Texarkana, TX

Texarkana requires vehicles parked on city streets to stay within the painted or marked parking space, bans parking in alleys except for loading, and prohibits parking oversized…

In Texarkana's single-family, duplex, townhome and multifamily districts, a driveway, garage or carport can't be used to store a truck, truck trailer or van: only pickups and panel…

Texarkana's traffic code reserves marked loading zones for commercial vehicles only: parking a noncommercial vehicle in one, per Sec. 26-41, is a misdemeanor citable by code…

Texarkana's zoning code defines a legal parking space as a paved surface, so gravel, dirt, or grass parking generally doesn't satisfy the two-space residential requirement.

Texarkana bars parking any vehicle over one ton on public streets or rights-of-way, except briefly to load or unload cargo.

Texarkana declares any inoperable vehicle visible from a public street or a neighbor's property a public nuisance, letting code inspectors order removal after notice and hearing, with…

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…

Texarkana requires dogs to be confined by fence or building, or leashed, at all times; letting a dog run at large citywide is unlawful.

Texarkana has no pit bull or breed-specific ban: dogs are regulated by behavior. A dog declared dangerous after an unprovoked attack triggers mandatory registration, liability…

Texarkana makes it a public nuisance to keep any animal, including livestock, in a way that lets waste accumulate and endangers public health: the city's working standard for…

Texarkana bans backyard swine outright and caps other livestock and fowl by per-acre density, though up to six backyard hens are allowed anywhere.

Texarkana makes it a criminal offense to own, possess, keep, or harbor any wild, wild-hybrid, vicious, or prohibited animal within city limits.

Texarkana requires owners to sterilize animals reclaimed from impoundment or adopted from the city shelter within 30 days, unless the pet is under six months, a vet certifies it's…

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 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…

Texarkana bars car stereos audible 30+ feet away, requires a suitable muffler on every motor vehicle, and outright bans engine compression braking citywide, with jake-brake violations…

Texarkana prohibits stationary loudspeakers, amplifiers, or musical instruments played loud enough to disturb neighbors, with tighter scrutiny from 10 p.m. to 7 a.m. and an outright…

Noise from ordinary business, industry or commerce in Texarkana's commercial zones is deemed reasonable and legal as long as the operation complies with all city ordinances and permits.

Texarkana prohibits erecting, excavating, demolishing, altering or repairing any building between 6:00 p.m. and 7:00 a.m. on weekdays and all day Sunday, unless the city manager grants…

Texarkana bars unreasonably loud noise citywide at all hours, but singles out loudspeakers, amplifiers and musical instruments for extra restriction between 10:00 p.m. and 7:00 a.m.

A Texarkana dog that barks, yelps, or howls continuously for 15 minutes straight is legally a public nuisance, indoors or out.

Texarkana prohibits all open burning within city limits unless permitted, and the fire chief can declare a citywide burn ban making all outdoor burning illegal, regardless of any…

Texarkana allows recreational fires in approved containers without a permit, but fire pits need 25 feet of clearance from anything combustible.

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…

Texarkana bars weeds and nonornamental grass over 12 inches on any premises, including the abutting right-of-way strip, and treats growth past 48 inches as an immediate public-safety…

Required landscape trees that die in Texarkana must be replaced within 30 days with similar variety and size, per the city's landscaping ordinance.

Texarkana requires 10 feet of clearance over sidewalks and 12 feet over streets for overhanging trees, shrubs, vines, or palms on private property.

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…

Texarkana caps fences at 8 feet behind the front-yard setback line and requires a building permit under Sec. 105-8 before construction, with corner-lot sight-triangle limits enforced…

In Texarkana's Highland Park-Bingham Park Historic Residential Overlay District, fences must be wrought iron, wood, brick, or stucco. Exposed concrete block is barred outright, and…

Fences and walls in Texarkana can't exceed eight feet once built behind the required front yard line, and corner lots must keep a clear 15-foot sight triangle at every street…

In the Highland Park-Bingham Park Historic Overlay District, Texarkana bars retaining walls from front and side yards except to preserve an existing slope, caps wall height at the…

Under Texas Agriculture Code Chapter 143, Subchapter F, you cannot tear out a fence you jointly own with a neighbor, or one attached to a neighbor's fence, without mutual consent. To…

Texarkana adopts International Building Code Appendix G in full, so every swimming pool, spa, and hot tub in the city must meet the IBC's barrier, gate, and enclosure standards…

Texarkana allows above-ground and portable pools by right in every zoning district as an accessory use, exempts them from the city's health-department pool permit, but still requires…

Texarkana allows home occupations by right in residential zones, but the business must be run by a family member, use no signage, employ no outside staff, and sell nothing on-site.

