GENERALLY

Houston Code of Ordinances ch. 5, art. V, div. 1

in effect

Houston Code of Ordinances § 5-116 Definitions.

Sec. 5-116. - Definitions. The following words, terms and phrases, when used in this article, shall have the meanings ascribed to them in this section, except where the context clearly indicates a different meaning: Building Code Enforcement means that division within the Houston Public Works that is assigned the responsibility of enforcement of the Construction Code. Shooting gallery means a room, place or enclosure wherein the firing of firearms is permitted to practice marksmanship. Skeet club means an open premises where shotguns are used in target practice by shooting clay pigeons ejected by machines or thrown by hand to simulate flight. Trap shooting clubs are considered herein as "skeet clubs" and shall be subject to the same regulations. (Code 1968, § 36-80; Ord. No. 90-635, § 15, 5-23-90; Ord. No. 93-514, § 11, 5-5-93; Ord. No. 98-613, § 14, 8-5-98; Ord. No. 02-399, § 15, 5-15-02; Ord. No. 04-1015, § 7, 9-27-04; Ord. No. 2018-11, § 50, 1-10-2018; Ord. No. 2021-1037, § 20(Exh. I.6), 12-1-2021, eff. 4-1-2022)

Houston Code of Ordinances § 5-117 Exemption from article provisions.

Sec. 5-117. - Exemption from article provisions. The provisions of this article shall not apply to any firearms practice range or facility of any sort which: (1) Is owned and operated by the United States, the State of Texas or any department or political subdivision thereof; and (2) Is utilized exclusively for the purpose of training and qualifying peace officers and persons in training to become peace officers. (Code 1968, § 36-80.1; Ord. No. 83-1406, § 3, 9-6-83)

Houston Code of Ordinances § 5-118 General regulations.

Sec. 5-118. - General regulations. (a) No skeet or shooting gallery shall be constructed or operated within the city unless the plans for such are submitted to Building Code Enforcement. The skeet club or shooting gallery shall comply with all provisions of the Construction Code. The approval of the chief of police shall be required as to the location of any skeet club or shooting gallery. (b) The room, place or enclosure wherein the firing of firearms is to take place at a shooting gallery shall comply with all provisions of this section and shall not be used for any other purpose whatsoever during the progress of firing. (c) The rear wall and side walls to a point on a line with the firing position shall be of bullet proof construction in accordance with the following specifications: (1) Not less than six-inch masonry or solid concrete. (2) Wood stud and plaster walls or equivalent construction, faced with one inch boards, backed with one-quarter-inch steel plate. Floors and ceilings of joist construction shall be considered bullet proof. (d) All openings of any nature in the rear and side walls shall be protected with one inch board backed by a one-quarter inch steel plate. (e) Open steel truss ceilings shall be protected by a one-quarter inch steel baffle plate inclined toward the firing position. The plate shall be as wide as the total width of the target and not less than five feet in depth, and shall be suspended from the bottom cord of the trusses to the intersection of two sight lines drawn from the elevation of the firearm at the prone firing position to the bottom of the furthest truss, and from the elevation of the firearm at the off-hand firing position to a point five feet above the floor at the target. Baffle plates less than 15 feet from the firing position shall be protected with one inch boards. (f) Exposed steel girders less than 15 feet (horizontal or vertical) from the firing position shall be protected with one inch boards. (g) In addition to the above protection, there shall be provided a one-quarter inch steel stop plate, directly in the rear of targets, extending not less than eight inches beyond the outer ring of the bull's-eye, and inclined towards the firing position at an angle of 45 degrees. The stop plate shall be housed, on sides and top, with corrugated sheet metal extending not less than one foot beyond the top edge of the plate. At the base of the inclined stop plate there shall be provided a sand box with not less than six inches of sand and of sufficient width so as to absorb all of the bullets ricocheted by the stop plate as fired from the firing position. (h) Vertical stop plates existing on October 23, 1957, will be accepted with the same regulations as is provided for inclined stop plates, except that the thickness of the stop plate shall be not less than five-sixteenths of an inch and that the corrugated sheet metal housing shall extend not less than three feet beyond the face of the stop plate. (i) Entrance to that part of the licensed area situated between the firing position and targets shall be protected with 36-inch guard rails or equivalent protection. No person except the person in charge shall be permitted within the above described area during the progress of firing. (Code 1968, § 36-81; Ord. No. 72-2007, § 1, 11-1-72; Ord. No. 02-399, § 16, 5-15-02; Ord. No. 2021-1037, § 20(Exh. I.7), 12-1-2021, eff. 4-1-2022)

