Severe Weather Disaster Declaration, Spring 2024
To assist with the ongoing disaster recovery efforts in response to recent severe weather events and catastrophic loss or injury to property and life throughout Texas, Governor Greg Abbott has temporarily suspended all necessary statutes and rules related to the physical requirements for establishing a licensed Vehicle Storage Facility (VSF). The emergency suspension will allow VSFs to open temporary storage lots and expedite the storage of vehicles after a licensed facility has run out of space.
This suspension applies only to currently licensed VSFs and allows them to utilize an additional temporary lot beyond those currently in use, on which to store damaged, destroyed, flooded, and otherwise abandoned or inoperable vehicles that were subject to a nonconsent tow. This suspension applies only in counties within Governor Abbott’s April 30, 2024, Disaster Declaration and its subsequent amendments of May 2, 7, 15, 20, 26, and 30, 2024 and as listed below. It also applies to any additional counties that the Governor may subsequently add to the disaster declaration following this notification.
The suspension is in effect until the Office of the Governor terminates it or until the disaster of April 30, 2024 is lifted or expires.
Licensed Vehicle Storage Facilities must submit to TDLR by e-mail the address of each additional storage lot on which vehicles are being stored and include their license identification number to: towing@tdlr.texas.gov.
If you have questions or need assistance, please call (800) 803-9202 between the hours of 8:00 a.m. – 5:00 p.m. CST or email towing@tdlr.texas.gov.
The specific technical requirements in suspension are:
85.1000 Technical Requirements—Facility Fencing Requirements;
85.1001 Technical Requirements—Storage Lot Surface;
85.1002 Technical Requirements– Storage Lot Lighting;
85.1003 Technical Requirements—Storage Lot Signs
The counties in which the suspension is effective are:
Anderson, Angelina, Austin, Bandera, Bastrop, Baylor, Bell, Bexar, Blanco, Bosque, Brazos, Brown, Burleson, Burnet, Caldwell, Calhoun, Chambers, Cherokee, Clay, Coleman, Colorado, Comal, Concho, Cooke, Collin, Coryell, Delta, Denton, DeWitt, Dickens, Eastland, Ellis, Falls, Fayette, Freestone, Galveston, Gillespie, Gonzales, Gregg, Grimes, Guadalupe, Hamilton, Hardin, Harris, Haskell, Hays, Henderson, Hill, Hood, Houston, Hunt, Jasper, Jefferson, Johnson, Jones, Karnes, Kaufman, Kendall, Kerr, Kimble, Knox, Lamar, Lampasas, Lavaca, Lee, Leon, Liberty, Limestone, Llano, Madison, Mason, McCulloch, McLennan, Medina, Menard, Milam, Mills, Montgomery, Montague, Nacogdoches, Navarro, Newton, Orange, Panola, Polk, Robertson, Rusk, Sabine, San Augustine, San Jacinto, San Saba, Shelby, Smith, Somervell, Sutton, Tarrant, Travis, Trinity, Tyler, Van Zandt, Walker, Waller, Washington, Wichita, Williamson, and Wilson Counties.
The suspension is in effect until terminated by the Office of the Governor or until the disaster declaration of April 30, 2024 is lifted or expires. It applies only to currently licensed Vehicle Storage Facilities.