Texas City, TX Public Conduct: Loitering Rules (2026)
Key Facts
- Governing section
- Texas City Code of Ordinances § 130.10(C)(3)
- Distance
- 2,500 feet from listed child gathering premises
- Conduct covered
- stop, sit, park, stand or loiter beyond time reasonably necessary
- Listed premises
- playground, school, day care, arcade, youth center, pool, public park
- Penalty route
- § 130.99(A) to § 10.99, fine not exceeding $500
- Landlord rule
- § 130.10(D) bars renting to a barred person within 2,500 feet
Summary
Texas City, Texas makes it unlawful to stop, sit, park, stand or loiter longer than reasonably necessary for legitimate activity within 2,500 feet of playgrounds, schools, day care facilities, youth centers, pools and parks. The rule sits in the city's sex offender residency section, § 130.10.
(1) If a person is required to register on the Department of Public Safety’s sex offender database because of a violation involving a victim who was less than 17 years of age, it is unlawful for that person to establish a permanent residence or temporary residence within 2,500 feet of any premises where children commonly gather, including a playground, school, day care facility, video arcade facility, public or private youth center, public swimming pool, or public park, as those terms are defined in Tex. Health and Safety Code Art. 481.134. ... (3) It is unlawful to stop, sit, park, stand or loiter for any period of time exceeding the amount of time reasonably necessary to engage in legitimate activity within 2,500 feet of such facilities and locations as designated in this section.
Full Breakdown
The loitering language in the Texas City Code of Ordinances is found in § 130.10, Regulation of Sex Offender Residency, adopted by the City Commission. Division (C)(1) first bars a person who must register on the Department of Public Safety's sex offender database because of an offense involving a victim under 17 years of age from establishing a permanent or temporary residence within 2,500 feet of premises where children commonly gather. The list is a playground, school, day care facility, video arcade facility, public or private youth center, public swimming pool or public park.
Division (C)(3) then adds the loitering rule: it is unlawful to stop, sit, park, stand or loiter for any period of time exceeding the amount of time reasonably necessary to engage in legitimate activity within 2,500 feet of such facilities and locations as designated in this section. The division sits inside a section whose findings and prohibitions concern registered sex offenders, and it refers back to the locations listed in division (C)(1). It does not set a fixed number of minutes; the test is time beyond what legitimate activity reasonably requires.
Division (C)(2) explains how distance is measured: in a straight line from the outer property line of the residence to the nearest property line of the premises where children commonly gather. Division (C)(4)(a) states that the section does not modify or reduce the state's Child Safety Zone, and (C)(4)(b) lists exceptions, including a person who was a minor when the offense was committed and was not convicted as an adult, and a person who is a minor.
Division (D) separately makes it unlawful to let or rent property within 2,500 feet of those premises to a person barred from living there. The penalty is found through § 130.99(A), which sends violations to the general penalty in § 10.99.
Obstruction by loafing or lounging on public ways is a different offense, covered in § 90.006.
Violations & Fines
A violation of § 130.10 has no specific penalty of its own, so § 130.99(A) applies the general penalty in § 10.99: a fine not exceeding $500, or $2,000 for cases under the city's fire safety, zoning and public health and sanitation ordinances. Each day a violation continues is a separate offense. The section lists exceptions in (C)(4)(b), including minors and residents who were compliant before the section was adopted.
Frequently Asked Questions
Is there a general loitering ban in Texas City, Texas?
How is the 2,500 feet measured in Texas City?
What places count as child gathering premises?
What is the penalty for violating the Texas City rule?
Sources & Official References
Other rules in Texas City
Texas rules heatmap·Compare Texas City to another location·View the Texas public conduct overview
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