Houston Code of Ordinances § 5-119 Stationary bull's-eye targets.

Sec. 5-119. - Stationary bull's-eye targets. Targets used at shooting galleries shall be of the stationary bull's-eye type. All moving targets are prohibited. (Code 1968, § 36-82)

Houston Code of Ordinances § 5-120 Certain weapons and ammunition prohibited at shooting galleries.

Sec. 5-120. - Certain weapons and ammunition prohibited at shooting galleries. (a) It shall be unlawful for any person to possess or discharge within or upon any shooting gallery permitted under this article, any rifle which is of other than 22 calibre or which is chambered to accept a cartridge larger than 22 calibre rim fire long rifle. (b) It shall be unlawful for any person to possess or discharge within or upon any shooting gallery permitted under this article any pistol: (1) Which is of other than 22 calibre or which is chambered to accept a cartridge larger than 22 calibre long rifle, if the shooting gallery does not have a special permit issued under the provisions of section 5-121 of this Code; or (2) Which is of a calibre larger or is chambered to accept a cartridge more powerful than is authorized to be discharged by authority of the special permit, if the shooting gallery has a special permit issued under the provisions of section 5-121. (c) It shall be unlawful for any person to possess or cause to be discharged within or upon any shooting gallery permitted under this article any rifle or pistol ammunition which is not authorized to be discharged at such shooting gallery by authority of this article and the permit issued to such shooting gallery. (Code 1968, § 36-83; Ord. No. 83-1406, § 1, 9-6-83)

Houston Code of Ordinances § 5-121 Special shooting gallery permit.

Sec. 5-121. - Special shooting gallery permit. (a) A pistol of a calibre and chamber larger than 22 calibre rim fire long rifle, whether rim fire or center fire, may be discharged upon a shooting gallery permitted under this article, provided that the shooting gallery holds a valid special permit issued under this section which authorizes the discharge thereof. The special permit shall be issued in the same manner in all respects as a regular shooting gallery permit under this article, except as provided in this section. (b) The applicant shall advise Building Code Enforcement and the chief of police that he desires a special permit and shall designate the maximum caliber and the most powerful standard pistol cartridge proposed to be fired at the shooting gallery. (c) The construction standards specified in section 5-118 of this Code shall not apply except as minimum design criteria where reinforcement thereof is not necessary for the safe firing of the maximum calibre and cartridge proposed. The applicant shall cause the facility to be designed for the safe firing of the maximum calibre and cartridge proposed, and shall submit a certificate of a full-time practicing professional engineer registered by the state that the facility will, if constructed in accordance with the applicant's plans and specifications, permit the safe firing thereof. (d) The applicant shall cause the facility to be designed so that with all firing positions in use for the rapid fire discharge of the maximum proposed calibre and cartridge specified, the facility will not cause a noise disturbance across any real property boundary of the proposed site or within any public space or right-of-way. The applicant shall submit a certificate by a full-time practicing professional engineer registered by the State of Texas who devotes at least 50 percent of his practice time to acoustical design certifying that the facility will, if constructed in accordance with the applicant's plans and specifications, meet the noise standard specified in this subsection. (e) Prior to the issuance of a special permit, the shooting gallery shall be inspected in test operation by an engineer designated by the Director of Houston Public Works to determine that the facility has been constructed in accordance with the plans and specifications proposed, and that safety and noise standards specified in subsections (c) and (d) of this section have in fact been met in the actual operation of the facility. (f) Upon such determination and compliance with all other provisions of this article, the chief of police shall issue a special permit designating the maximum calibre and cartridge authorized to be fired upon the shooting gallery. (g) All design criteria, certificates and tests under this section shall be based upon the most powerful commercially manufactured cartridge loads for the pistol calibre and cartridge specified as produced by any manufacturer of handgun ammunition whose products are regularly sold in the city. Remanufactured or handloaded ammunition shall be permitted to be fired, provided that it is not loaded in such a manner as to be more powerful than the maximum load allowed by the permit. (Code 1968, § 36-83.1; Ord. No. 83-1406, § 2, 9-6-83; Ord. No. 90-635, §§ 16, 17, 5-23-90; Ord. No. 93-514, § 12, 5-5-93; Ord. No. 98-613, § 15, 8-5-98; Ord. No. 04-1015, § 8, 9-27-04; Ord. No. 2018-11, § 49, 1-10-2018; Ord. No. 2021-1037, § 20(Exh. I.7), 12-1-2021, eff. 4-1-2022)

