Shreveport, LA
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Most looked-up rules in Shreveport
The topics readers look up most across the site, as they apply in Shreveport.
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🏡 Home & Property
🌿 Yard & Garden
🏠 Renting & Housing
🔊 Noise & Neighbors
🐾 Animals & Farming
🔥 Fire & Safety
🚗 Parking & Streets
💼 Business & Licensing
📋 Permits, Signs & Events
🌎 Environment & Utilities
🏊 Swimming Pools & Spas
Pool Permits
Heavy RestrictionsShreveport requires a building permit before installing or altering any swimming pool, and Chapter 22 imposes an unusually hard rule during construction: an in-ground pool excavation…
Fencing & Safety Requirements
Some RestrictionsShreveport treats hot tubs alongside swimming pools. UDC section 7.3.W keeps a private hot tub out of the front yard and out of required side setbacks, and construction must follow the…
🔥 Fire Regulations
Fireworks
Significant RestrictionsDischarging, selling or igniting fireworks anywhere in Shreveport is illegal year-round except inside three windows set by Sec. 30-91: noon June 16 to 10 p.m. June 20, noon July 1 to…
Wildfire Zones
Few RestrictionsShreveport has no wildfire hazard severity zones, no wildland-urban interface code and no defensible-space program. Louisiana does not map fire severity the way western states do, and…
Smoke Detectors
Some RestrictionsShreveport's Unified Development Code ties smoke detector installation to short-term rental licensing. Every permitted short-term rental must keep smoke detectors, carbon monoxide…
Outdoor Burning
Significant RestrictionsOpen burning of any matter outside a building is banned across unincorporated Caddo Parish under § 32-90, with narrow exceptions for attended yard-waste burning, agricultural…
Propane Storage
Some RestrictionsLouisianaThe Louisiana Liquefied Petroleum Gas Commission regulates propane storage, installation, and dispensing statewide under RS 40:1846 et seq., requiring licensed installers, NFPA 58…
🏠 Short-Term Rentals
Noise Rules
Significant RestrictionsShreveport doesn't set a decibel limit for short-term rentals; instead it bans the events that cause noise complaints outright. Weddings, corporate functions, and other large…
Taxes & Fees
Some RestrictionsShreveport's Unified Development Code makes short-term rental fees a City Council matter and requires hosts to collect and remit City and Parish sales taxes plus any occupancy tax on…
Extended Home Share
Some RestrictionsRenting out a spare bedroom or a backyard garage apartment to overnight guests while still living in the home is Shreveport's Type A short-term rental, a distinct permit track from…
Short-Term Rental Parking Rules
Some RestrictionsGuests at a Shreveport short-term rental cannot park on the lawn or landscaped areas. Both Type A and Type B permits carry the identical rule: parking is prohibited in any landscaped…
Host Presence Rule
Some RestrictionsShreveport's Type A short-term rental permit is built around a resident host: on a property with an accessory dwelling unit, the resident can live in either the primary house or the…
Occupancy Limits
Some RestrictionsShreveport limits how many people can stay in a short-term rental based on permit type. A Type A rental, where the host keeps living on site, may not exceed two adults per bedroom…
Short-Term Rental Permits
Some RestrictionsNo one may operate or advertise a short-term rental in Shreveport without a permit first. City Code requires the property owner to obtain a Type A, Type B-1, or Type B-2 short-term…
🔊 Noise Ordinances
Vehicle Noise
Some RestrictionsShreveport bans vehicle sound amplification devices, including car stereos, whose noise is plainly audible more than 50 feet from the vehicle in any direction, under Code of Ordinances…
Decibel Limits
Some RestrictionsShreveport's noise ordinance sets hard decibel ceilings measured at the receiving property line: 55 dBA daytime and 50 dBA nighttime for residential property, 60 dBA around the clock…
Quiet Hours
Some RestrictionsShreveport bars anyone from running sound equipment audible beyond a residential property line between 10:00 p.m. and 10:00 a.m. under Code of Ordinances § 58-29(d). The curfew applies…
Leaf Blower Rules
Some RestrictionsShreveport does not regulate leaf blowers by name and bans no equipment type. Leaf blowers fall under the noise ordinance's exemption for landscaping and yard maintenance equipment…
Barking Dogs
Some RestrictionsShreveport Code § 14-17 bans keeping any animal that unreasonably disturbs neighbors, naming excessive barking specifically. Most nuisance complaints give an owner 24 hours to correct…
Amplified Music & Outdoor Sound
Heavy RestrictionsShreveport rewrote its noise law in November 2023 with hard decibel limits by property type. Any loudspeaker used out of doors or on a vehicle requires a city permit, and enforcement…
Construction Hours
Some RestrictionsShreveport exempts construction, maintenance, repair, demolition and excavation noise from its noise ordinance only between 7:00 a.m. and 7:00 p.m. on weekdays and 7:00 a.m. to 9:00…
🐔 Animal Ordinances
Microchipping
Some RestrictionsShreveport Code § 14-49(5) requires every horse kept inside city limits to carry a permanent ID marker: a microchip, freeze band, or tattoo. Skipping it draws escalating fines, from…
