All 50 states and DC
Retaining wall rules by state
A retaining wall holds back earth, and codes treat it differently from a free standing fence. Two questions come up constantly. The first is the height at which it needs a permit, which in most model codes sits around four feet and often carries an exception for a wall with no surcharge above it. The second is how a fence on top of a wall gets measured, which decides whether a four foot fence on a three foot wall is a four foot fence or a seven foot one.
Retaining wall rules by state, state by state
15 set a rule in state law, 1 have an answer that depends on something else, 1 were checked and say nothing, 34 hand it to the town. Every row links the state page and the document behind it.
| State | What the record says | Permit threshold | Citation |
|---|---|---|---|
| Alabama | left to the townone and two family homes | none stated | Ala. Code 34-14A-82(b) |
| Alaska | left to the townAlaska has no rule of its own for a wall that holds back earth. | none stated | 13 AAC 50.020 |
| Arizona | left to the townArizona has no statewide building code, so it has no state rule for a wall that holds back earth. | none stated | A.R.S. § 11-861(A) |
| Arkansas | left to the townArkansas writes no rule of its own for a wall that holds back earth. | none stated | Arkansas Contractors Licensing Board, Building Codes |
| California | left to the townCalifornia has no rule of its own in statute for a wall that holds back earth. | none stated | Health & Saf. Code 17922(a) |
| Colorado | left to the townColorado has no state rule for a wall that holds back earth, because it adopts no building code for houses... | none stated | C.R.S. 30-28-201(1) |
| Connecticut | set in state lawone and two family homes and townhouses, under the house half of the state building code | 3 ft | 2022 Connecticut State Building Code, amendment to IRC Section R105.2 |
| Delaware | left to the townDelaware has no state building code. | none stated | 16 Del. C. 7601 |
| District of Columbia | set in state lawone and two family dwellings | 4 ft | How to Get a Permit |
| Florida | set in state lawa house, a duplex or a townhouse | none stated | Fla. Stat. 553.79(1)(i) |
| Georgia | left to the townone and two family dwellings and townhouses | none stated | Current State Minimum Codes for Construction |
| Hawaii | set in state lawbuildings under the Hawaii State Building Code, as each county adopts it | none stated | Hawaii State Building Code, amendment to IBC Section 2304.11, new Section 2304.11.4 |
| Idaho | left to the townone and two family homes | none stated | IDAPA 24.39.30.004.03 |
| Illinois | left to the townnewly built homes | none stated | 815 ILCS 670/15 |
| Indiana | left to the townone and two family homes | none stated | IC 22-13-2-2 |
| Iowa | left to the townhouses, duplexes and townhouses up to three stories, and the structures beside them | none stated | Iowa Admin. Code 481-301.8 |
| Kansas | left to the towncities and counties that adopt a building code | none stated | K.S.A. 12-3302 |
| Kentucky | left to the townsingle family homes, two family homes, and townhouses | none stated | 815 KAR 7:125 Section 2(1) |
| Louisiana | left to the townone and two family homes and townhouses | none stated | La. R.S. 40:1730.28(A)(3)(a) |
| Maine | set in state lawone and two family homes in Maine | 4 ft | 16-642 CMR ch. 5, Section 5(12), revisions to IRC Section R105.2 |
| Maryland | left to the townone and two family homes under the International Residential Code, and other buildings under the International Building Code | none stated | COMAR 09.12.51.04 |
| Massachusetts | set in state lawone and two family homes and townhouses up to three stories | 4 ft | 780 CMR 51.00, R105.2 |
| Michigan | set in state lawone and two family homes and townhouses under the Michigan residential code | 4 ft | R 408.30505 |
| Minnesota | set in state lawwork covered by the Minnesota State Building Code | 4 ft | Minn. R. 1300.0120, subp. 4 |
| Mississippi | left to the townMississippi has no retaining wall rule of its own. | none stated | Miss. S.B. 2378 (2014), Section 1(1)(b) |
