small municipal separate storm sewer systems obtain coverage under TPDES…

Katy requires a city license and a special use permit to run a sexually oriented business, and the site must sit at least 1,500 feet from churches, schools, day cares, parks, homes…

Anyone selling e-cigarettes to Texas consumers must hold an e-cigarette retailer permit issued by the Comptroller, obtained for each place of business under Health and Safety Code…

Katy Ordinance No. 2243 lets residents block solicitors by posting a weatherproof no-solicitation sign at least one inch tall in bold print near the main entrance, making any further…

Under Ordinance No. 2243, anyone engaged in home solicitation, charitable solicitation, or itinerant peddling in Katy must obtain a permit and register with the Katy Police Department…

Katy residents receive weekly bulk pickup of up to three bulky items plus quarterly Super Heavy Trash collection, with strict limits on prohibited materials.

The City of Katy collects garbage and recycling weekly by color zone - Blue on Monday, Red on Tuesday, Yellow on Wednesday - through Texas Pride Disposal. Find your zone on the service…

Unincorporated Fort Bend County treats uncontained garbage as a public nuisance: refuse left out must sit in a closed, pest-proof receptacle or code enforcement can act.

Texas Health and Safety Code Section 361.425 orders every county, municipality, school district, university, and state agency to run a recycling program that separates and collects at…

Katy operates no red-light cameras. Texas Transportation Code Section 707.020 forbids every local authority, home-rule cities included, from implementing or operating a photographic…

Texas lets golf carts onto public roads in four defined situations rather than by general permission: inside a platted master planned community, on a beach open to vehicular traffic…

New subdivided lots without fire-rated water lines need 25-foot road setbacks and 10-foot side setbacks under county infrastructure rules.

Texas Agriculture Code Section 251.004 shields farms and ranches in unincorporated Fort Bend County from nuisance suits once they have operated lawfully and substantially unchanged for…

Texas Local Government Code Chapter 212 and Agriculture Code Chapter 251 limit municipal authority to zone or regulate land qualified for agricultural use appraisal. Counties have no…

Any outdoor event outside city limits in unincorporated Fort Bend County that expects more than 2,500 people needs a mass gathering permit from the county judge, applied for at least…

Fort Bend County's Fire Code bans charcoal and open-flame grills on combustible balconies and decks, or within 10 feet of combustible construction, with narrow LP-gas exceptions.

New outdoor luminaires over 1800 lumens in unincorporated Fort Bend County must be fully or partially shielded by lamp type and aimed so no light escapes above the horizontal plane…

New outdoor luminaires over 1800 lumens in unincorporated Fort Bend County must be shielded by lamp type, and streetlights near the George Observatory must emit zero uplight under the…

Texas Health & Safety Code Chapter 487 limits cannabis dispensing to state-licensed Compassionate Use Program providers: expanded to as many as 15 organizations by HB 46 (2025). There…

Texas Health & Safety Code 481.121 makes it a crime to possess or grow marijuana anywhere in the state. Home cultivation is illegal in every Texas city and county regardless of plant…

Texas HB 1819 (88th Legislature, 2023), codified at Local Government Code 370.008 (originally 370.007), prohibits all Texas municipalities and counties from adopting or enforcing…

Texas Government Code Chapter 423 occupies the field of unmanned aircraft regulation. Cities and counties cannot adopt their own recreational drone ordinances, though limited municipal…

Texas Labor Code Section 62.0515 expressly preempts municipal and county minimum wage ordinances. The state minimum wage equals the federal floor of $7.25 per hour, and political…

Texas appellate courts have struck down municipal paid sick leave ordinances in Austin, Dallas, and San Antonio as preempted under the Texas Minimum Wage Act. HB 2127 (2023) further…

Texas authorizes License to Carry (LTC) holders to carry concealed handguns statewide under Government Code Chapter 411. Since 2021, permitless constitutional carry under HB 1927 also…

Texas Local Government Code Section 229.001 broadly preempts municipal regulation of firearms, ammunition, knives, and related accessories. Cities cannot adopt or enforce ordinances…

Texas authorizes open carry of holstered handguns statewide for adults 21 and older under Penal Code 46.02 and HB 910 (2015). Long guns may be openly carried subject to disorderly…

Texas Penal Code 46.02(a-1) lets any non-prohibited adult carry a handgun inside a personally-owned or leased motor vehicle or watercraft without a License to Carry. Since HB 1927…

Texas nonprofits can conduct bingo only under a license from the Texas Department of Licensing and Regulation, which absorbed the Texas Lottery Commission's charitable bingo program on…

Texas Local Government Code Chapter 234, Subchapter E lets any county's commissioners court license, zone, and inspect "game rooms": for-profit businesses with six or more skill or…

Texas Penal Code § 47.02(a) makes betting at cards, dice, or any game of chance a Class C misdemeanor. Section 47.02(b) supplies a defense: gambling that happens in a private place…

