Cameron County, TX Public Health Rules: Rodent Control (2026)
Key Facts
- Rodent-proofing standard
- windows, doors, hatchways: weathertight and rodent proof
- Exterior wall standard
- free of holes, rot; protected from decay
- Governing provision
- Art. 4 § H.4, item 12
- Enforcement
- Building Official; Commissioners Court contempt power
Summary
Cameron County's housing code requires every window, exterior door and other structure opening to be substantially weathertight, watertight and rodent proof, and kept in sound repair. The rule sits inside the substandard-housing standards enforced by the Building Official under the Flood Damage Prevention and Building Regulations.
Every intended opening in a structure shall be covered with a window, exterior door, basement or cellar door, or hatchway, as applicable, which shall be substantially weathertight, watertight and rodent proof, and shall be kept in sound working condition and good repair.
Full Breakdown
' The requirement sits among the same subsection's minimum requirements for occupied dwellings, alongside working sanitary facilities, hot water, safe egress, sound exterior walls free of holes or rotting boards, and structurally sound roofs, floors and foundations, all aimed at keeping residential buildings safe and sanitary regardless of when they were built. The same subsection separately requires exterior walls be 'free of holes, breaks, or loose or rotting boards or timbers, to the extent that such conditions might admit rain or dampness,' which functions as an added rodent-entry barrier alongside the doors-and-windows rule, and requires exposed wood to be protected from decay by paint or another protective treatment.
4's opening language, treated as failing the housing code's minimum requirements, which the same subsection ties to the broader bar on occupying or renting a substandard dwelling. 024 for any violation of the order's terms.
Violations & Fines
A structure with openings that are not rodent proof or otherwise sound fails Article 4, Subsection H.4's minimum requirements, which the same subsection ties to the county's occupancy bar: no dwelling failing the housing code's standards may be 'permitted to exist.' Violations of the order are contempt of the Commissioners Court under Local Government Code Section 81.024.
Frequently Asked Questions
Does Cameron County require homes to be rodent proof?
What if my rental has holes that let rodents in?
Who enforces the rodent-proofing rule in Cameron County?
Sources & Official References
Other rules in Cameron County
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