Do you need a permit?
It depends on the tree
Columbia has no city government. It is an unincorporated community in Howard County, so the county code is the law here — and Howard County does not require a homeowner to get a permit to remove a tree from an ordinary residential lot. But that is only half the answer, and in Columbia it is the less important half. Columbia is a covenanted community, and the covenants reach your back yard where the county does not. Wilde Lake states it plainly: "the Wilde Lake Covenants require residents to obtain permission from Columbia Association Open Space before removing a tree with a trunk diameter greater than six inches, even dead trees." Hickory Ridge sets a different rule at the same six inches. The covenants are private contract, not law, but they bind you, and they vary village by village.
Size threshold
No county threshold applies to an ordinary homeowner. The covenant thresholds do, and they are the operative numbers. Wilde Lake: "a tree with a trunk diameter greater than six inches, even dead trees." Hickory Ridge exempts a tree that "is less than 6 inches in diameter (measured from a point two feet above ground level)." At county level the only figure is the Forest Conservation Act trigger, which section 16.1202(a) sets at "developing land 40,000 square feet or greater in area" and section 16.1202(b)(1)(i) removes for "Development activity on a single lot smaller than 40,000 square feet."
What's protected in Columbia
- Trees covered by your village covenants. Wilde Lake requires Columbia Association Open Space permission above six inches trunk diameter including dead trees. Hickory Ridge requires an Exterior Alteration Application unless the tree "is completely dead," is under six inches, is "only one tree being removed, regardless of size, and no other trees have been removed from the property within the last calendar year," or is one of "Up to two trees ... regardless of size, when they are within 15 feet of the house."
- Trees on Columbia Association open space. CA maintains "Columbia's 3600 acres of open space and over 100 miles of pathways," and open space frequently runs right up to the back of Columbia lots. A tree on the other side of your property line is CA's, not yours.
- Street trees — "those trees located between the sidewalk and the street," which Wilde Lake confirms "are generally Howard County's responsibility to maintain," and which are separately covered by the Maryland Roadside Tree Law.
- Forest under a previously approved forest conservation plan or inside a recorded Forest Conservation Easement. Howard County publishes a Forest Conservation Easements layer on its interactive map.
- Forest on land being developed at 40,000 square feet or more, under Howard County Code Title 16 Subtitle 12.
How to apply in Columbia
- 1
Work out which village you are in first, and call that village office. The rules differ between villages and the village covenant advisor is the person who can tell you what applies to your lot.
- 2
In Wilde Lake, request permission from Columbia Association Open Space before removing any tree over six inches trunk diameter, dead trees included. The village says requests are "handled by Open Space in the order received."
- 3
In Hickory Ridge, check the four exemptions first. If none applies, "a resident is required to submit an Exterior Alteration Application to obtain approval before removing a tree."
- 4
Do not expect the village to tell you whether the tree is dead. Wilde Lake: "only a certified arborist can determine the health of a tree. However, in some instances, depending on the season, the Covenant Advisor is able to make a reasonable determination about whether a tree is dead."
- 5
For a street tree between the sidewalk and the road, use Howard County's Tell HoCo app or call the Bureau of Highways Tree Division at 410-313-7450. Hickory Ridge: "Healthy street trees cannot be removed without their permission," referring to Maryland DNR.
- 6
If you are developing land of 40,000 square feet or more, file a forest conservation plan with the Howard County Department of Planning and Zoning before subdivision plan, site development plan, grading permit or county road and utility construction plan approval.
- 7
If you are exempt under section 16.1202(b), you may still owe paperwork: "A person seeking an exemption under subsection (b) above shall submit a declaration of intent to the Department to verify that the proposed activity is exempt."
Fees, penalties, and the ordinance
- Fee
- Howard County charges nothing for a homeowner tree removal because no county permit exists. No fee is published for a Columbia Association Open Space tree removal request or for a village Exterior Alteration Application. Within the county Forest Conservation program, section 16.1202(c)(3) provides for "a penalty fee established by fee schedules approved by resolution of the County Council per square foot of forest cut or cleared, but in no case less than the minimum set by state law."
