Anne Arundel County Maryland Chicken Ordinance

I'm curious where the restriction on roosters is found. The residential code makes no distinction between hens and roosters and an index search didn't produce any mention of roosters either.

The AA County law was changed in Dec 2013 to allow property owners with less than an acre to have chickens.

§ 12-4-709. Chicken and duck license. (a) License – Scope. The provisions of this section apply to the keeping of chickens and ducks in the County, excluding the City of Annapolis. A chicken or duck license permits the owner to own chickens or ducks as pets and to consume eggs produced by the kept chickens or ducks. (b) License – Generally. A County resident keeping chickens or ducks on a lot less than 40,000 square feet for any length of time shall have and maintain a license for keeping chickens and ducks on the property. An owner shall: (1) apply for a license before obtaining the chickens or ducks or bringing the chickens or ducks into the County; (2) provide evidence of current registration with the Maryland Department of Agricultural, Domestic Poultry and Exotic Bird Registration Division unless the owner is exempt from registration under State law; (3) acknowledge that they are solely responsible for assuring that chickens and ducks may be kept on the property under any applicable covenants or bylaws; and (4) acknowledge that the falsification of any information on the application is cause for revocation of the license. (c) License – Fee and renewal. The fee for each license is $30.00. All licenses shall be valid for three years and be renewed before expiration for as long as an owner keeps chickens and ducks on the property. Unless specifically exempted by law or variance, all zoning requirements set forth in § 18-4-104 of this Code must be met before a license issued under this section may be renewed. An application for renewal shall be accompanied by the required license fee. Failure to make application for renewal before the renewal due date shall result in a late fee of $10. (d) License – Prohibition. Roosters may not be kept on a lot less than 40,000 square feet. (e) License – Revocation. A license may be revoked or suspended pursuant to § 12-4-710(b).(Bill No. 79-13)

This link provides info on the new law in AA County!!!
http://www.aacounty.org/AnimalControl/Resources/Chicken_Duck_Checklist.pdf

{00133544.DOC; 1}On November 18th2013, The Anne Arundel County Council passed Bill 79-13regarding chickens and ducks in residential districts. The bill permits keeping ormaintaining chickens and ducks on a lot of less than 40,000 square feet. Roosters arestrictly prohibited on lots less than 40,000 square feet. A County resident keepingchickens or ducks on a lot less than 40,000 square feet for any length of time must obtainand maintain a license. Keeping of ducks and chickens on lots greater than 40,000square feet does not require an Anne Arundel County License. The provisions,requirements and restrictions, based on lot sized are as follows:Lots 20,000 square feet to 39,999 square feet:On a residentially zoned lot of 20,000 to40,000 square feet improved by a single-family dwelling, chickens and ducks may notexceed a ratio of one bird unit per 20,000 square feet. A bird unit is defined as follows:8 Chickens – Hens Only = 1 Bird Unit4 Ducks = 1 Bird UnitLots 10,000 square feet to 19,999 square feet:On a residentially zoned lot of 10,000 to19,999 square feet improved by a single-familydwelling, no more than four (4) chickensare permitted. Ducks not permitted are lots less than 20,000 square feet.Lots 9,999 square feet or smaller:Chickens and ducks are not permitted on lots smallerthan 10,000 square feet.Chickens or ducks on lots less than 40,000 square feet shall be kept in a securedenclosure with a chicken coop (see requirements below: § 12-4-801 Animal Outdoors).Accessory structures for chickens and ducks on lots less than 40,000 square feet shall belocated at least 25 feet from a side or rear lot line and 25 feet from any dwelling.