Houston Code of Ordinances § 5-122 Indoor trap ranges excepted from sections 5-118, 5-119 and 5-120.

Sec. 5-122. - Indoor trap ranges excepted from sections 5-118, 5-119 and 5-120. The provisions of sections 5-118, 5-119 and 5-120 shall not be applicable to mechanically operated or coin-operated indoor trap ranges as provided in section 5-141. (Code 1968, § 36-84)

Houston Code of Ordinances § 5-123 Hours of operation for shooting galleries.

Sec. 5-123. - Hours of operation for shooting galleries. The operation of any shooting gallery between the hours of 12:30 a.m. and daylight is hereby prohibited and declared unlawful. (Code 1968, § 36-85)

Houston Code of Ordinances § 5-124 Permitted firearms and ammunition at skeet clubs; firing near streets, houses, etc., prohibited.

Sec. 5-124. - Permitted firearms and ammunition at skeet clubs; firing near streets, houses, etc., prohibited. No firearm other than shotguns shall be discharged at a skeet club and no shot larger than No. 7½ shall be used. No gun shall be fired within 300 yards of any street, alley, public grounds, business district or house, provided, however, skeet clubs in operation prior to annexation into the city and which comply with the other provisions hereof and which have a distance of not less than 150 feet back of any gun position measured to the nearest street, alley, public grounds, business district or house, shall satisfy the distance provision, if, after inspection, it is determined that adequate safety is assured, and provided, further, any skeet club using only shotguns of .310 caliber or smaller which utilize No. 11 shot or smaller and the barrel of which is tethered so as to restrict the muzzle to a down-range position shall require a minimum of 125 yards downrange and there shall be no additional distance requirements with reference to streets, alleys, public grounds or business district. (Code 1968, § 36-87; Ord. No. 70-829, § 1, 5-26-70)

Houston Code of Ordinances § 5-125 Periodic inspections.

Sec. 5-125. - Periodic inspections. (a) Every skeet club or shooting gallery for which a license has been issued under this article shall be periodically inspected by the chief of police or his duly appointed representative, and such inspections shall be made and conducted at any time the same shall be deemed advisable in the opinion of the chief of police and every skeet club and shooting gallery shall be at all times open for inspection. (b) All such inspections shall be subject to applicable constitutional limitations. (Code 1968, § 36-88)

Source: City of Houston, Code of Ordinances and City Charter (Municode Library, library.municode.com)URL: https://library.municode.com/tx/houston/codes/code_of_ordinances?nodeId=COOR_CH5AM_ARTVSKCLSHGA_DIV1GEFetched: 10/26/2026