I have some experience in this area because Im trained in legal research and I've also been through the process of seeking a zoning variance for our home renovations and I had to research my local regulations when we decided to have chickens.
The following is offered only for educational purposes and it is NOT legal advice. If you feel you need legal advice please consult an attorney. Im not an attorney.
Where to Begin
Start with your local government. If you live in an urban/suburban developed area it will likely be your city or town government. If you live in a rural or agricultural part of the US it will likely be your township, borough, or county government. Dont start at your State level because in the US state government long ago ceded jurisdiction to local governments for issue such as backyard chicken keeping.
First here are some legal terms and what they mean:
Ordnance, Regulations, Bylaw: all means the same thing. These are local laws (statutes) administered and enforced at a local government levels.
Zoning Variance: This is a permanent exception to a zoning law granted by your local government. An example of a variance would be a chicken coop that is allowed to stand 10 feet from a lot line when the ordnance says it must be 30 feet. Generally, a variance is granted when there is no way for the property to meet the regulation due to special circumstances. A variance is hard to get, because its a permanent exception to a law. It stays with the property.
Special Permit: A Special Permit is granted when there is some kind of non-conforming situation where the structure does not meet the zoning code but a variance is not warranted. Special permits apply only to a particular situation and are not grandfathered. If the structure is torn down the special permit expires.
Appeal: This is a second chance to prevail when your initial request for a permit is denied. The purpose of the appeal process is to give the appellant a chance to prove the initial decision was wrong based on the law.
FAQs
Who is in charge of chickens in my local government?
This can vary quite a bit by jurisdiction, and here are some examples of local offices that regulate chickens:
Board of Health
Animal Control
Code Enforcement
Zoning Board
The office that manages this issue will be the place to start to locate the regulation. If your local government has a good website, you can often find the regulations there. Many parts of the country are still building their web sites and this information may not be available on-line. In that case, you need to go in person to read a paper copy of the regulation.
A few things to look out for:
Dont assume that all of the information you need is one place, in one regulation
For example: You may read a regulation that tells you how many chickens you can have in Residential Districts A, B, C & D. You will then need to go find out what district you live in to understand what applies to your situation.
Dont rely solely on what civil employees tell you.
If a citizen is given wrong or inaccurate information regarding local laws by a civil employee, and the citizen relies on that information to their detriment, the civil employee and the government will generally not be held responsible for the error.
So even if you speak with a civil employee who should, due to their job, be in a position to know what the chicken keeping regulations might be for your town, and they give you the wrong information, they are not held responsible for the ramifications if you act on the wrong information.
Yes its true, and this has been argued in a lot of case law. Basically, statutes are public records, and each citizen is expected to read and understand the law for themselves. You should never rely on hearsay information from a civil employee.
If you feel you may not have all of the information, you probably dont.
Many jurisdictions have regulations that are incomplete, or completely silent, on the issue of chickens, and this can make it harder to know what to do. In a case like this, do not rely on what people tell you, and if you really think you need to speak to an attorney then do so.
References to State statutes in local regulations
Often you will see, in a local regulation, a reference to a state law. It never hurts to also look up the state law to see if it shines any additional light on your situation. Often you can just Google the citation to the state law and find it right away. Each state has it own unique citation style, and an example from my state is below. This happens to be a state statute that regulates the sale of baby chicks:
M.G.L. Ch 272, §80D
This means Massachusetts General Laws Chapter 272, Section 80D .The symbol § means section in legal citation.
Here is a link that explains state law citation codes for each state in the US:
State citation codes
Finally be dogged and persistent until you are 100% comfortable that you have ALL of the information you need.
~Phyllis
The following is offered only for educational purposes and it is NOT legal advice. If you feel you need legal advice please consult an attorney. Im not an attorney.
Where to Begin
Start with your local government. If you live in an urban/suburban developed area it will likely be your city or town government. If you live in a rural or agricultural part of the US it will likely be your township, borough, or county government. Dont start at your State level because in the US state government long ago ceded jurisdiction to local governments for issue such as backyard chicken keeping.
First here are some legal terms and what they mean:
Ordnance, Regulations, Bylaw: all means the same thing. These are local laws (statutes) administered and enforced at a local government levels.
Zoning Variance: This is a permanent exception to a zoning law granted by your local government. An example of a variance would be a chicken coop that is allowed to stand 10 feet from a lot line when the ordnance says it must be 30 feet. Generally, a variance is granted when there is no way for the property to meet the regulation due to special circumstances. A variance is hard to get, because its a permanent exception to a law. It stays with the property.
Special Permit: A Special Permit is granted when there is some kind of non-conforming situation where the structure does not meet the zoning code but a variance is not warranted. Special permits apply only to a particular situation and are not grandfathered. If the structure is torn down the special permit expires.
Appeal: This is a second chance to prevail when your initial request for a permit is denied. The purpose of the appeal process is to give the appellant a chance to prove the initial decision was wrong based on the law.
FAQs
Who is in charge of chickens in my local government?
This can vary quite a bit by jurisdiction, and here are some examples of local offices that regulate chickens:
Board of Health
Animal Control
Code Enforcement
Zoning Board
The office that manages this issue will be the place to start to locate the regulation. If your local government has a good website, you can often find the regulations there. Many parts of the country are still building their web sites and this information may not be available on-line. In that case, you need to go in person to read a paper copy of the regulation.
A few things to look out for:
Dont assume that all of the information you need is one place, in one regulation
For example: You may read a regulation that tells you how many chickens you can have in Residential Districts A, B, C & D. You will then need to go find out what district you live in to understand what applies to your situation.
Dont rely solely on what civil employees tell you.
If a citizen is given wrong or inaccurate information regarding local laws by a civil employee, and the citizen relies on that information to their detriment, the civil employee and the government will generally not be held responsible for the error.
So even if you speak with a civil employee who should, due to their job, be in a position to know what the chicken keeping regulations might be for your town, and they give you the wrong information, they are not held responsible for the ramifications if you act on the wrong information.
Yes its true, and this has been argued in a lot of case law. Basically, statutes are public records, and each citizen is expected to read and understand the law for themselves. You should never rely on hearsay information from a civil employee.
If you feel you may not have all of the information, you probably dont.
Many jurisdictions have regulations that are incomplete, or completely silent, on the issue of chickens, and this can make it harder to know what to do. In a case like this, do not rely on what people tell you, and if you really think you need to speak to an attorney then do so.
References to State statutes in local regulations
Often you will see, in a local regulation, a reference to a state law. It never hurts to also look up the state law to see if it shines any additional light on your situation. Often you can just Google the citation to the state law and find it right away. Each state has it own unique citation style, and an example from my state is below. This happens to be a state statute that regulates the sale of baby chicks:
M.G.L. Ch 272, §80D
This means Massachusetts General Laws Chapter 272, Section 80D .The symbol § means section in legal citation.
Here is a link that explains state law citation codes for each state in the US:
State citation codes
Finally be dogged and persistent until you are 100% comfortable that you have ALL of the information you need.
~Phyllis
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