Texarkana bars home occupations from selling goods or services on-site and from generating increased traffic to the property.

Texarkana's zoning code defines a lawful home occupation as one run without any sign advertising the business, so no home-business signage is allowed at all.

A home daycare, nursery, or private school in a Texarkana single-family district isn't a by-right home occupation: it needs a city council-approved specific use permit first.

Texas does not license cottage food at all. Health and Safety Code Section 437.0191(a) declares that a cottage food production operation is not a food service establishment, and…

Any shed or other accessory structure built in Texarkana needs a city building permit before construction begins, and detached sheds in residential yards must meet the setback and…

Texas has no tiny-home-specific statute. Any transportable, chassis-mounted dwelling that reaches 320 square feet is manufactured housing under Occupations Code Chapter 1201, built to…

Texas imposes a 6 percent state hotel occupancy tax on short-term rentals, including houses, condos, and Airbnb or VRBO stays, whenever a room costs 15 dollars or more per day.

Texarkana requires a special event permit for street fairs, festivals, and similar gatherings, filed with the city secretary at least 20 business days before the event.

Texarkana treats a block party as a special event: the sponsor must file a permit application with the city secretary at least 20 business days ahead, including a street-closure and…

Reserving a Texarkana park pavilion, field, or piece of recreation equipment requires a signed rental agreement with the parks and recreation department, plus payment of the posted fee…

Texarkana requires a permit from the city secretary before holding a parade, festival, or other gathering likely to cause traffic congestion, crowds, or safety concerns. Apply at least…

Texarkana bans dumping brush, garbage, litter, trash, or refuse on any street, alley, sidewalk, public property, or someone else's land, backed by fines up to $2,000 per offense.

Texarkana requires every residence and business to keep an approved waste container and to hold it off the curb except right before pickup.

Texarkana's citywide waste-disposal contract supplies each household an approved recycling container for paper, cans, cardboard, and plastics, and City Code bars residents from…

Grass, leaves and weed cuttings go in an approved greenwaste bag or can; big limbs must be cut to 4-foot lengths and tied into 40-pound bundles.

Texarkana requires waste and recycling carts to be stored away from the curb except the night before or the day of pickup, with lids kept closed at all times.

Texarkana requires construction and remodeling sites to collect debris in an approved roll-off or metal container, covered daily, so nothing blows onto neighboring property.

Texarkana requires anyone selling door-to-door to register with the city, carry the registration, and follow strict calling-hour and no-solicitation-sign rules.

Texarkana requires door-to-door sellers to register with the city, limits calls to 10 a.m.-7 p.m., and bans knocking where a posted "No Solicitation" sign is displayed.

Towing companies and every tow truck operating in Texarkana must hold a license and permit under the Texas Towing Act before working consent or nonconsent tows on city streets.

Texarkana's zoning code classes tattoo studios as a specific-use-permit business, requiring city council approval before one can open in commercial or industrial zoning districts.

Anyone buying used gold, silver, platinum, or gems in Texarkana as a transient dealer must apply to the city secretary for a license and keep a receipt-book record of every transaction.

Texarkana bars self-service vape displays and requires vendor-assisted sales for e-cigarettes and liquid nicotine at retail.

Texarkana's zoning code bars running a repair garage as a home occupation, so residential auto repair businesses aren't allowed.

Sexually oriented businesses need a police-issued license and must sit 1,000 feet from churches, schools, parks, homes and other such businesses.

Texarkana requires a city-approved erosion and sediment control plan before any land disturbance of 5,000 square feet or more, plus a full stormwater permit and SWP3 for sites of one…

Texarkana requires a stormwater permit before any land-disturbing activity, and blocks permits for sites disturbing 5,000 square feet or more without an approved erosion and sediment…

Texarkana requires new construction and substantial improvements of residential structures to raise the lowest floor to or above the base flood elevation, with nonresidential buildings…

Texarkana requires a floodplain development permit for any work in special flood hazard areas, and new or substantially improved homes must have their lowest floor built at or above…

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…

Texarkana caps total building coverage at 40 percent of the lot in most residential districts, 50 percent in commercial and industrial districts, 60 percent in the Townhouse district…

Texarkana sets a 25-foot minimum front yard in residential zoning districts and 15 feet in most commercial and industrial districts, with no front setback required downtown in the…

Single-family houses in Texarkana's SF-1, SF-2, and SF-3 districts are capped at two and one-half stories under the zoning code's height table.

Texarkana enforces the 2024 International Plumbing Code citywide, and no plumber may connect to city water or sewer lines without a permit from the plumbing inspector.

Texarkana requires a building permit before any construction, reconstruction, alteration, demolition, or electrical or plumbing work covered by the building code, unless a specific…

Texarkana adopted the 2023 National Electrical Code and requires a permit from the electrical inspector before any wiring work begins, with narrow exceptions.

