Texas
Weird Laws in Texas: Which Are Still on the Books?
Independently fact-checked against primary sources (last audited October 21, 2026). · 7 primary sources cited on this page. How we verify our legal content
The real stories behind Texas's weird-law claims are often older than the lists let on. We checked seven claims against the current Texas statutes, the 1925 Penal Code where a claim pointed to an older law, and the city codes of Port Arthur and El Paso where a claim named those cities, as of October 21, 2026. Only one is a current state law, two were real laws that were later repealed, one is a city rule retold, and three were not found. For other states, see our guide to weird laws by state.
Weird laws in Texas: the verdicts
Each claim below was checked against the Texas code and, where it names a town, the local code. 7 claims checked.
The claim: Selling an organ, including an eye, is illegal.
What the law says: Texas makes it a state jail felony to knowingly offer to buy or sell, or to buy, receive, sell or transfer, any human organ or tissue for valuable consideration. The definition expressly lists the eye, kidney, liver, heart, lung, pancreas, bone and skin; blood, plasma and hair are excluded, as are reimbursed medical and travel expenses.
“A person commits an offense if he or she knowingly or intentionally offers to buy, offers to sell, acquires, receives, sells, or otherwise transfers any human organ for valuable consideration.”
Penalty: State jail felony (subsection (d))
Last cited by a court: Planned Parenthood v. Phillips (2022)
Primary source · Checked October 21, 2026.
The claim: Encyclopedia sales are banned because they contain a beer recipe.
What the law says: During state prohibition, Texas made it unlawful to advertise, sell, deliver or possess 'any formula, directions, or recipes for making intoxicating liquors for beverage purposes' (1925 Penal Code Art. 682, from a 1919 act). The law did not name encyclopedias. The whole prohibition chapter was repealed in 1935 by the Texas Liquor Control Act, and no current Texas statute was found that restricts books containing beer recipes.
“It shall be unlawful to advertise, sell, deliver, or possess any preparation, compound, or table from which intoxicating liquor as a beverage is made, or any formula, directions, or recipes for making intoxicating liquors for beverage purposes. [Acts 2nd C. S. 1919, p. 236.]”
Primary source · Checked October 21, 2026.
The claim: Criminals must give 24 hours' notice before committing a crime.
What the law says: No Texas statute requires notice before committing a crime; chapter 15 (attempt, conspiracy, solicitation) has nothing like it.
No state law found in the Texas code as of October 21, 2026.
How we searched
We searched the full text of the Texas statutes for any rule requiring notice before committing a crime, and read the Penal Code chapters on attempt, conspiracy and solicitation and on theft.
Parts of the code read
- Texas Penal Code Chapter 15 (preparatory offenses: criminal attempt, conspiracy and solicitation)
- Texas Penal Code Chapter 31 (theft)
No town code was checked for this claim.
Primary source · Checked October 21, 2026.
The claim: Wire cutters may not be carried in a pocket.
What the law says: No Texas statute found that bans carrying wire cutters, in the current code or in the 1925 Penal Code. Texas has long punished wilfully cutting someone else's fence (1925 Penal Code Art. 1353, 'Wilfully cutting fence'), but no provision making it a crime to carry the tool was found.
No state law found in the Texas code as of October 21, 2026.
How we searched
We searched the full text of the Texas statutes for wire cutters or fence cutters, read the Penal Code chapters on property damage and theft and the Agriculture Code fence chapter, and checked the 1925 Penal Code's fence-cutting articles.
Parts of the code read
- Texas Penal Code Chapter 28 (arson, criminal mischief and other property damage)
- Texas Agriculture Code Chapter 143 (fences and livestock)
- Texas Penal Code Chapter 31 (theft)
No town code was checked for this claim.
Primary source · Checked October 21, 2026.
The claim: Milking another person's cow carries a $10 fine.
What the law says: Former Texas Penal Code (1925) Art. 1466 'Milking another's cow' fined anyone who, without the owner's consent, took up, used or milked a cow not their own up to $10 (source: Acts 1866). The 1925 code articles 1462-1466 were folded into the general theft section when the new Penal Code took effect January 1, 1974; milking someone's cow without consent is now handled as theft.
