Where can I legally drive a golf cart in Texas, and do the golf-course rules apply inside my neighborhood?

Plain-English summary

Texas lets people drive golf carts on certain roads and in certain places, but only within limits set by section 551.403 of the Transportation Code. The Brazoria County Criminal District Attorney asked the Attorney General three questions about how that statute works.

The statute lists three settings where a golf cart may be operated. The first is a master planned community that has a uniform set of restrictive covenants and a plat approved by a county or municipality. The second is a public or private beach. The third is a public highway with a posted speed limit of 35 miles per hour or less, and only if the cart is driven during the daytime and no more than two miles from where it is usually parked, for transportation to or from a golf course.

The first question was how to read the phrase "master planned community." The opinion explained that no Texas statute or rule defines the term, and no court had construed section 551.403. The only Texas decision discussing the phrase was Parkway Co. v. Woodruff, where the Supreme Court of Texas called "master planned community" a term of art for a particular form of common ownership, typically a residential development with a homeowners' association that maintains common areas and enforces covenants, with mandatory membership for unit owners. That description lines up with the statute's requirement of restrictive covenants and an approved plat, but without more guidance from the Legislature or the courts, the opinion said it could not offer a more precise definition.

The second question asked whether someone driving a golf cart in a master planned community also has to obey the daytime, speed-limit, and other restrictions that apply to driving on a public highway. The opinion said no. The three settings are separated by the word "or," which signals alternatives. A person operating within the rules for a master planned community is driving legally and does not also have to satisfy the separate public-highway requirements.

The third question concerned the public-highway option. There, the two-mile distance limit and the requirement that the trip be to or from a golf course are joined by the word "and." Because "and" makes the requirements cumulative rather than alternative, the opinion concluded that golf-cart operation on a qualifying public highway is allowed only if, among other requirements, the cart is driven no more than two miles from where it is usually parked and only for the purpose of getting to or from a golf course.

Currency note

This opinion was issued in 2012. Subsequent statutory amendments, court decisions, or later Attorney General opinions may have changed the analysis. Treat this page as historical context, not current legal advice. Verify current law before relying on any specific rule, deadline, or remedy mentioned here.

What the opinion meant for those who asked

The requesting district attorney and law enforcement (as the opinion described it): The opinion read section 551.403 as offering three independent locations for legal golf-cart operation, joined by "or." It treated the public-highway requirements (daytime, within two miles, and a golf-course trip) as cumulative because they are joined by "and."

Golf-cart drivers in master planned communities (as the opinion described it): The opinion treated driving within a qualifying master planned community as a stand-alone category. It did not require those drivers to also meet the public-highway limits.

On defining "master planned community" (as the opinion described it): The opinion declined to fix a precise definition. It pointed to the Texas Supreme Court's term-of-art description in Parkway Co. v. Woodruff and to the statute's own requirements (restrictive covenants and an approved plat), but said it could go no further without legislative or judicial guidance.

Common questions

Do neighborhood golf-cart drivers have to follow the golf-course and two-mile rules?
No, as the opinion read the statute. Those rules apply to operating on a public highway. Driving within a qualifying master planned community is a separate option joined by "or," so the highway limits do not attach to it.

What makes a community a "master planned community" for this statute?
The statute requires a uniform set of restrictive covenants and a plat approved by a county or municipality. The opinion said no statute or court precisely defines the broader term, and it relied on the Texas Supreme Court's general description of a common-ownership residential development with a homeowners' association.

On a public road, can I drive a golf cart anywhere within two miles?
Not for any purpose. The opinion read the two-mile limit and the golf-course-trip purpose as joined by "and," so on a qualifying public highway the trip must be both within two miles of where the cart is usually parked and for getting to or from a golf course.

What speed limit allows golf carts on a public highway?
The statute allows it only on a public highway with a posted speed limit of 35 miles per hour or less, and only during the daytime.

Background and statutory framework

Section 551.403(a) of the Transportation Code permits golf-cart operation in three settings: a master planned community with a uniform set of restrictive covenants and an approved plat; a public or private beach; or a public highway posted at 35 miles per hour or less, during the daytime, within two miles of where the cart is usually parked, for transportation to or from a golf course. A related definition in sections 502.001(35) and 551.401(1) describes what counts as a "public highway" for this subchapter.

The opinion's reading turned on the conjunctions. It cited Parkway Co. v. Woodruff for the meaning of "master planned community," and City of Lubbock v. Adams and In re Brookshire Grocery Co. for the ordinary distinction between "or" (alternatives) and "and" (cumulative requirements).

Citations

Cases:

• Parkway Co. v. Woodruff, 901 S.W.2d 434, 440 (Tex. 1995)
• City of Lubbock v. Adams, 149 S.W.3d 820, 827 (Tex. App.—Amarillo 2004, pet. denied)
• In re Brookshire Grocery Co., 250 S.W.3d 66, 69 (Tex. 2008)

Statutes:

• Tex. Transp. Code Ann. § 551.403(a), (a)(1)(A)-(B), (a)(3)(B) (West 2011)
• Tex. Transp. Code Ann. §§ 502.001(35), 551.401(1) (West 2011)

Source

• Landing page: https://www.texasattorneygeneral.gov/opinions/greg-abbott/ga-0966
• Original PDF: https://www.texasattorneygeneral.gov/sites/default/files/opinion-files/opinion/2012/ga0966.pdf

Original opinion text

Best-effort transcription from the official PDF. Minor extraction artifacts were corrected; the linked PDF is authoritative.

