Shenandoah, TX

Shenandoah, Texas, in Montgomery County, lets utility and telecom facility holders trim trees in or over public rights-of-way only for the safe operation of their own equipment, under…

Shenandoah, Texas caps uncultivated weeds, grass or plants at 12 inches average height under Code of Ordinances § 38-161, and also bars growth extending more than four inches past the…

Any tree in Shenandoah with a trunk diameter of ten inches or more is a protected tree, and Section 98-154 makes it unlawful to damage or remove one without first getting a tree…

Texas Property Code §202.007 protects xeriscaping and native plants from HOA bans. Montgomery County cannot regulate residential landscaping (no zoning). The Woodlands emphasizes…

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…

Shenandoah, Texas lists fifteen specific places where stopping, standing or parking is banned, including sidewalks, driveways, within 15 feet of a fire hydrant and within 20 feet of a…

Shenandoah, Texas designates passenger and freight curb loading zones by police-chief order with council approval, posting signs stating the zone's hours. Passenger loading is capped…

Shenandoah, Texas bars large vehicles, those with more than two axles, over 26 feet bumper-to-bumper, or taller than ten feet, from parking on any public street between 10:00 p.m. and…

Shenandoah, Texas bars trailers, recreational vehicles, boats, jet skis, golf carts, tractors and all-terrain vehicles from parking on any public street between 10:00 p.m. and 7:00…

Shenandoah, Texas police can take an abandoned vehicle into custody from public or private property under Code of Ordinances § 38-201 once it has sat unattended more than 48 hours, or…

Texas Transportation Code §545.307 restricts commercial vehicle parking on county roads. Commercial vehicles must not obstruct traffic or park for extended periods on county-maintained…

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…

Shenandoah, Texas bans playing a radio, phonograph, stereo, boom box or musical instrument loud enough to disturb the peace, quiet, comfort or repose of people in any dwelling…

Shenandoah, Texas bars pouring a slab, demolishing a building, or using commercial or industrial power tools before 7:01 a.m. or after 10:00 p.m. on any day under Code of Ordinances §…

Shenandoah, Texas bans engine-brake (jake-braking) noise, exhausts without a proper muffler, and idling a vehicle more than one hour under Code of Ordinances § 47-3. A separate rule in…

Montgomery County has no ordinance restricting leaf blower or outdoor power equipment use in unincorporated areas. No time, decibel, or equipment-type restrictions exist at the county…

Montgomery County Animal Services (MCAS) enforces animal restraint under the county Rabies Control and Animal Restraint Ordinance. Barking dog complaints are addressed through nuisance…

Shenandoah, Texas bans burning garbage, organic refuse, grass or leaves outside a building at any time under Code of Ordinances § 42-2. Even clearing trees, limbs or roots may only be…

Shenandoah, Texas does not carve out a permit path for recreational fire pits; instead Code of Ordinances § 42-4 bans building or lighting any bonfire close enough to a building or…

Homes built in Grogan's Forest, Shenandoah's PDD 2 planned development in Montgomery County, must install smoke alarms listed and installed to the 2000 International Residential Code…

Montgomery County sits in the Piney Woods with high wildfire risk, especially during drought. The county does not designate formal wildfire hazard zones but uses Local Gov Code Sec…

Texas Occupations Code Chapter 2154 governs fireworks sales and use, while Local Government Code Chapter 352 limits how counties can restrict consumer fireworks during drought. The…

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…

Shenandoah's fence ordinance limits materials to wood, masonry, or wrought iron citywide, unless another code section allows something else. Violations are a Class C misdemeanor…

Texas common law governs fence disputes between neighbors in unincorporated areas. The Texas Good Neighbor Fence Law (TX Agric. Code §74.001) applies to agricultural fences. HOA deed…

Shenandoah's code has no breed-specific ban; a dog is legally "dangerous" based on what it does, not its breed. A dog that attacks or threatens someone must be kept in a locked…

Shenandoah caps household pet ownership at three animals, not counting a litter of animals from birth to four months old. Owning a fourth animal or more is a fineable offense, and…