Exotic Pets
Heavy RestrictionsShreveport Code § 14-6 lists tigers, wolves, primates, venomous snakes, alligators and dozens of other wild or exotic species and bans keeping any of them as a pet, for display, or for…
Cat Rules
Light RestrictionsShreveport Code § 14-10 makes trap-neuter-return the city's preferred way to manage free-roaming cats. Once a community cat is sterilized, ear-tipped and vaccinated, a registered…
Pet Limits
Some RestrictionsShreveport Code § 14-16(4)(h) caps outdoor dogs at four per dwelling, with an exception for a litter of pups under five months old. Exceed the limit and an owner can apply for a…
Beekeeping
Some RestrictionsShreveport's UDC lets residents keep bees as an accessory use, but only in the rear yard, 10 feet off the lot line and the house. Hives must be removable-frame, colonies need water on…
Chickens & Livestock
Some RestrictionsShreveport allows up to eight hens per lot in the R-A, R-E, R-1-12, R-1-10, and R-1-7 zoning districts. Roosters are prohibited, hogs are banned citywide, and hoofed livestock face…
Wildlife Feeding
Few RestrictionsShreveport has no ordinance that bans feeding wild animals. Keeping wildlife as a pet is prohibited under section 14-6, and feeding that draws rats or creates odors is reached through…
Breed Restrictions
Few RestrictionsShreveport's code has no breed-specific ban. Section 14-2 defines a 'vicious dog' by what it has done: an attack, a repeat at-large violation after a dangerous classification, or…
Mandatory Spay/Neuter
Significant RestrictionsShreveport does not require every pet spayed or neutered, but a second at-large impoundment does: Code of Ordinances Sec. 14-40(5)(c) forces sterilization and microchipping before the…
Bird Protection
Significant RestrictionsShreveport bans molesting, trapping, shooting or killing any native song or insectivorous bird, or destroying its nest or eggs, under Code of Ordinances Sec. 14-51, with narrow…
Pet Groomer Rules
Some RestrictionsShreveport's UDC classifies pet grooming facilities as part of the broader 'Animal Care Facility' zoning use, alongside veterinary offices, boarding, and training. Under Section 6.1.B…
Dog Leash Laws
Some RestrictionsShreveport Code § 14-36 bans letting a dog run at large on unenclosed land or trespass onto anyone else's property, enclosed or not. An at-large dog is subject to impoundment, and no…
🌿 Landscaping Rules
Tree Trimming
Some RestrictionsShreveport requires owners of trees, shrubs and hedges on sidewalks or overhanging public rights-of-way to keep them trimmed to at least seven feet above sidewalks and fifteen feet…
Composting
Some RestrictionsShreveport's Unified Development Code treats a compost pile as a permitted accessory use in every residential and non-residential district. No building permit is required, but the pile…
Rainwater Harvesting
Few RestrictionsShreveport's code contains no rainwater-harvesting ordinance, no permit and no cistern rules. Rain barrels are lawful. The binding constraint is the Property Standards Code's…
Native Plants
Few RestrictionsShreveport does not require native landscaping. Required trees and plantings must come from the Tree and Plant Palette in UDC Section 10.12, and the MPC Executive Director may approve…
Weed Ordinances
Heavy RestrictionsShreveport caps grass, weeds and wild growth at 12 inches on every occupied, vacant, residential and nonresidential property. Fines escalate from $150 to $350, and city abatement adds…
Artificial Turf
Some RestrictionsShreveport has no ordinance that permits or bans artificial turf by name. UDC Section 10.8 requires every part of a lot not covered by structures or paving to be landscaped with living…
Tree Removal & Heritage Trees
Few RestrictionsA tree removal permit in Shreveport is required for trees 30 inches or larger in caliper in street rights-of-way and other public grounds. Removing a tree on your own lot needs no city…
🚗 Parking Rules
Loading Zones
Some RestrictionsShreveport's traffic engineer designates passenger and commercial vehicle loading zones by ordinance and must post signs stating each zone's hours. Passenger zones cap stops at 15…
Curb Color Rules
Some RestrictionsWhen Shreveport's fire chief or the state fire marshal designates a fire lane, the property owner where that lane sits must paint the curb in a color the fire chief chooses to mark its…
Preferential Parking Districts
Some RestrictionsShreveport's downtown development authority runs five numbered permit parking zones where a valid monthly permit exempts a vehicle from meter charges, and some blocks are permit-only…
EV Charging
Few RestrictionsShreveport imposes no EV-charging mandate. The Unified Development Code affirmatively allows charging spaces in any parking lot or structure and lets them count toward the minimum…
Overnight Parking
Some RestrictionsShreveport sets no general overnight limit on parking a passenger car on a residential street. The restrictions target size and surface: commercial vehicles and RVs face a 9 p.m. to 9…
Abandoned Vehicles
Heavy RestrictionsShreveport gives wrecked or inoperable vehicles 48 hours on private property before they become an abatable nuisance. Inoperable vehicles must be fully enclosed in a garage. The…
