(a) Notwithstanding any other law, including Chapter 251, Agriculture Code, a county may not adopt or enforce regulations that:
(1) relate to:
(A) the transfer, possession, wearing, carrying, ownership, storage, transportation, licensing, or registration of firearms, air guns, knives, ammunition, or firearm or air gun supplies or accessories;
(B) commerce in firearms, air guns, knives, ammunition, or firearm or air gun supplies or accessories; or
(C) the discharge of a firearm or air gun at a sport shooting range; or
(2) require an owner of a firearm to obtain liability insurance coverage for damages resulting from negligent or wilful acts involving the use of the firearm.

Terms Used In Texas Local Government Code 236.002

  • Damages: Money paid by defendants to successful plaintiffs in civil cases to compensate the plaintiffs for their injuries.
  • Deposition: An oral statement made before an officer authorized by law to administer oaths. Such statements are often taken to examine potential witnesses, to obtain discovery, or to be used later in trial.
  • Injunction: An order of the court prohibiting (or compelling) the performance of a specific act to prevent irreparable damage or injury.
  • Person: includes corporation, organization, government or governmental subdivision or agency, business trust, estate, trust, partnership, association, and any other legal entity. See Texas Government Code 311.005
  • Rule: includes regulation. See Texas Government Code 311.005

(b) An ordinance, rule, resolution, or policy adopted or enforced by a county, or an official action, including in any legislative, police power, or proprietary capacity, taken by an employee or agent of a county in violation of this section is void.
(c) Subsection (a) does not affect the authority of a county to:
(1) require a resident or public employee to be armed for personal or national defense, law enforcement, or other purpose under other law;
(2) regulate the discharge of firearms or air guns in accordance with § 235.022;
(3) regulate the carrying of a firearm by a person licensed to carry a handgun under Subchapter H, Chapter 411, Government Code, in accordance with § 411.209, Government Code;
(4) except as provided by Subsection (d), adopt or enforce a generally applicable land use regulation, fire code, or business regulation; or
(5) except as provided by Subsection (e), regulate or prohibit an employee’s carrying or possession of a firearm, firearm accessory, or ammunition in the course of the employee’s official duties.
(d) A county order or regulation designed or enforced to effectively restrict or prohibit the manufacture, sale, purchase, transfer, or display of firearms, firearm accessories, or ammunition that is otherwise lawful in this state is void.
(e) Subsection (c)(5) does not authorize a county to regulate an employee’s carrying or possession of a firearm in violation of Subchapter G, Chapter 52, Labor Code.
(f) The attorney general may bring an action in the name of the state to obtain a temporary or permanent injunction against a county adopting a regulation, other than a regulation under § 236.003, in violation of this section. The attorney general may recover reasonable expenses incurred in obtaining an injunction under this subsection, including court costs, reasonable attorney’s fees, investigative costs, witness fees, and deposition costs.

  Previous section
Next section  
 Chapter 236 Contents