Midland, TX Parking Rules: Abandoned Vehicles (2026)

Chapter 6-6, Public Nuisances, defines a "junked vehicle" in Section 6-6-1 as any self-propelled vehicle missing a current, unexpired license plate or valid inspection certificate; that is wrecked, dismantled, partially dismantled or discarded; or that has sat inoperable for more than 72 consecutive hours on public property or 30 consecutive days on private property. Section 6-6-2 declares such a vehicle a public nuisance if visible from a public place or right-of-way, citing safety, blight, fire-hazard and vandalism concerns. Section 6-6-3 exempts vehicles fully enclosed in a building, or stored on a licensed dealer's or junkyard's lot, or kept by a registered antique-vehicle collector, as long as the storage is orderly, not a health hazard, and screened by a fence, trees or shrubbery.

Before removal, Section 6-6-5 requires a ten-day certified-mail notice to the registered owner, any lienholder, and the property owner or occupant, describing the vehicle and warning that failure to abate within ten days risks removal. Anyone who receives that notice can request a hearing under Section 6-6-6, held between 11 and 45 days after service, at which the City bears the burden of proving the nuisance and the vehicle is presumed inoperable unless the owner shows otherwise. Separately, Section 6-6-12 treats any vehicle left on a city-owned parking facility without permission for more than 90 days as abandoned 48 hours after that period expires, triggering disposal under Texas Transportation Code Chapter 683.