Street Parking Limits
Some RestrictionsShreveport prohibits parking in front of any public or private driveway, within an intersection, or alongside any curb painted red, among 19 listed no-parking places. Every vehicle…
RV & Boat Parking
Some RestrictionsShreveport's Unified Development Code lets a recreational vehicle sit on a residential lot, but it cannot become a second home. Section 8.11 bars using an RV for living, sleeping, or…
Driveway Rules
Some RestrictionsShreveport lets residential lots park only on a paved or clearly bordered permanent parking area within the front yard; grass, dirt or an undefined patch does not qualify. That…
Commercial & Oversized Vehicles
Significant RestrictionsShreveport bans parking any bus, truck or trailer bigger than a three-quarter-ton pickup on residential, semi-commercial or commercial streets and alleys, except for active loading…
Towing & Impound Rights
Some RestrictionsLouisianaA tow company may not haul a car out of a Louisiana parking area unless a law enforcement agency authorized the tow, the vehicle was tagged for removal with a dated sticker naming the…
🧱 Fence Regulations
Fence Permit Requirements
Some RestrictionsEvery fence in Shreveport, new construction or a repair to an existing one, needs a building permit under the UDC's general fence requirements. No principal building has to exist…
Material Restrictions
Some RestrictionsShreveport permits wood, plastic, metal, wire mesh and masonry fences, but every fence, including repairs to an existing one, needs a building permit. Barbed and razor wire are…
Retaining Walls
Some RestrictionsShreveport treats retaining walls as miscellaneous construction requiring a building permit, and the engineering department requires a separate land-altering permit with a grading plan…
Height Limits
Some RestrictionsResidential fence height in Shreveport depends on the yard and the fence type. Solid fences are capped at 3 feet in the front yard and 6 feet on corner and reverse-corner sides, open…
Neighbor Fence Rules
Some RestrictionsLouisianaLouisiana Civil Code Articles 685 through 688 establish statewide rules for boundary fences, party walls, and shared fence costs between adjacent landowners. These civil code…
💼 Home Business
Zoning & Home Occupation Permits
Some RestrictionsShreveport requires a certificate of occupancy for any home-based business, renewed every two years, and confines it to a resident-operated activity conducted entirely inside the house…
Cottage Food Operations
Some RestrictionsLouisiana's cottage food exemption, La. R.S. 40:4.9, lets Shreveport residents sell home-prepared low-risk foods without a health license. Shreveport controls only the zoning side…
Home Daycare
Some RestrictionsShreveport's Unified Development Code permits a day care home by right in every residential zoning district. The single zoning condition is that the dwelling keep its original…
Signage Rules
Heavy RestrictionsShreveport bans any sign, display, or activity that shows from outside a house that it's being used for a home-based business. The UDC's home occupation standard requires the use to be…
Customer Traffic Restrictions
Some RestrictionsA Shreveport home-based business may see no more than four clients, patients, pupils, or customers at any one time, and every visit must be scheduled by appointment between 7:00 a.m…
Home Kitchen Operations
Light RestrictionsLouisianaLouisiana issues no microenterprise home kitchen permit. LAC 51:XXIII.501(A) forbids operating a food establishment of any type without a valid permit to operate from the state health…
🏗️ Accessory Structures
ADU Rules
Some RestrictionsShreveport's UDC allows one accessory dwelling unit per lot under Section 6.1.O, whether attached to the main house, built into an existing garage, or fully detached, including…
Tiny Homes
Some RestrictionsShreveport zoning sets no minimum dwelling floor area, so a small permanent house is legal wherever single-family homes are. A tiny house on wheels is treated as a travel trailer and…
Garage Conversions
Significant RestrictionsThe space above a Shreveport detached garage's parking spaces cannot include a kitchen or sleeping area under the UDC, only an office or recreation room, unless it is approved as an…
Shed & Carport Rules
Some RestrictionsA backyard shed in Shreveport is an accessory structure the Unified Development Code lets you build without a permit, as long as it has no permanent foundation. The UDC's accessory-use…
🌍 Environmental Rules
Erosion Control
Heavy RestrictionsShreveport requires an erosion and sedimentation control permit from the Department of Engineering and Environmental Services before clearing, grading, excavating or filling anywhere…
Flood Elevation Requirements
Some RestrictionsNew and substantially improved residential structures in Shreveport's special flood hazard areas must have their lowest habitable floor built at least one foot above the base flood…
Flood Zones
Some RestrictionsBefore any construction or development begins in a Shreveport area of special flood hazard, the owner must get a development permit from the director of public works under Sec. 34-46…
Boat Dock Permits
Some RestrictionsProperty owners along Cross Lake need a city permit before building a pier, boathouse or dock within the lake's 172-foot contour line, under Code of Ordinances section 78-357(a)…