Shenandoah does not have a citywide mandate to spay or neuter every pet. Its only spay/neuter rule is narrow: anyone who buys an unneutered or unspayed animal from the Montgomery…

Montgomery County prohibits livestock at large. No zoning or lot-size requirements restrict chickens or small livestock in unincorporated areas at the county level. Subdivision deed…

Texas keeps beekeeping light-touch: registration with the Texas Apiary Inspection Service is voluntary, not required to own hives. Beekeepers may register annually with the chief…

Texas Health & Safety Code Chapter 822 Subchapter E governs ownership of dangerous wild animals: lions, tigers, bears, primates, and more. Owners must register with their county or…

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…

Shenandoah regulates pool and spa construction, including barrier and gate standards, by adopting the 2021 International Swimming Pool and Spa Code as city law. The adoption applies…

Above-ground pools over 24 inches deep must meet TX H&S Code §757 barrier rules statewide. Montgomery County cannot require permits; Conroe requires building + electrical permit under…

Texas treats tiny homes by construction: foundation-built follow IRC Appendix Q (400 sq ft), THOWs are RVs under TX Manufactured Housing Act. Montgomery County cannot zone; Conroe…

Texas Cottage Food Law (H&S Code §437.001) allows home-made non-potentially-hazardous food sold directly to consumers up to $50,000/year. CBD/THC products banned. Proper labeling and…

Texas Human Resources Code Chapter 42 governs licensing and registration of home-based child care statewide through HHSC. Registered family homes serve up to 6 children under 14, must…

Conroe caps STR occupancy at 2 adults per bedroom plus 2. Montgomery County cannot set STR occupancy rules in unincorporated areas. The Woodlands covenants prohibit STRs entirely in…

Montgomery County does not require STR registration or permits in unincorporated areas. No county STR policy exists. Property-specific deed restrictions or HOA rules may restrict or…

No county-level noise rules specific to short-term rentals exist. General Texas state law disorderly conduct provisions apply. HOA deed restrictions in many Montgomery County…

Montgomery County has no parking regulations specific to short-term rental properties in unincorporated areas. Subdivision deed restrictions and HOA rules are the primary source of…

Texas imposes a 6% state hotel occupancy tax (HOT) on STR gross receipts. Montgomery County imposes an additional county HOT. Total combined state and county HOT applies to short-term…

Dumping refuse in Shenandoah, Texas carries an enhanced fine of up to $2,000.00 per offense under the city's general penalty ordinance, four times the standard $500.00 cap that applies…

The City of Shenandoah, Texas requires a city-issued permit before any dumpster is placed on private property in city limits, unless the property already holds an active building…

Montgomery County does not provide unincorporated trash service. Residents contract with private haulers (Waste Management, Republic Services, Texas Pride Disposal). Conroe provides…

Montgomery County operates Environmental Services transfer stations in Conroe and Splendora for resident bulk disposal. Private haulers offer bulk pickup in Conroe and The Woodlands…

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…

Shenandoah bans mobile food vending on city rights-of-way, streets and city property altogether, so trucks and carts must operate on private lots. Sec. 18-82 also limits operating…

Every mobile food business, from food trucks to trailers and carts, needs a city-issued mobile business license before operating in Shenandoah, Texas. Sec. 18-81 requires a city sales…

Shenandoah, Texas, in Montgomery County, bans letting a motor vehicle engine idle for more than one hour under the city's noise chapter. The rule sits inside Chapter 47's noisy-vehicle…

Shenandoah, Texas bars anyone from introducing anything other than storm water into its municipal separate storm sewer system (MS4), naming motor oil, industrial waste, sewage, and…

Shenandoah, Texas requires every construction site to use best management practices controlling sediment and soil runoff into the storm sewer system, and sites disturbing one acre or…

Before filling, grading, building or changing the use of any land inside Shenandoah's mapped special flood hazard areas, an owner must obtain a development permit from the city's…

Where FEMA has published a base flood elevation for the site, Shenandoah requires every new or substantially improved home to have its lowest floor, including any basement, built at or…

