COUNTY REGULATION OF LITTER NEAR PUBLIC HIGHWAY; CRIMINAL PENALTY

(a) The commissioners court of a county may: (1) by order prohibit the accumulation of litter for more than 30 days on a person's property within 50 feet of a public highway in the county; (2) provide for the removal and disposition of litter accumulated near a public highway in violation of an order adopted under this section; and (3) provide for the assessment against a person who owns the property from which litter is removed under Subdivision (2) of the costs incurred by the county in removing and disposing of the litter. (b) Before the commissioners court takes any action to remove or dispose of litter under this section, the court shall send a notice by certified mail to the record owners of the property on which the litter is accumulated in violation of an order adopted under this section. The court may not remove or dispose of the litter or assess the costs of the removal or disposition against a property owner before the 30th day after the date the notice is sent under this subsection. (c) If a person assessed costs under this section does not pay the costs within 60 days after the date of assessment: (1) a lien in favor of the county attaches to the property from which the litter was removed to secure the payment of the costs and interest accruing at an annual rate of 10 percent on any unpaid part of the costs; and (2) the commissioners court shall file a record of the lien in the office of the county clerk. (d) The violation of an order adopted under this section is a Class C misdemeanor. (e) In this section: (1) "Litter" has the meaning assigned by Section 365.011 except that the term does not include equipment used for agricultural purposes. (2) "Public highway" has the meaning assigned by Section 365.011.