Coastal Development
Few RestrictionsShreveport sits on the Red River in northwest Louisiana, far outside the state Coastal Zone, so no Coastal Use Permit is required. Development near water is instead controlled by the…
Stormwater Management
Heavy RestrictionsShreveport's stormwater quality ordinance bans any discharge to the city storm drainage system, Cross Lake or its tributaries that is not composed entirely of stormwater, and lists…
🚷 Public Conduct
Jaywalking
Some RestrictionsShreveport requires pedestrians to cross only at a marked or unmarked crosswalk in the business district, and bars crossing anywhere else there entirely. Outside the business district…
Public Urination
Some RestrictionsShreveport makes it a criminal offense to urinate or defecate on any street, sidewalk, gutter, alley or driveway within the city. Code of Ordinances Sec. 50-156 carries a fine of up to…
Loitering Rules
Significant RestrictionsWillfully blocking a sidewalk, street, alley, or the entrance to a public building in Shreveport is a crime under Code of Ordinances Sec. 50-140. Anyone who impedes, hinders, or…
Public Marijuana Use
Some RestrictionsShreveport punishes simple marijuana possession with a fine-only summons, not a custodial arrest. Under Code of Ordinances Sec. 50-122, anyone caught with marijuana, THC or its…
Outdoor Smoking Restrictions
Significant RestrictionsShreveport's Smokefree Air Act reaches outdoors too: Sec. 50-212 bans smoking in any playground or park, within 25 feet of a city or parish building entrance, and anywhere on hospital…
Aggressive Panhandling
Significant RestrictionsShreveport doesn't ban panhandling outright, but Code of Ordinances Sec. 50-166 bars soliciting within 15 feet of ATMs, pay phones, bus stops, and building entrances, on posted private…
Skateboarding Rules
Significant RestrictionsRoller skates, roller blades and skateboards are banned outright on any public street, sidewalk, park or other public place inside Shreveport's B-4/Central Business District, with a…
Public Alcohol Use
Significant RestrictionsShreveport Code § 10-190 bans drinking or carrying an open alcoholic beverage on any public street or sidewalk, in a business parking lot, or in public view outside an enclosed…
🍔 Food Trucks & Mobile Vendors
Food Truck Permits
Some RestrictionsOperating a food truck in Shreveport requires a food truck and trailer vendor's license from the Metropolitan Planning Commission at $200 per year, plus insurance, a hold harmless…
Sidewalk & Mobile Vending
Significant RestrictionsSelling from a sidewalk cart in Shreveport is legal only inside the B-4 central business district, and only with a sidewalk vendor's license from the Downtown Development Authority…
Vending Zones
Heavy RestrictionsShreveport food trucks may only operate where a permanent business already holds a certificate of occupancy, in zoning districts the Use Matrix allows. Vacant lots and single-family or…
🚪 Soliciting & Door-to-Door
Solicitor Permits
Heavy RestrictionsDoor-to-door solicitation in Shreveport requires an annual permit for both the company and each individual solicitor, costing $100.00 and backed by a criminal background report…
No-Knock Registry
Some RestrictionsShreveport gives residents a posted-sign remedy rather than a city registry. Permitted solicitors must stop immediately on seeing a no-solicitation sign, and door-to-door work is…
📢 Noise from Specific Sources
Delivery Truck Noise
Some RestrictionsShreveport doesn't give delivery and pick-up trucks their own noise rule; Sec. 58-28(a) folds them into the general noise ordinance, which caps sound at 55 dBA daytime and 50 dBA…
Bar & Nightclub Noise
Some RestrictionsShreveport gives permitted bars, clubs and restaurants their own decibel ceiling instead of the standard residential/commercial limits. Sec. 58-28(d)(5)-(6) allows 75 dBA from 7:00…
🩺 Public Health Rules
Syringe Disposal
Few RestrictionsShreveport authorizes nonprofit and health-department needle exchange programs under Sec. 50-220, covering sharps disposal, naloxone kits and disease-prevention education at no cost to…
Rodent Control
Some RestrictionsNew business buildings, curb markets and farmers' markets in Shreveport must be built ratproof under chapter 58's rodent control article. The health officer can inspect any business…
🏪 Business Licensing & Operations
Pawnbrokers
Some RestrictionsEvery pawnshop and pawnbroker operating in Shreveport must file a daily transaction record with the police department covering jewelry, clothing, firearms, furniture, auto parts and…
Secondhand Dealers
Some RestrictionsAnyone buying, selling or trading used property in Shreveport, from jewelry and tools to salvaged building components, is a secondhand dealer under Code of Ordinances Sec. 42-217 and…
Tobacco Retail License
Significant RestrictionsSelling vapor products, e-cigarettes, vape juice or related devices in Shreveport requires a city permit from the police department before opening, split into a Class VS permit for…
Towing Companies
Significant RestrictionsAny towing company that wants a spot on Shreveport's police rotational list needs a tow truck permit under section 102-140(a), issued separately for each vehicle and good for one year…
