# Texas bee laws



## Mrobisr (Mar 10, 2012)

Question, has Texas law changed with the dealing with swarm capture and removal? Caught a swarm today and while I was dealing with them a man pulled up and ask me is I had a applicators license. I said no and that I didn't need one as Milam County doesn't require anything of that sort. His reply was that's it's a state law, I kindly pointed him to the police department as they are the ones that called me and ask if I could remove them. If I'm wrong please set me straight any additional info will be appreciated.


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## DarkWolf (Feb 20, 2013)

An applicators license? Did he think you were using pesticides? While true that if you're doing pest control which requires chemicals, I'm assuming you're not killing the poor little things during your capture.


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## scorpionmain (Apr 17, 2012)

Yeah, I think he thought you were killing them.


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## Beeracuda (Mar 19, 2013)

I read through the laws a month or so ago and I don't remember anything about that.

http://info.sos.state.tx.us/pls/pub/readtac$ext.ViewTAC?tac_view=4&ti=4&pt=4&ch=71


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## Sharpbees (Jun 26, 2012)

Most states require a PCO license if your using pesticides but for non-lethal, non-chemical removal you shouldn't need one. I was told the same thing from a guy in our bee club so I checked with the state pesticide agency and was told that I didn't need one since I only do live removals. However you may need to check with your state wildlife division to make sure you don't need a wildlife control license.


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## Mrobisr (Mar 10, 2012)

Sorry I didn't type the whole conversation, but I did tell him that no pesticide was being used and that I wanted them all alive. He said it didn't matter still had to have one. I personally think he was just trying to jerk my chain and of make some easy money. I try my very best to keep up with the laws, but am always aware that one can slip by and that our legislature is in session. Thanks for the replies.


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## Brad Bee (Apr 15, 2013)

I'm really disappointed....

You're a Texan, I was expecting your response to him to be, "I'll applicate this beehive upside your head" or "I'm fixin to apply my foot to your rear end" or "You gonna draw that hogleg or just stand there and bleed?" 

I know a few Texans and they are a little different than Alabamians but not too much.


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## Mrobisr (Mar 10, 2012)

Brad Bee said:


> I'm really disappointed....
> 
> You're a Texan, I was expecting your response to him to be, "I'll applicate this beehive upside your head" or "I'm fixin to apply my foot to your rear end" or "You gonna draw that hogleg or just stand there and bleed?"
> 
> I know a few Texans and they are a little different than Alabamians but not too much.


Sorry to disappoint Brad, but I'm trying to be a little more civil or something according to my better half.


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## DarkWolf (Feb 20, 2013)

Mrobisr said:


> He said it didn't matter still had to have one.


Sounds pretty daft, IMO. 

Contact your local office and find out. 

http://milam.agrilife.org/


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## honeybeebee (Jan 27, 2013)

I would have told him I was grandfathered....but I AM old


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## robherc (Mar 17, 2012)

Mrobisr said:


> Question, has Texas law changed with the dealing with swarm capture and removal? Caught a swarm today and while I was dealing with them a man pulled up and ask me is I had a applicators license. ... His reply was that's it's a state law.


Well, he had a point...but he used the wrong word, and likely was simply trying to be a pain & had no idea that his point was valid anywise....


If you live in the same county you were removing the swarm in, and WERE NOT paid to remove the swarm; then you simply need to register your apiary where you're keeping them.
If you live in a different county from where you picked up the swarm, but were not paid; then you also need a transportation permit, with both your apiary's county, and the county the removal was in, listed on the permit.
If you live in the same county, but WERE paid, then you need a removal license, but not necessarily the transport permit.
If you live in/have your apiary in a different county than the removal, AND were paid for it, then you need all three.

That's my understanding of all TX bee laws, that I'm aware of, pertaining to the situation you mentioned. That understanding of mine comes from thoroughly reading the laws last year, and several phone conversations with the State Apiary Inspectors' office. I know, that doesn't guarantee correctness, but it's the most effort I was willing to put into that research...I got all 3 myself.


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## Cactus (Apr 23, 2012)

Here's a nice writeup about current "bee law" in Texas: http://www.harriscountybeekeepers.org/PDFdocs/BeeLawAndRegulations.pdf

As I understand it, if you are doing a removal from a structure for hire, then you need a $35 "Bee Removal Permit" from the state apiary inspection service. I'm still not clear if the law requires that permit for collecting a swarm, and especially not clear if you are collecting a swarm for free.
But in any case, you no longer are required to have an SPCS license for bee removal, provided you don't use pesticides - that would be a big no-no. It also appears that you're not suppose to use a bee-vacuum (or other electric devices). Do any of you Texas beekeepers have advice on that? I went ahead and paid for my removal permit and have a DIY vacuum I've used successfully, but I don't know if it's actually legal.

-Patrick
Houston, Texas


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## Cactus (Apr 23, 2012)

robherc said:


> [*]If you live in a different county from where you picked up the swarm, but were not paid; then you also need a transportation permit, with both your apiary's county, and the county the removal was in, listed on the permit.


Rob - 
The "removal permit" asks for which counties you'll be doing removals, so I assumed that would cover inter-county transport of removed bees (my registered apiaries are all in the same county). To be safe I should have gotten all three, but I only have the removal permit and the beekeeper registration. I just applied for the permit last month and I think it expires in September. I'll probably just wait until then to get both permits (transport and removal).