Texas licenses no retail sportsbook and no betting app. Placing a wager on the outcome of a game, contest, or a player's performance is a criminal offense under Penal Code §…

Under the Texas Residential Property Owners Protection Act, unpaid assessments become a lien (Tex. Prop. Code § 209.0094), but a Texas HOA may not foreclose that lien without first…

Texas Property Code Chapter 209 governs residential subdivision homeowners associations, not condominium associations and not associations that are themselves subject to the Public…

A Texas HOA enforces its recorded restrictive covenants (Tex. Prop. Code Ch. 202), but Chapter 209 controls the procedure: § 209.006 requires certified-mail notice and a cure…

Property Code Section 202.007 voids any homeowners association rule that bans drought-resistant landscaping or water-conserving natural turf, and Section 202.008 bars fines for a brown…

Texas Property Code section 202.012 stops homeowners associations from banning display of the U.S. flag, the Texas flag, or an official U.S. armed forces flag. An association can…

Texas Property Code Chapter 209 governs HOA fines, but only for mandatory-membership subdivisions; condos fall under Chapter 82 instead. State law sets no dollar cap on a fine, only a…

A Texas property owners' association cannot sell your home at a trustee's sale the way a mortgage lender can. Tex. Prop. Code Section 209.0092 requires the association to obtain a…

Texas Property Code Section 209.016 sets no cap on how much of a subdivision an association can rent out, no minimum lease term, and no grandfather clause: a declaration can still ban…

The Texas Legislature has authorized exactly one vehicle checkpoint program, and it has nothing to do with alcohol. Government Code Section 411.0095 lets the Department of Public…

Texas has never enacted an express statutory right to film police, so the legal boundary for a bystander with a phone is set by the offense of Interference with Public Duties, Texas…

Texas Penal Code Section 38.02 makes it a crime to refuse your name, residence address, or date of birth only after a peace officer has already lawfully arrested you. Being detained on…

No Texas statute obliges a driver to consent to a vehicle search, and none requires an officer to warn you that you may refuse. What Texas law does require is a paper trail: Article…

Under Tex. Prop. Code § 24.005, a Texas landlord must give a defaulting or holdover tenant at least three days' written notice to vacate before filing a forcible detainer (eviction)…

Under Tex. Prop. Code § 92.052 a landlord must make a diligent effort to repair conditions that materially affect an ordinary tenant's health or safety after proper notice. Section…

Under Tex. Prop. Code § 92.019 a residential late fee must be reasonable and may be charged only if written in the lease and the rent stays unpaid two full days after due. A fee is…

Under Tex. Prop. Code § 91.001, either party may end a month-to-month tenancy by giving notice, and the tenancy ends on the later of the date in the notice or one month after notice is…

Texas law forbids cities from adopting rent control. A municipality may not establish rent control unless its governing body finds a housing emergency caused by a disaster and the…

Texas places no statutory limit on how much a landlord can charge for a security deposit. However, the landlord must refund the deposit within 30 days after the tenant surrenders the…

In Texas a squatter can claim title only through adverse possession, with periods that shorten as the claim strengthens: 3 years under title or color of title (§ 16.024), 5 years with…

The Texas Supreme Court in City of Laredo v. Laredo Merchants Association (2018) held that Health and Safety Code Section 361.0961 preempts municipal plastic bag bans. Cities and…

Section 202.010 of the Texas Property Code voids any homeowners association rule that bans or restricts installing a solar energy device, a term that under Tax Code Section 171.107…

Texas Health and Safety Code Chapter 161 sets the minimum age for purchasing or possessing tobacco and e-cigarette products at 21 statewide, aligned with federal Tobacco 21. Active…

Texas regulates extra lighting by color, count, height and aim rather than by naming underglow. Transportation Code Section 547.305 bars any lamp showing red from directly in front of…

Texas grants no square inches of windshield to a camera. Transportation Code Section 547.613(a)(1) makes it a misdemeanor to operate a vehicle with an object or material placed on or…

Texas banned motorcycle lane splitting in plain words on September 1, 2023. Transportation Code Section 545.0605(a)(3)(B), added by House Bill 4122 of the 88th Legislature, says the…

Texas outlaws license plate covers in Transportation Code Section 504.945(a)(7), which makes it an offense to display a plate carrying a coating, covering, protective substance or…

Texas does not prohibit owning, mounting or using a radar detector in a private passenger vehicle. The one radar offense in the vehicle equipment chapter, Transportation Code Section…

Texas is one of the states that never wrote a studded tire calendar. Transportation Code Section 547.612(c) is the whole of the law: a tire on a moving vehicle may not carry a block…

Texas allows film down to 25 percent light transmission on both front side windows and on the windshield strip, with a matching ceiling of 25 percent luminous reflectance, and it sets…