Montgomery County to consider request for additional fireworks sales seasons

MONTGOMERY COUNTY, Texas - A new State law passed in the last legislative session could allow for up to 3 additional fireworks sales seasons in Texas Counties. House Bill 1150 was originally introduced to allow the additional seasons without any review or approval from local government, but after much debate was amended to allow for each County to decide whether or not the additional fireworks sales seasons were appropriate for their communities.

In the last Commissioner’s Court session, a trio of local fireworks vendors asked the court to approve the additional sales seasons in Montgomery County. The Court directed the Montgomery County Fire Marshal to research the issue and come back to Commissioner’s Court at a future date for further consideration.

The new sales seasons, if approved would be as follows:




Texas Independence Day – February 25th thru March 2nd




San Jacinto Day – April 16th thru April 21st




Memorial Day - beginning the Wednesday before the last Monday in May and ending at midnight on the last Monday in May


In recent years, consumer fireworks have been a subject of debate and concern for residents and fire officials as Montgomery County continues to grow and our population swells. Many of the complaints from citizens center around the nuisance from excessive noise and the risk of fire from carelessly discharged fireworks landing on their homes or property. Many residents are concerned about the effects on their pets and livestock, as well as family members suffering from medical issues such as PTSD. On the other hand, others have expressed that it is a traditional way to celebrate the July 4, and New Year’s Holidays.

Montgomery County Firefighters have seen an increased number of fires during the current fireworks sales seasons when they coincided with periods of summer drought or dry windy days in Winter. In addition, each sales season sees at least 1 or 2 serious fireworks related injuries in the County. One of the worst wildfire outbreaks in recent history occurred in 2008 when a dry blustery cold front passed through Montgomery County on New Year’s Day. Over 150 wildfires broke out during the day and continued well into the night as residents continued to discharge fireworks in spite of the conditions. In addition to the wildfires that day, several homes were damaged by roof fires when fireworks landed on them and ignited accumulated pine straw and leaf litter.

In an effort to reach out and give citizens a voice in the matter, the Montgomery County Fire Marshal’s Office has published a poll through their social media platforms and website. The survey takes less than a minute to complete and can be found on both the MCFMO Facebook page located at www.facebook.com/mcfmo and by following the office on Twitter @Mcfiremarshal. The survey is also linked to the MCFMO homepage on the Montgomery County website, www.mctx.org/fire