| Missouri | left to the townMissouri puts no retaining wall rule in state law. | none stated | RSMo 67.280.2 |
| Montana | left to the townMontana prints no retaining wall rule in state law. | none stated | Current Codes, All Building Codes Adopted by Montana |
| Nebraska | left to the townNebraska has no rule of its own for a wall that holds back earth. | none stated | Neb. Rev. Stat. 71-6403(1)(b) |
| Nevada | left to the townNevada has no rule of its own for a wall that holds back earth. | none stated | NRS 278.580(1) |
| New Hampshire | left to the townNew Hampshire has no rule of its own for a wall that holds back earth. | none stated | RSA 155-A:1, IV |
| New Jersey | set in state lawNew Jersey writes its own rule for a wall that holds back earth instead of leaving it to the national code. | 4 ft | N.J.A.C. 5:23-2.14(g) |
| New Mexico | set in state lawNew Mexico throws out the national code's test for a wall that holds back earth and writes its own. | 36 in | 14.5.2.9(B)(3) NMAC |
| New York | left to the townNew York runs one code statewide and it prints no rule for a wall that holds back earth. | none stated | 19 NYCRR 1219.2(a)(8) |
| North Carolina | left to the townNorth Carolina prints no retaining wall rule in its General Statutes. | none stated | N.C.G.S. 143-138(a) |
| North Dakota | left to the townNorth Dakota has no rule of its own for a wall that holds back earth. | none stated | N.D.C.C. 54-21.3-03(1) |
| Ohio | set in state lawone, two and three family dwellings | 4 ft | OAC 4101:8-1-01, Section 102.10 |
| Oklahoma | left to the townOklahoma writes no retaining wall rule of its own. | none stated | OAC 748:20-6-1(a) |
| Oregon | set in state lawone and two family dwellings | 4 ft | ORSC R101.2.2, item 2 |
| Pennsylvania | set in state lawresidential buildings | 4 ft | 34 Pa. Code 403.62(c)(2) |
| Rhode Island | depends, see the pageone and two family dwellings | none stated | 510-RICR-00-00-2, R105.2, Building item 3 |
| South Carolina | left to the townone and two family dwellings | none stated | S.C. Code Ann. Regs. 8-1200 |
| South Dakota | left to the towndetached one and two family dwellings, townhouses up to three stories, and the buildings that go with them | none stated | SDCL 11-10-12 |
| Tennessee | left to the townone and two family homes | none stated | Currently Adopted Codes, residential code |
| Texas | left to the townTexas has no rule of its own for a wall that holds back earth. | none stated | Tex. Loc. Gov't Code 214.212(a) |
| Utah | set in state lawone and two family homes | 4 ft | Utah Code 15A-3-202(5)(a) |
| Vermont | left to the townpublic buildings as Title 20 defines them | none stated | Section 5, ICC International Building Code 2021 Edition |
| Virginia | set in state lawVirginia writes its own statewide code and sets the bar lower than the model code does. | 3 ft | 13VAC5-63-80 B, Section 108.2, item 7 |
| Washington | left to the townone and two family homes | none stated | WAC 51-51-003 |
| West Virginia | left to the townone and two family homes in counties and cities that adopted the State Building Code | none stated | W. Va. C.S.R. 87-4-4.1.h |
| Wisconsin | no rule, documents checkedone and two family homes | none stated | Wis. Admin. Code ch. SPS 320 |
| Wyoming | left to the townWyoming has no building code for houses at the state level, so it has no rule for a wall that holds back ea... | none stated | W.S. 16-13-101(a)(ii) |
The other nine questions
A fence rule usually turns on more than one of these, and the answer to one does not settle another.
What this page does not cover
Everything above is state law. Fence height, setback, corner visibility and materials are set by city and county ordinance in almost every state, and a local rule can be far stricter than the statewide default. A parcel can also carry an easement, an overlay district, a fire hazard zone or a recorded HOA restriction, none of which appear in a statute.
This is general information drawn from published government documents. It is not legal advice, statutes are amended, and each state page carries the date its documents were read. How findings are made · What the terms mean · Browse by state