Adult Entertainment
Significant RestrictionsOperating a sexually oriented business in Shreveport without a license is unlawful under chapter 72. Owners apply in person to the chief of police, submit a floor diagram, and pay a…
Auto Repair on Residential Property
Heavy RestrictionsShreveport flatly bars repairing or servicing vehicles or heavy machinery as a home-based business. The UDC also blocks storing tractor trailers, semi-trucks, or commercial…
Tattoo & Body Modification
Some RestrictionsShreveport's Unified Development Code treats tattoo parlors and piercing studios as a single 'Body Modification Establishment' use. Section 5.3 defines the use, and the Table 5-1 Use…
🪧 Sign Regulations
Digital Billboards
Significant RestrictionsShreveport allows new electronic billboards only in C-2, C-3, C-4, I-1 and I-2 districts or within 660 feet of an interstate or primary highway on commercial or industrial land, and…
Holiday Displays
Few RestrictionsShreveport has no ordinance governing holiday decorations, no seasonal date windows and no removal deadline. The UDC expressly carves temporary holiday decorations out of its…
Garage Sale Signs
Some RestrictionsShreveport lets you post one garage sale sign on the property holding the sale, with no permit. Off-premise directional signs at intersections are prohibited outright and the city may…
Political Signs
Some RestrictionsShreveport treats political signs as yard signs: permitted in every zoning district, no permit, no cap on how many. The code adds a seven-day post-event removal clause and, in…
Window Signs
Light RestrictionsWindow signs need no permit in Shreveport, but they are not unlimited. UDC Section 9.6 caps every window sign, temporary or permanent, at 30 percent of the surface of each window…
Freeway-Facing Signs
Significant RestrictionsNew billboards in Shreveport are confined to commercial and industrial corridors that sit within 660 feet of a federal interstate or primary aid highway, or to the C-4, I-1, and I-2…
🎪 Special Events & Permits
Parade Permits
Significant RestrictionsShreveport requires a parade permit from the chief of police or a designee before any parade may march or proceed along a city street. Organizers must apply at least one week ahead…
Park Event Permits
Significant RestrictionsHolding a meeting, performance, race, athletic contest or parade in a Shreveport city park needs a permit from the director of public assembly and recreation. Applications must go in…
Parklets
Significant RestrictionsShreveport has no ordinance for parklets built in parking spaces, but downtown restaurants can occupy adjoining sidewalk space under the sidewalk cafe and bistro permit in section…
Block Party Permits
Some RestrictionsCaddo Parish subdivision residents can close subdivision streets for a neighborhood block party only with a permit issued by the sheriff, under Code of Ordinances § 40-12; closing…
Sidewalk Dining & Cafés
Some RestrictionsOutdoor dining counts as a separate principal use under the Caddo Parish Unified Development Code and can only be added alongside a bar or restaurant. Seating must stay on private…
🚶 Sidewalk & Pedestrian Rules
Encroachment Permits
Significant RestrictionsAnyone wanting to build, place or extend something over, under or into a Shreveport street, alley, sidewalk or public right-of-way needs an encroachment permit, authorized by city…
Obstruction Rules
Some RestrictionsShreveport bans two specific ways of blocking or defacing its sidewalks: painting, chalking or imprinting any letter, word, sign or picture on a sidewalk, and leaving a keg, barrel…
🗑️ Trash & Recycling
Dumpster Rules
Some RestrictionsShreveport treats loud garbage-dumpster loading as a declared noise nuisance. Under Sec. 58-46, hauling vehicles cannot dump or load a dumpster between 9:00 p.m. and 6:00 a.m. within…
Yard Waste Collection
Some RestrictionsShreveport residents set tree limbs, grass clippings, garden waste and shrubbery at the curb before the scheduled pickup day, and every load must be containerized under Code of…
Pickup Rules & Schedules
Some RestrictionsShreveport collects household garbage once a week from a 96-gallon cart on the route day set by the city's collection map. Curbside recycling is suspended. A $7 monthly fee rides on…
Recycling Requirements
Few RestrictionsShreveport runs no curbside recycling. The city suspended the program in October 2020 after its hauler contract and the local processing facility both ended, and it delivers no new…
Bin Placement Rules
Some RestrictionsThe city issues each residence one wheeled cart of up to 96 gallons for weekly collection plus a 64-gallon recycling cart. Carts go out no earlier than 24 hours before pickup and must…
Illegal Dumping
Significant RestrictionsShreveport bans dumping dirt, rubbish or any waste, liquid or solid, on any public way, in any river, canal, drain or sewer, or anywhere it could wash into one, under Code of…
Bulk Item Disposal
Some RestrictionsBulk pickup in Shreveport is by appointment only through Public Works. One pile per request, capped at 15 feet long by 6 feet wide and 6 feet high. Building materials, stumps and…
Collection Schedule
Some RestrictionsCaddo Parish runs no curbside pickup route in the unincorporated parish. Residents haul household garbage and trash themselves to parish-operated solid waste collection sites, capped…