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## robherc (Mar 17, 2012)

Yes, I asked about that & was told I needed the transport permit too, so that's what I got....but, like I said, it took a lot of reading, and a few phone calls, to get everything "straightened out" to that point...always a possibility for misunderstandings in the legal field, unfortunately :/


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## Cactus (Apr 23, 2012)

Another question for you Rob. When talking to the TAIS, did you ask about the use of bee vacuums for removals? Thanks.


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## Mrobisr (Mar 10, 2012)

Great info thanks.


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## Cactus (Apr 23, 2012)

Today I spoke on the phone with Bill Baxter, an assistant inspector with the Texas Apirary Inspection Service (TAIS). I had a couple of questions regarding doing cutouts.
Here are my two take-aways:
(1) Bee Vacuums are considered conventional beekeeping equipment and beekeepers are allowed to use them for cutouts and removals (provided they have the bee removal permit). They are not included in the ban on "electrical devices".
(2) If all of your apiaries are in a single county, you can do a bee removal (provided you have the permit) in a different county without an intrastate transport permit. That is, you are allowed to transport bees and equipment from the county where they are removed back to the county of your apiary. Of course, if you maintain apiaries in multiple counties, you still need the transport permit. Mr. Baxter said that this interpretation has evolved, and he is aware that some beekeepers have been advised to get the intrastate transport permit in addition to the bee removal permit in order to perform cutouts in other counties. The current interpretation does not require both permits - just the removal permit.

Hope my explanation of my conversation is clear.


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## spudrocket (Feb 13, 2013)

I didn't know we had to be registered to catch swarms. Never stopped me before though  . No one ever said anything to me, should I get registered or get a permit?


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## Cactus (Apr 23, 2012)

It mostly comes down to money. _If you charge for your removal services_, you need a permit (which requires that you be a registered beekeeper).
Texas Bee Laws, Rules and Regulations [PDF]


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## Paul McCarty (Mar 30, 2011)

For a state so dead set on "freedom" Texas sure has a lot of restrictions on bees. Sounds annoying.


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## shinbone (Jul 5, 2011)

Wow! That is a lot of permits for something as simple as picking up a swarm of bees.

Is all that permitting a consequence of trying to control the spread of AHB?


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## Paul McCarty (Mar 30, 2011)

I think it is mostly to discourage beekeepers from making a business from swarm removal so Orkin and others can keep their monopoly. Highly doubt it has anything to do with african bees - it would shock me if it was.


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## Cactus (Apr 23, 2012)

It costs me a whole $35 (per year) to get the appropriate permit to charge people for bee removals - the apiary/beekeeper registration is free (and optional if all you are doing is keeping a few hives on your own property). If a $35 permit is considered an excessively "high barrier to entry" for performing live honey bee removals for hire, then perhaps your business plan needs to be re-evaluated.
_If _I choose to obtain a brand from the state apiary service, that is a one-time $10 fee. Neither these fees nor the other regulations pertaining to keeping a moderate number of hives in the state of Texas seem particularly burdensome to me.


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## Paul McCarty (Mar 30, 2011)

Well, hopefully it doesn't drift West. It's a way of taxing without needing approval to tax. That's why I left TX. Not just bees - for just about everything. That's my only comment on the subject so the thread can get back to Bees in particular. 

It is interesting to hear what other states require.


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## D Coates (Jan 6, 2006)

I'd love to know who the busy body who pulled over to ask about the license and started this whole discussion was. While I've removed many swarms and hives I've never had anyone say boo to me other than, "thank you", "who do I make the check out to?", "you're not going to kill them are you?", "do you ever get stung?, "do you sell your honey?", etc...


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## Ross (Apr 30, 2003)

I'll continue to believe that the permit is for removals of hives from a structure and does not apply to swarms.


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## Bill91143 (Jun 7, 2013)

I agree with Paul. I thought Texas was suppose to be one of our more free states. I guess moving to Texas is out, I'll just stay here in Kentucky where most people mind their own business, or else wind up leaving the state in somewhat of a hurry!


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## Mrobisr (Mar 10, 2012)

Ross said:


> I'll continue to believe that the permit is for removals of hives from a structure and does not apply to swarms.


http://tais.tamu.edu/newsletter/pdf/bee_aware_jul07.pdf
Since starting the thread I have did a lot of research to include the internet and calling the Apiary Service. If you use anything other than a smoker or hive tool to collect any bees (swarms or cut outs) you need the permit. Since I use a homemade bee vac most of the time I need the permit and have since obtained it. Your hives do not need to be registered to obtain the permit.


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## Ross (Apr 30, 2003)

If you go read the actual law, it only pertains to removing bees from an occupied structure.


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## whiskeytripping (Nov 16, 2012)

I guess im just a outlaw, kinda like Jesse James of the bee removals world.


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## VARyan (Feb 4, 2013)

"For a state so dead set on "freedom" Texas sure has a lot of restrictions on bees. Sounds annoying."

Second that.


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## Ross (Apr 30, 2003)

You don't need anything to pick up a hanging swarm, only to remove them from a habitable structure. I move bees all the time without a permit. Not saying you're not supposed to have one, but there is not any enforcement, not any.


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## CMYSIX (Feb 13, 2014)

GEE ask Texas?


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## marant (Jan 18, 2014)

As I understand it you must have more than 5 hives to be defined as an 'apiary' in TX. So, anything that pertains to or uses apairy in the requirement would not apply to many.

Just Remember: WHEN THE LEGISLATURE IS IN SESSION NO-ONE IS SAFE!


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