“Whoever without the consent of the owner shall take up, use or milk any cow, not his own, shall be fined not exceeding ten dollars. [Acts 1866, p. 188.]”
Penalty: Fine not exceeding $10
Primary source · Checked October 21, 2026.
The claim: Port Arthur bans noxious odors in an elevator.
What the law says: Port Arthur's code declares any substance that emits a 'foul, noxious, unhealthful or disagreeable odor or effluvia in the neighborhood where [it] exist[s]' a nuisance. No provision in the current Port Arthur code mentions elevators and odor together; the elevator-specific version is a retelling of the general nuisance rule.
Primary source · Checked October 21, 2026.
The claim: You must honk when passing another car (El Paso).
What the law says: No Texas statute requires honking when passing; 545.053(b)(1) only tells the passed driver to move right on an audible signal.
No state law found in the Texas code as of October 21, 2026.
How we searched
We searched the full text of the Texas statutes for any rule requiring drivers to honk or sound a horn when passing, read the state passing rules and the horn and warning-device sections, and searched the current El Paso city code for horn and passing rules.
Parts of the code read
- Texas Transportation Code Chapter 545, Subchapter on passing (sections 545.051 to 545.059, rules of the road for overtaking and passing)
- Texas Transportation Code sections 547.501 to 547.508 (audible and visible warning devices, including horns)
The local code named in the claim was checked too.
Primary source · Checked October 21, 2026.
Checked October 21, 2026. This is legal history and information, not legal advice. Laws change; the linked official text is the authority.
The one current state law: organ sales
The eye claim is true, and the statute is not a quirk. Texas Penal Code 48.02 provides:
A person commits an offense if he or she knowingly or intentionally offers to buy, offers to sell, acquires, receives, sells, or otherwise transfers any human organ for valuable consideration.
The definition expressly lists the eye, along with the kidney, liver, heart, lung, pancreas, bone and skin. Blood, plasma and hair are excluded, and so are reimbursed medical and travel expenses. The offense is a state jail felony.
Laws Texas really had, then repealed
Beer recipes and the encyclopedia story
The encyclopedia claim grew out of a real prohibition-era law. Article 682 of the 1925 Penal Code, carried over from a 1919 act, read:
It shall be unlawful to advertise, sell, deliver, or possess any preparation, compound, or table from which intoxicating liquor as a beverage is made, or any formula, directions, or recipes for making intoxicating liquors for beverage purposes.
The article did not mention encyclopedias. In 1935, the Texas Liquor Control Act expressly repealed the whole prohibition chapter of the 1925 Penal Code, as quoted in a 1940 Texas Attorney General opinion (No. O-2143). No current Texas statute restricting books that contain beer recipes was found.
Somebody else's cow
The cow claim is accurate as history. Article 1466 of the 1925 Penal Code, titled "Milking another's cow" and traced to an 1866 act, read:
Whoever without the consent of the owner shall take up, use or milk any cow, not his own, shall be fined not exceeding ten dollars.
When the new Penal Code took effect on January 1, 1974, its disposition table placed former articles 1462 to 1466 under Penal Code 31.03, the general theft section. Milking someone's cow without consent is now handled as theft rather than under a cow-specific article.
A city rule, retold: Port Arthur's odor ordinance
The claim says Port Arthur bans noxious odors in an elevator. The city's code does have an odor rule, but it is a general nuisance provision. Section 34-3(1) of the Port Arthur Code of Ordinances declares a nuisance "All substances which emit or cause any foul, noxious, unhealthful or disagreeable odor or effluvia in the neighborhood where they exist." No provision in the current Port Arthur code mentions elevators and odor together, so the elevator version is a retelling of the general rule.
Not found in the Texas code
Notice before a crime
No Texas statute requiring someone to give notice, 24 hours or otherwise, before committing a crime was found. We searched the full text of the Texas statutes and read Penal Code chapter 15, which covers criminal attempt, conspiracy and solicitation, and chapter 31 on theft.