🔧 Building Safety
Fire Sprinkler Requirements
Some RestrictionsApartment buildings in Shreveport with three or more dwelling units and no automatic sprinkler system must install an automatic stove-top fire suppression device over every stove under…
Plumbing Permits
Significant RestrictionsShreveport enforces the Louisiana State Plumbing Code, incorporated by reference through Sec. 22-26, and Sec. 22-2 requires every plumber to register annually with the permits and…
Electrical Permits
Significant RestrictionsAnyone who wants to do electrical work in Shreveport must register annually with the permits and inspections division before taking on a job, per Sec. 22-2. Master electricians pay a…
Building Permits
Some RestrictionsShreveport requires anyone doing business in construction, remodeling or repair work regulated by the Louisiana Uniform Construction Code to hold both a city registration and a…
Carbon Monoxide Detectors
Some RestrictionsEvery short-term rental in Shreveport must keep working carbon monoxide detectors, smoke detectors, and fire extinguishers in place at all times the property is occupied by guests…
Building Inspections
Some RestrictionsEvery building, electrical, HVAC and plumbing permit Shreveport issues carries an inspection fee of $68.25, whether the work is inside or outside the city limits, under Sec…
🔑 Rental Property Rules
Repairs & Habitability
Some RestrictionsEvery rental dwelling in Shreveport has to meet the maintenance floor set out in section 38-12 of the Property Standards Code. Owners must keep foundations, exterior walls, roofs…
Rent Control
Few RestrictionsRent control is barred in Shreveport. La. R.S. 9:3258 shields a lessor's lease rights from being altered except by state law, so the city cannot cap rents or limit increases. Rent is…
Just Cause Eviction
Few RestrictionsShreveport has no just-cause eviction ordinance. Louisiana lets a landlord end a lease and evict without stating a reason, using a written notice to vacate of at least five days…
Rental Registration
Few RestrictionsShreveport runs no rental registration or landlord licensing program. Leased housing is policed through Chapter 38 property standards on complaint, and a tenant can force an interior…
Eviction Notice & Process
Heavy RestrictionsLouisianaLouisiana eviction begins with a written notice to vacate giving the lessee 'not less than five days' under La. C.C.P. art. 4701. If the lessee does not leave, the lessor files a rule…
Lease Termination & Notice to Vacate
Some RestrictionsLouisianaA fixed-term Louisiana lease ends automatically at its term with no notice. For an indeterminate (month-to-month) lease, La. Civ. Code art. 2728 requires 10 calendar days' notice for…
Security Deposit Rules
Some RestrictionsLouisianaLouisiana sets no statutory cap on a residential security deposit. Under La. R.S. 9:3251, the landlord must return the deposit, with an itemized statement of any amounts kept, within…
Squatter's Rights & Adverse Possession
Some RestrictionsLouisianaLouisiana uses acquisitive prescription, not adverse possession. Under La. Civ. Code art. 3486, ownership of immovables may be acquired by 30 years' possession with no title or good…
📋 Code Violation Reporting
Response Times
Some RestrictionsWhen someone complains about an inoperable vehicle sitting on a Shreveport property, the department of property standards doesn't just issue a warning and move on. Section 38-31(c)…
How to Report
Light RestrictionsReporting a property-standards violation in Shreveport doesn't require ownership or a lease. Section 38-82(3)a lets any person ask the department of property standards to send an…
🚜 Right to Farm
Agricultural Zoning Protection
Some RestrictionsShreveport's Unified Development Code creates the R-A Rural Agricultural Zoning District specifically to permit single-family homes within agricultural areas while protecting farming…
Farm Nuisance Protection
Some RestrictionsLouisianaLouisiana's Right to Farm Law shields established agricultural operations from nuisance lawsuits when they predate complaining neighbors and follow generally accepted agricultural…
🗺️ Zoning Overlays & Bonuses
🖥️ Data Centers & Crypto Mining
💡 Outdoor Lighting
Billboard Lighting
Some RestrictionsBillboard lighting in Shreveport is tightly numeric. UDC Section 9.8.E requires every electronic billboard to run a dimmer and a photocell that reads ambient light automatically, and…
Light Trespass & Shielding
Some RestrictionsShreveport draws a hard numeric line on spillover: the maximum allowable footcandle at any lot line is one footcandle, and no glare onto adjacent properties is permitted…
Dark Sky Rules
Some RestrictionsShreveport has adopted no dark-sky ordinance, no International Dark-Sky Association standard and no lamp color-temperature ceiling. Unified Development Code Section 7.2 still delivers…
🚁 Drone Rules
Recreational Drones
Few RestrictionsRecreational drone flying in Shreveport is governed by FAA rules, not a city ordinance, because Louisiana preempts local drone regulation. The one live local rule is that model…
Commercial Drones
Few RestrictionsShreveport has no commercial drone ordinance and cannot adopt one. Louisiana claims exclusive jurisdiction over unmanned aircraft and preempts every local drone rule, leaving FAA Part…