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…

Shenandoah, Texas bans camping in any public area outside a single city-designated 1.878-acre camping area, defining camping to include storing belongings, cooking, making a fire or…

Shenandoah, Texas closes its parks and playground facilities every night between 9:30 p.m. and 8:00 a.m. under Chapter 54 of the Code of Ordinances. The city administrator or city…

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…

Shenandoah, Texas imposes a 7 percent local hotel occupancy tax on any hotel or motel room costing $2.00 or more a night, collected by the operator and remitted to the city. Late or…

Shenandoah, Texas bans riding roller skates, skateboards, coasters or similar toy vehicles on any roadway, allowing crossing only, at which point the rider gets pedestrian rights and…

Shenandoah, Texas bans drinking alcohol on any public street, sidewalk or alley in the city, whether you're on foot, riding as a passenger, or driving. Throwing an opened container…

Shenandoah, Texas requires any auto wrecker performing non-consent or police-authorized tows to hold an annual unlimited wrecker permit from the police chief, costing $150.00, plus…

Shenandoah, Texas requires any new sexually oriented business enterprise to certify it sits at least 1,500 feet from any child care facility, school, dwelling, hospital, public…

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…

Shenandoah, Texas bans leaving unsightly or unsanitary personal property, junk, machinery or equipment on any lot for ten days or more under Code of Ordinances § 38-142. The city's…

Montgomery County has limited authority over vacant lots in unincorporated areas since Texas counties cannot zone or enforce general nuisance codes like cities. High-grass and…

Shenandoah, Texas requires anyone soliciting or peddling door-to-door in city limits to obtain a permit from the Special Services Division of the Shenandoah Police Department before…

Montgomery County has no no-knock registry. Conroe permits posted no-soliciting signs enforced via peddler ordinance. The Woodlands homeowners rely on village covenants and signage. TX…

Shenandoah has adopted the 2023 National Electrical Code as its governing electrical standard, on top of local wiring amendments: a minimum no. 12/2 copper grounded conductor, grounded…

Shenandoah requires construction to comply with the 2021 International Residential Code and a full slate of 2021 International Codes it has adopted by reference, both inside the city…

Shenandoah governs plumbing construction by adopting the 2021 International Plumbing Code as city law. Installing, modifying, or changing plumbing systems without complying with that…

Site lighting inside Vision Park, the roughly 36-acre planned development along the I-45 frontage in Shenandoah, Montgomery County, may not exceed 33 feet in pole height and must be…

Texas has no just-cause eviction requirement. Montgomery County landlords may terminate month-to-month leases without cause on 30 days' written notice per Property Code §91.001…

Rent control is prohibited statewide under Texas Local Government Code §214.902. Montgomery County and its cities cannot cap rent increases. Landlords may raise rent to market rate…

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 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…

Recreational and medical marijuana dispensaries are banned statewide. Only three TCUP-licensed low-THC dispensaries operate in Texas, none in Montgomery County. CBD and hemp retail…

Home cannabis cultivation is illegal throughout Montgomery County and Texas. Growing any amount is a state felony under Health & Safety Code §481.120. Only CBD under Compassionate Use…

Montgomery County sets no garage sale frequency limits. Texas sales tax law offers occasional-sale exemption for two sales per year under $3,000. HOAs like Bentwater and April Sound…

Texas Property Code §202.010 protects solar installations from HOA bans in Montgomery County. The Woodlands RDRC may require placement adjustments but cannot prohibit solar outright…

Solar installations in Montgomery County require electrical and building permits inside city limits. Conroe issues combined solar permits. Unincorporated areas need only state-licensed…

Garage sale signs in Montgomery County rights-of-way are prohibited under Transportation Code §393.002. Conroe allows temporary signs on private property, max 6 sq ft. The Woodlands…

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…

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…

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…

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…

The Texas Right to Farm Act, Agriculture Code Chapter 251, protects established agricultural operations from nuisance lawsuits and local regulations after one year of operation. HB…

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…

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…