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History of towing in San Antonio
How towing rules in San Antonio took shape: ordinances, contracts, court rulings and state laws, in date order. Every entry links to its source.
How to read this timeline. Entries are in date order. Most rest on a court opinion, a law or a government record. Entries marked "Not yet verified" rest on one secondary or self-reported source, and entries marked "From a news report" rest on news coverage. We leave out private people's names and accusations against companies that have no published outcome.
City-run impound and early wrecker rules (1959 to 2007)
The City Code of 1959 already provides for removing illegally parked and abandoned cars to the police pound and charging storage; today's sections 19-51 to 19-53 trace back to it.
The Council adds a vehicle impound fee for each car taken into police custody (now $20, § 19-51.1).
The Council adds a fee for notifying the owner and lienholder that an impounded car will be auctioned if not claimed (now $50, § 19-53.1).
Texas recodifies its abandoned-vehicle law as Transportation Code chapter 683, the law police agencies still use to notify owners and auction unclaimed cars.
Statewide: Texas
The Council adopts a wrecker-service article (Ord. 96242), the forerunner of today's chapter 19, article XI.
After the Supreme Court's Ours Garage decision, the Fifth Circuit sends a towing companies' challenge to San Antonio's street-towing rules and exclusive towing contract back to the trial court to decide whether they are allowed safety rules.
The Vehicle Storage Facility Act (Occupations Code chapter 2303), passed in 2001, takes effect. It sets the notice, fee and sale rules for licensed storage lots.
Statewide: Texas
House Bill 2094 creates the Texas Towing and Booting Act (Occupations Code chapter 2308), moving earlier towing provisions out of the Transportation Code and putting tow companies, operators and booting under the Texas Department of Licensing and Regulation.
Statewide: Texas
Privatized impound lot, new city rules and the federal settlement (2008 to 2020)
The Council votes to have a private company run SAPD's Growdon Road impound lot (Ord. 2008-03-13-0203). In fiscal year 2007 the lot stored 30,291 cars. The same day it amends the wrecker article and the impound-fee sections (Ord. 2008-03-13-0202).
Source: Ordinance 2008-03-13-0203 (City archive PDF); City Code ch. 19 (history notes)
The Council adopts rules for booting at pay parking lots, including a $35 limit on the removal fee (Ord. 2012-05-17-0356).
Source: City Code ch. 16, art. XV
The Council rewrites the wrecker article (Ord. 2013-01-31-0075), setting today's $177 / $196 / $602 limits for parking-lot tows, free release before hook-up and a half-rate drop fee.
A four-year tow-manager contract begins: one company dispatches SAPD tows to subcontracted towing companies (later extended to September 30, 2024).
Source: City Auditor report AU23-030
News4 San Antonio reports that SAPD's review found cars sold at the Growdon lot in early 2017 without proof of the required notices, as the Council prepares to choose a new lot operator.
From a news report
Source: News4 San Antonio
A new company takes over the Growdon impound lot under a City contract, using an auction and impound software system.
Source: City Auditor report AU23-030
The City settles a Justice Department case alleging that at least 227 servicemembers' cars were sold at auction between 2011 and 2019 without court orders.
The Justice Department page did not load for us; figures checked against KSAT's report.
Source: Justice Department press release; KSAT, Sept. 4, 2020
New contracts and statewide changes (2021 to 2026)
The Texas Commission of Licensing and Regulation raises the statewide maximum for a private-property tow of a car from $255 to $272 (effective November 1, 2021), with higher drop, storage and impound maximums.
Statewide: Texas
Source: TDLR news, Oct. 21, 2021
SAPD contract tow rates rise to $210 (light), $350 (medium) and $410 an hour (heavy) with a one-year contract extension.
Source: City Auditor report AU23-030
The City Auditor reports that SAPD manages its towing and impound contracts appropriately.
Source: City Auditor report AU23-030
The City asks for proposals for one contractor to manage SAPD towing and impound operations, including auctions.
Source: RFP 23-117 notice
New statewide storage-lot maximums take effect: $22.85 a day (25 feet or shorter), $39.99 a day (longer) and a $22.85 impoundment fee.
Statewide: Texas TDLR's news item says January 1; the rule's source note says January 15.
Source: TDLR towing and storage news; 16 Tex. Admin. Code § 85.722
News4 San Antonio reports that the Council approved a ten-year contract putting Vehicle Management Solutions in charge of towing, dispatch and impound.
From a news report We have not found the council record; the exact date is approximate ('late February').
Source: News4 San Antonio
After passing the Texas House, House Bill 5499 is referred to the Senate Transportation Committee, its last recorded action. The bill would have required cities and counties that regulate nonconsent tow fees to study them at least every two years and then reset them.
Statewide: Texas
Source: HB 5499 bill history (Texas Legislature Online); HB 5499 committee bill analysis
Two 2025 state laws take effect: police may now remove a car being driven without a license or without insurance, even without an arrest (S.B. 857), and storage lots may publish required notices on an approved website instead of a newspaper (H.B. 3928).
Statewide: Texas
The Justice Department announces a $280,000 settlement with a San Antonio tow company over about 93 servicemembers' vehicles sold or scrapped without court orders.
Source: Justice Department press release; Settlement agreement
For the rates over the years, see tow and storage rates. Know a record that belongs here? Email corrections@towedhelp.org.
Last checked .