☀️ Solar Energy
HOA Restrictions
Some RestrictionsLouisiana forbids any person or entity from unreasonably restricting a property owner's right to install a solar collector. The protection does not override zoning, servitudes, or…
Panel Permits
Some RestrictionsShreveport allows building-mounted and freestanding solar panels in every district as an accessory use. A building permit under the adopted state construction code applies, and the UDC…
🏚️ Property Maintenance
Property Blight
Heavy RestrictionsShreveport runs blight enforcement through the department of property standards and an administrative environmental court. Inspectors serve notices, hearing officers order abatement…
Vacant Lot Maintenance
Heavy RestrictionsOwners of vacant lots must cut grass and weeds once growth reaches 12 inches, clear vegetation on the abutting sidewalk, and keep junk and debris off the property. Wooded parcels…
Snow & Sidewalk Clearing
Few RestrictionsShreveport imposes no snow or ice clearing duty on property owners; the code contains no such provision. Abutting owners instead must keep sidewalks in good repair, sweep them daily…
🌱 Cannabis Regulations
Dispensary Zoning
Heavy RestrictionsShreveport has no dispensary provisions at all. Neither the Code of Ordinances nor the Unified Development Code mentions marijuana as a land use. Retail access runs entirely through…
Home Cultivation
Heavy RestrictionsLouisiana permits no home cultivation of marijuana, medical or otherwise. Producing or manufacturing a Schedule I substance is a felony under state law, and Shreveport's local…
🌙 Curfew Laws
Juvenile Curfew
Heavy RestrictionsShreveport bars anyone under 18 from public property and public businesses between 10:00 p.m. and 5:00 a.m., with the curfew starting at midnight on Friday and Saturday. Parents and…
Park Curfew
Some RestrictionsShreveport city parks close at 9:00 p.m. in standard time and 10:00 p.m. during daylight saving time, opening at 5:00 a.m. A second tier closes at 8:00 p.m., and several riverfront…
📐 Building Setbacks & Zoning
Setback Rules
Some RestrictionsRequired front, interior side, corner side and rear setbacks in Shreveport come from Unified Development Code Table 4-1 and change district by district. Article 7 then lists which…
Structure Height Limits
Some RestrictionsEvery Shreveport residential zoning district caps building height at 35 feet, measured from grade to the highest point of the roof. Commercial and industrial districts run higher, and…
Lot Coverage Limits
Some RestrictionsShreveport's Unified Development Code sets two separate caps on every lot: maximum building coverage and maximum impervious surface. Table 4-1 fixes both by zoning district, so a…
🌳 Tree Protection
Heritage & Protected Trees
Few RestrictionsShreveport designates no heritage, landmark or specimen trees. Neither the Unified Development Code nor Chapter 98 creates a protected-tree list, a diameter-based designation on…
Parkway Planting
Light RestrictionsWant to plant a tree in the parkway strip between the curb and the sidewalk? Shreveport's UDC requires notifying the Public Works Department or the Parks and Recreation agency, SPAR…
🛴 Mobility & Curb Rules
Bike Lane Rules
Light RestrictionsShreveport requires a cyclist to use a bicycle path once one has been built alongside a roadway, rather than riding in the street. Riders otherwise keep to the right side of the…
Shared E-Scooter Rules
Heavy RestrictionsShreveport prohibits operating any electric low-speed scooter, defined as a rental or commercial scooter under 100 pounds capable of exceeding five miles per hour, on sidewalks…
Red-Light Cameras
Some RestrictionsShreveport's only automated photo enforcement is a school-zone speed camera program run by the police department, not red-light cameras at intersections. Devices operate only on school…
Golf Carts & Low-Speed Vehicles
Some RestrictionsLouisianaLouisiana runs golf carts and low-speed vehicles on two separate statutory tracks. La. R.S. 32:299.4(B) prohibits golf carts on public roads outright and then reopens two doors: a…
🌀 Hurricane Preparedness
💰 Local Taxes & Fees
Business Tax Classification
Some RestrictionsShreveport classifies most businesses under the state's occupational license tax schedule by direct reference to R.S. 47:341-363, but chain stores get their own local classification…
Vacancy Tax
Some RestrictionsShreveport levies no vacancy tax. Owners of blighted, vacant structures must instead register with the city within 90 days of notice and pay a fee, starting at $250 to $500 and…
🔫 Firearms
Concealed Carry
Heavy RestrictionsLouisianaLouisiana permits concealed handgun carry through state-issued permits and, since July 2024, allows permitless concealed carry for adults 18 and older meeting eligibility requirements.
Local Firearms Preemption
Heavy RestrictionsLouisianaLouisiana law preempts local firearm regulation, reserving authority over firearms, ammunition, and components to the state legislature with very narrow exceptions.
Open Carry
Some RestrictionsLouisianaLouisiana generally permits open carry of firearms by law-abiding adults without a license, subject to location-based restrictions and local discharge ordinances.