Wire cutters in a pocket
No Texas statute banning the carrying of wire cutters was found, in the current code or in the 1925 Penal Code. What Texas has long punished is cutting the fence itself: the 1925 Penal Code had an article, Art. 1353, titled "Wilfully cutting fence." Our search covered the full text of the current statutes, Penal Code chapter 28 on property damage, chapter 31 on theft, and Agriculture Code chapter 143 on fences and livestock.
Honking when you pass in El Paso
No Texas statute requiring a driver to honk when passing was found, and our search of the current El Paso city code for horn and passing rules turned up none either. The closest state rule runs the other way: Transportation Code 545.053(b)(1) tells the driver being passed to move to the right on an audible signal. It does not require the passing driver to give one.
Frequently Asked Questions
Is it illegal to sell your organs in Texas?
Texas Penal Code 48.02 makes it a state jail felony to knowingly or intentionally offer to buy or sell, acquire, receive, sell or otherwise transfer any human organ for valuable consideration. The definition lists the eye, kidney, liver, heart, lung, pancreas, bone and skin; blood, plasma and hair are excluded.
Were encyclopedias banned in Texas because they contained a beer recipe?
During state prohibition, Art. 682 of the 1925 Penal Code made it unlawful to advertise, sell, deliver or possess recipes for making intoxicating liquors for beverage purposes. The article did not name encyclopedias, and the prohibition chapter was repealed in 1935 by the Texas Liquor Control Act. No current Texas statute restricting books with beer recipes was found.
Is it illegal to milk someone else's cow in Texas?
Art. 1466 of the 1925 Penal Code fined anyone who took up, used or milked another person's cow without the owner's consent up to $10. That article was folded into the general theft section, Penal Code 31.03, when the new Penal Code took effect on January 1, 1974.
Do criminals have to give 24 hours of notice before a crime in Texas?
No Texas statute requiring notice before committing a crime was found in the Texas code as of October 21, 2026. Penal Code chapter 15, on attempt, conspiracy and solicitation, contains nothing like it.
Is it illegal to carry wire cutters in Texas?
No Texas statute banning the carrying of wire cutters was found, in the current code or in the 1925 Penal Code, as of October 21, 2026. The 1925 Penal Code did punish wilfully cutting a fence (Art. 1353).
Do you have to honk when passing in El Paso?
No state statute or current El Paso city code provision requiring a horn when passing was found as of October 21, 2026. Texas Transportation Code 545.053(b)(1) only tells the driver being passed to move right on an audible signal.
What are some weird laws in Texas?
Of the 7 claims checked, the only one that is current state law is the felony ban on selling human organs, including eyes. The beer-recipe and cow-milking claims were real laws that were repealed, and Port Arthur has a general odor nuisance rule that lists retell as an elevator ban.
Updates
Independently fact-checked against the cited primary sources
Sources and References
- Texas Penal Code 48.02, prohibition of the purchase and sale of human organs (Texas Legislature)(statutes.capitol.texas.gov).gov
- Penal Code of the State of Texas (1925), Arts. 682 and 1466 (Texas State Law Library)(sll.texas.gov).gov
- Texas Attorney General Opinion No. O-2143 (1940), quoting the 1935 Texas Liquor Control Act repeal (Office of the Texas Attorney General)(www.texasattorneygeneral.gov).gov
- Texas Penal Code, 1984 edition, with Table 1 disposition of former Penal Code articles (Texas State Law Library)(sll.texas.gov).gov
- Port Arthur Code of Ordinances 34-3, nuisances enumerated (Municode)(library.municode.com)
- Texas Penal Code chapter 15, preparatory offenses (Texas Legislature)(statutes.capitol.texas.gov).gov
- Texas Penal Code chapter 28, arson, criminal mischief and other property damage (Texas Legislature)(statutes.capitol.texas.gov).gov
- Texas Transportation Code chapter 545, rules of the road, including 545.053 (Texas Legislature)(statutes.capitol.texas.gov).gov
- Planned Parenthood v. Phillips (2022)(courtlistener.com)