ATTORNEY GENERAL OF TEXAS
GREG ABBOTT

September 12, 2012

The Honorable Jeri Yenne Opinion No. GA-0966
Brazoria County Criminal District Attorney
111 East Locust, Suite 408A Re: Authority to operate a golf cart under section
Angleton, Texas 77515 551.403 of the Transportation Code (RQ-1052-GA)

Dear Ms. Yenne:

You ask about section 551.403(a) of the Transportation Code, which permits limited operation of a golf cart in specified locations.[1] Section 551.403(a) provides:

(a) An operator may operate a golf cart:

(1) in a master planned community:

(A) that has in place a uniform set of restrictive covenants; and

(B) for which a county or municipality has approved a plat;

(2) on a public or private beach; or

(3) on a public highway for which the posted speed limit is not more than 35 miles per hour, if the golf cart is operated:

(A) during the daytime; and

(B) not more than two miles from the location where the golf cart is usually parked and for transportation to or from a golf course.

TEX. TRANSP. CODE ANN. § 551.403(a) (West 2011).[2] You ask first how "master planned community" should be construed for purposes of the statute. Request Letter at 2. No Texas statute or rule defines the term "master planned community." Nor has any judicial opinion construed section 551.403. In the only Texas court decision we have located that discusses the meaning of the term, the Supreme Court of Texas observed that "'[m]aster planned community' and 'planned community' are terms of art, specifying a particular form of common ownership." Parkway Co. v. Woodruff, 901 S.W.2d 434, 440 (Tex. 1995) (concerning the Deceptive Trade Practices Act). The court further stated:

Master planned communities are typically residential developments zoned as planned unit developments with a homeowners' association to maintain common area improvements and to enforce other covenants and restrictions after the initial development stage. The owners of the individual units hold title to the unit, but the association holds title to the common amenities. Membership in the association is mandatory for all owners of individual units.

Id. at 440 n.8 (citations omitted). The court's description of a master planned community is consistent with the requirements of section 551.403(a)(1) that the community have "a uniform set of restrictive covenants" and that the community's plat has been approved by the pertinent county or municipality. TEX. TRANSP. CODE ANN. § 551.403(a)(1)(A)-(B) (West 2011). Without further guidance from the Legislature or the courts, however, we are unable to provide a more precise definition of the term for section 551.403(a)'s purposes.

Your second question asks whether a person operating a golf cart in a master planned community under subsection (a)(1) of section 551.403 is also subject to the time-of-day, speed-limit, and other limitations in subsection (a)(3). Request Letter at 3. Subsections (a)(1), (a)(2), and (a)(3) describe different locations, separated by the disjunctive word "or." Ordinarily, the word "or" is "used to express an alternative or to give a choice of one among two or more things." City of Lubbock v. Adams, 149 S.W.3d 820, 827 (Tex. App.—Amarillo 2004, pet. denied) (noting dictionary definitions); see also In re Brookshire Grocery Co., 250 S.W.3d 66, 69 (Tex. 2008) (stating general distinction between the words "or" and "and"). Under the statute, a person is operating a golf cart legally if the person is operating a golf cart within the parameters of subsection (a)(1), (a)(2), or (a)(3) of that section. Thus, a person operating a golf cart under subsection (a)(1) need not also satisfy the requirements of subsection (a)(3).

Finally, you ask about subsection 551.403(a)(3)(B), which allows a person to operate a golf cart on certain public highways only if, among other things, the cart is operated "not more than two miles from the location where the golf cart is usually parked and for transportation to or from a golf course." TEX. TRANSP. CODE ANN. § 551.403(a)(3)(B) (West 2011); Request Letter at 3. You ask whether, under section 551.403(a)(3)(B), a person who operates a golf cart on a public highway during the daytime not more than two miles from where the golf cart is usually parked is limited to operating the golf cart only for the purpose of transportation to or from a golf course. Request Letter at 3. The distance limitation and the purpose requirement in subsection 551.403(a)(3)(B) are separated by the conjunctive word "and." Thus, the provision sets forth cumulative rather than alternative limitations. See In re Brookshire Grocery Co., 250 S.W.3d at 69. Accordingly, section 551.403(a)(3) allows operation of a golf cart on certain public highways only if, among other requirements, the golf cart is operated not more than two miles from where the golf cart is usually parked and is operated only for the purpose of transportation to or from a golf course.

SUMMARY

A person is operating a golf cart legally for purposes of section 551.403 of the Texas Transportation Code if a person is operating a golf cart within the parameters of subsection (a)(1), (a)(2), or (a)(3) of that section.

Subsection 551.403(a)(3) of the Transportation Code allows operation of a golf cart on a public highway only if, among other requirements, the golf cart is operated not more than two miles from the location where the golf cart is usually parked and is operated only for the purpose of transportation to or from a golf course.

Very truly yours,

DANIEL T. HODGE
First Assistant Attorney General

JAMES D. BLACKLOCK
Deputy Attorney General for Legal Counsel

JASON BOATRIGHT
Chairman, Opinion Committee

William A. Hill
Assistant Attorney General, Opinion Committee

[1] See Letter from Honorable Jeri Yenne, Brazoria Cnty. Criminal Dist. Att'y, to Honorable Greg Abbott, Tex. Att'y Gen. at 2-3 (Apr. 5, 2012), http://www.texasattorneygeneral.gov/opin ("Request Letter").

[2] For purposes of subchapter F of chapter 551, a "'Public Highway' includes a road, street, way, thoroughfare, or bridge: (A) that is in this state; (B) that is for the use of vehicles; (C) that is not privately owned or controlled; and (D) over which the state has legislative jurisdiction under its police power." TEX. TRANSP. CODE ANN. §§ 502.001(35), 551.401(1) (West 2011).