Texarkana prohibits sleeping on sidewalks, streets, alleys, or any public place or thoroughfare in the city, and on another person's private property without permission, under Sec…

Texarkana makes it unlawful to sleep on sidewalks, streets, alleys, or any public place, backing the city's enforcement of the state's public-camping ban.

Every food establishment in Texarkana must keep at least one certified food protection manager on site, trained through a state-accredited program, under City Code Sec. 20-60(b)(6).

Property in Texarkana with piled refuse or overgrown vegetation that breeds rats and insects is declared a public nuisance and must be mowed and cleared immediately under the city's…

Texarkana requires every mobile food unit to hold a valid permit, display its permit number in three-inch letters on both sides, and operate only from approved commissary and zoning…

Texarkana requires itinerant vendors and peddlers to obtain a city license before selling door-to-door or from temporary stands, with a $500 bond and restricted hours.

Texarkana confines mobile food unit sales to specific zoning districts and bars fixed-location vending on city streets or rights-of-way.

Texarkana runs the 2015 International Property Maintenance Code on every rental and scores apartment complexes on 14 safety factors; a 12-month habitability score over 5.0 gets the…

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 § 92.019 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 law forbids cities from adopting rent control. A municipality may not establish rent control unless its governing body finds a housing emergency caused by a disaster and the…

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…

Installing rooftop or ground solar panels in Texarkana requires a city building permit plus an electrical work permit before any wiring or mounting begins.

Section 202.010 of the Texas Property Code voids any homeowners association rule that bans or restricts installing a solar energy device, a term that under Tax Code Section 171.107…

Texarkana's water and sewer system repairs and maintains lines only up to the meter; Sec. 42-5(d) puts the water line from the meter to a home or business, including any leak, on the…

Texarkana requires a city permit for every garage or yard sale, capped at twice a year per address and three consecutive days per sale.

Placing structures, objects, vehicles, or debris on Texarkana's public rights-of-way and sidewalks is unlawful without a city license, and unlicensed obstructions get removed at the…

Placing tables, signs, or other items on a Texarkana sidewalk requires a city right-of-way license, and sidewalk encumbrances are allowed only in the CB central business district.

In Texarkana, the city, not the abutting owner, repairs and maintains public sidewalks in the right-of-way, unless a written agreement with the city engineer says otherwise.

Texarkana levies a 7% tax on hotel and motel room charges of $2 or more a night, collected by every operator and remitted quarterly to the city's tax assessor and collector.

Texarkana's landscaping code lets developers earn point credit toward the mandatory 60-point landscaping plan by preserving on-site trees the city deems historic or specimen, minimum…

Texarkana caps garage/yard sale signs at 5½ square feet, limits you to three per sale, and bans them from rights-of-way, medians, and utility poles.

Off-premises digital billboards need a specific use permit, cap at 672 square feet, and must hold each message static for at least eight seconds with automatic nighttime dimming.

Within Texarkana's Highland Park-Bingham Park Historic Residential Overlay District, holiday lighting displays are allowed only from November through January; the citywide zoning code…

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…

Texarkana city parks close at 10:00 p.m. and reopen at daylight, with two parks limited to daylight hours only, under Sec. 32-7.

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…

Texarkana requires a bell or horn on every bicycle and bans bike riding on Central Business District sidewalks.

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…

Texarkana bans smoking within 10 feet of any building entrance where smoking is prohibited indoors, but doesn't restrict smoking in parks or open-air spaces beyond that buffer.

Texarkana makes it unlawful to loiter, prowl, wander, idle or stroll on someone else's residence or premises without the owner's permission.

Texarkana only bans public drinking during narrow overnight windows: 2:15 a.m. to 7 a.m. most days and 2:15 a.m. to noon on Sundays. Outside those hours, open containers are legal…

Texarkana bans panhandling that blocks paths, follows people, or uses profane or threatening language, plus nighttime and location-based solicitation.

Texarkana bans any unreasonably loud noise in residential areas that disturbs neighbors' comfort, covering parties, loud music, and gatherings; violators face fines up to $500.00 per…

Texarkana's Building and Standards Commission can declare a home or structure a public nuisance, order it repaired, secured, or demolished, and fine owners up to $1,000 a day for…

Texas Health & Safety Code Chapter 487 limits cannabis dispensing to state-licensed Compassionate Use Program providers: expanded to as many as 15 organizations by HB 46 (2025). There…

Texas Health & Safety Code 481.121 makes it a crime to possess or grow marijuana anywhere in the state. Home cultivation is illegal in every Texas city and county regardless of plant…

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 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…