Ordinance Templates and Examples
Some more inspiration while you draft.
Take a look at some templates and examples from around the country. We’ll keep this updated as things change. Thank you for notifying us here of any mistakes or broken links or if there’s something you would like to add. After taking a look at this collection of resources, thank you for considering a donation to support our work.
House of Representatives
Forms of Legislation from the Office of the Legislative Counsel’s Legislative Drafting Guide
Alabama
Elections Manual – Sample Ordinances provided by the Alabama League of Municipalities.
Alaska
Sample Documents from the Alaska Municipal Land Management Handbook provided by the Alaska Department of Commerce, Community, and Economic Development.
Arkansas
Arkansas Municipal League provides a list of example documents including sample ordinances.
California
CalRecycle provides a list of example ordinances, resolutions, and policies relating to recycling programs.
Connecticut
The Connecticut Judicial Branch maintains a list of ordinances and charters by town.
Idaho
The Idaho Municipal Attorneys, Inc. (formerly the Association of Idaho City Attorneys) maintains Ordinance Forms, but the forms are available only to those that are members.
Illinois
The Illinois Municipal League maintains both a list of Model Ordinances created by the IML itself and a list of Sample Ordinances & Code Provisions that it has accumulated from other municipalities.
Iowa
Drake Law School maintains a list of all available online codified ordinances of Iowa municipalities.
Kansas
The City Attorney’s Association of Kansas maintains a list of Sample Ordinances for members.
Kentucky
The Kentucky League of Cities maintains a collection of municipal ordinances from cities around the state.
Maryland
The Maryland State Library maintains a collection of municipal codes from cities around the state.
Massachusetts
The Massachusetts Municipal Lawyers Association maintains some sample ordinances and bylaws for members.
Michigan
The Michigan State University College of Law maintains a collection of municipal ordinances from cities around the state. There is also a collection of sample ordinances maintained by the Michigan Municipal League.
Minnesota
The League of Minnesota Cities maintains a resource library with links to city codes and model ordinances.
New Jersey
The New Jersey State League of Municipalities maintains a collection of sample ordinances.
North Carolina
The North Carolina League of Municipalities has attorneys that can provide sample ordinances to league members, but that information is not readily online.
North Dakota
The North Dakota League of Cities sells a book that contains model ordinances relating to a variety of topics.
Ohio
The Ohio Municipal League maintains a list of the Top 10 Requested Sample Ordinances on its website.
Oklahoma
The Oklahoma Municipal League provides some sample ordinances on their website in the form of Question and Answers.
Oregon
The League of Oregon Cities provides a list of example documents including various ordinances.
Pennsylvania
The Pennsylvania Municipal League provides Model Ordinances to its members, but that information is not readily available online. Montgomery County maintains a list of model ordinances.
Texas
Texas Municipal League provides a list of example documents including various ordinances.
Washington
Municipal Research and Services Center (MRSC) is a nonprofit that serves local governments across Washington State. They have a great database of sample documents including ordinances, forms, job descriptions, etc.
Wisconsin
The Wisconsin State Law Library maintains a list of ordinances and codes by city/town/village/county. The Wisconsin Towns Association provides a list of Sample Town Ordinances.