🎰 Gambling & Gaming
Casino Zoning Districts
Significant RestrictionsLouisianaLouisiana authorizes casino gambling only on a short list of named rivers and lakes under La. R.S. 27:43 -- the Mississippi, Red outside Rapides Parish, Calcasieu, Mermentau, and…
Charitable Bingo and Raffles
Significant RestrictionsLouisianaLouisiana leaves charitable raffles, bingo, and keno to local option: each municipal and parish governing authority decides under La. R.S. 4:706 whether to permit the games at all. A…
Social Gambling Rules
Few RestrictionsLouisianaLouisiana lets each parish's police jury ban card gambling under La. R.S. 33:4852, but that same statute exempts any private card game held in a private home among family and any…
Sports Betting Law
Some RestrictionsLouisianaLouisiana sports wagering is legal only in the 55 of 64 parishes that approved it in the November 3, 2020 statewide referendum. Under La. R.S. 27:608(A), a player placing a wager with…
🏘️ HOA Rules
Assessment & Dues
Some RestrictionsLouisianaLouisiana associations collect unpaid dues through a statutory "privilege" (the civil-law lien). Under La. R.S. 9:1145, a privilege arises on a lot or unit for any assessment or fine…
Board Procedures
Some RestrictionsLouisianaUntil 2025 Louisiana had no statewide open meeting rule for homeowners associations. Acts 2024, No. 158 created one. Under R.S. 9:1141.26(B) the meetings of a planned community board…
CC&R Enforcement
Some RestrictionsLouisianaLouisiana treats recorded covenants as "building restrictions" - real obligations governed by La. Civ. Code arts. 775-783. They are enforced by injunction under art. 779 (mandatory or…
Flag Display Rights
Few RestrictionsLouisianaLouisiana Revised Statutes 9:1114, added by Acts 2025, No. 224, makes it illegal for a planned community, a condominium association, or a landlord to adopt or enforce any provision…
HOA Fines & Enforcement
Significant RestrictionsLouisianaLouisiana sets no dollar limit on homeowners association fines and requires no hearing before one is imposed. R.S. 9:1141.20(A)(2)(l) of the Louisiana Planned Community Act simply…
Lien & Foreclosure Limits
Some RestrictionsLouisianaBefore a Louisiana association can put a privilege on a lot, La. R.S. 9:1146(A) requires a written demand delivered by one of five listed methods, and R.S. 9:1146(B)(1) gives the owner…
Rental Restriction Limits
Some RestrictionsLouisianaLouisiana does not cap how many lots in a subdivision may be leased and it does not ban rental restrictions. Instead, R.S. 9:1141.14(C) of the Louisiana Planned Community Act makes…
⚖️ Know Your Rights
DUI Checkpoint Legality
Few RestrictionsLouisianaLouisiana permits traffic checkpoints, but the Legislature has never written a sobriety checkpoint statute. The word sobriety appears in exactly one section of the entire Revised…
Recording Police
Some RestrictionsLouisianaLouisiana never enacted a statute that bans filming police, and its wiretap law is one-party consent, so a bystander who is part of the exchange may record audio as well as video. What…
Stop & Identify Laws
Some RestrictionsLouisianaLouisiana has no stand-alone stop-and-identify statute. The duty is buried in the resisting an officer offence: R.S. 14:108(B)(1)(c) treats refusal by an arrested or detained party to…
Vehicle Search & Consent
Some RestrictionsLouisianaLouisiana has no cannabis legalisation act and therefore none of the "lawful possession is not grounds for a search" language that some states put in one. What it has instead is three…
🚬 Tobacco & Vaping
Tobacco Age Restrictions
Some RestrictionsLouisianaLouisiana prohibits the sale, purchase, and possession of tobacco, vapor, and alternative nicotine products by anyone under 21, conforming state law to federal Tobacco 21 standards.
Flavored Tobacco Bans
Few RestrictionsLouisianaLouisiana does not prohibit flavored tobacco or vapor products statewide, but limits sales to registry-approved electronic nicotine devices and bars youth-targeted marketing.
🚗 Vehicle Equipment Laws
Underglow & Auxiliary Lighting
Some RestrictionsLouisianaLouisiana allows a car no more than two fog lamps mounted 12 to 30 inches off the ground, no more than two auxiliary passing lamps at 24 to 42 inches, and no more than two auxiliary…
Dash Cam & Windshield Mounting
Some RestrictionsLouisianaLouisiana never bans dash cameras; it bans putting things on the windshield. R.S. 32:361.1(B) forbids any object or material affixed to the front windshield or front side windows that…
Lane Splitting & Filtering
Significant RestrictionsLouisianaLouisiana carries the prohibition and the allowance in the same section. La. R.S. 32:191.1(C) says no person shall operate a motorcycle between lanes of traffic or between adjacent…
Plate Covers & Obstruction
Significant RestrictionsLouisianaLa. R.S. 32:53(A)(3) makes it unlawful to apply a covering or any substance to a Louisiana license plate, or to use an electronic device or electrochromatic film, that obscures the…
Radar Detector Rules
Few RestrictionsLouisianaA radar detector is legal in a private vehicle in Louisiana. The word radar appears in only three sections of the entire Revised Statutes, and every one of them is about equipment used…
Studded Tire & Chain Rules
Significant RestrictionsLouisianaLouisiana is not a seasonal-window state. It has no statute that authorizes metal tire studs during any part of the year, and no Louisiana Revised Statute uses the word "studded" at…
Window Tint Limits
Some RestrictionsLouisianaLouisiana lets you tint a passenger car to 25 percent light transmission on the front side windows, 25 percent on the side windows behind the driver and 12 percent on the rearmost…