- Penalties
- Howard County may revoke an exemption and require compliance: "The Department may revoke an exemption for properties that are in violation of the conditions of exemption set forth in section 16.1202(b) of this subtitle and may require compliance with the retention, reforestation" requirements. A person failing to file or comply with a declaration of intent may be required to meet the retention, reforestation and afforestation requirements, "Pay a penalty fee established by fee schedules approved by resolution of the County Council per square foot of forest cut or cleared, but in no case less than the minimum set by state law," or "Be subject to other enforcement actions appropriate under title 5, subtitle 16 of the Natural Resources Article of the Annotated Code of Maryland." Covenant violations are enforced by the village association as a contract matter, not prosecuted by the county.
- Ordinance
- Howard County Code, Title 16 (Planning, Zoning and Subdivisions and Land Development Regulations), Subtitle 12 — Forest Conservation, sections 16.1200 through 16.1220. Section 16.1202 derives from C.B. 62, 2019, section 1 and was amended by C.B. 66, 2021, section 1. Howard County Code codified through Bill No. 17-2026, adopted February 6, 2026 (Supp. No. 90). The covenant regime is separate and is not county law: it runs through the recorded Columbia covenants administered by each village community association and by Columbia Association.
Worth knowing
- The covenant answer and the government answer point in opposite directions here, and the covenant one is stricter. A Columbia homeowner who checks only "does Howard County require a tree permit" will get a clean no and then breach their covenants.
- Columbia Association is not the covenant enforcer. CA says so in its own words: village community associations handle "Enforcing covenants," while CA handles open space and facilities and Howard County handles "Inspections, licenses and permits" and "Planning and zoning management." But in Wilde Lake the tree approval itself routes to CA Open Space, so the split is not clean.
- Maryland follows the self-help rule on overhanging branches, and the villages explain it accurately. Hickory Ridge: you "have the right to trim branches that encroach over onto your property" but "May not destroy the tree by pruning; May not cut down the tree itself; and Must stop at the property line unless have neighbor's consent."
- On a fallen tree, Maryland puts the cost where it lands. Wilde Lake: "It is the responsibility of the homeowner on whose property the tree lands, not on whose property the tree stands." Hickory Ridge calls it "an Act of God."
- Street tree stumps take a long time. The county: "Stump removal can take up to a year, depending on the current workload and backlog."
- Columbia is not in the Chesapeake Bay Critical Area. Howard County does not appear on the Critical Area Commission's list of Critical Area jurisdictions, so the 1,000-foot tidal buffer rules do not apply.
- The tree company you hire must hold a Maryland Licensed Tree Expert licence under Natural Resources Article section 5-417(a)(1). Wilde Lake links residents straight to the state lookup: "To find a certified arborist or tree expert, use the Maryland Department of Natural Resources' online directory."
- Howard County gives trees away. Recreation and Parks runs an annual native tree giveaway — 6,000 trees in 2026, up to two per address — and separately runs planting programmes for schools, HOAs and private properties. Natural Resources Division, 410-313-1679.
What we could not confirm
We would rather tell you what we don't know than guess. Call the office below to confirm these before you cut.
- — The covenant rule for the other eight Columbia villages. We verified Wilde Lake and Hickory Ridge directly from their own association websites. Dorsey's Search, Harper's Choice, King's Contrivance, Long Reach, Oakland Mills, Owen Brown, River Hill and Town Center each publish their own architectural guidelines and their thresholds may differ from both examples above. Call your village office.
- — The Columbia Association Open Space tree removal request form itself. Wilde Lake links to it but the link is generated dynamically and could not be retrieved.
- — Whether any village charges a fee for an Exterior Alteration Application covering tree removal, and how long approval takes.
- — Whether Howard County has any tree ordinance reaching private property outside the Forest Conservation subtitle. We walked Title 15 (Natural Resources), Title 18 (Public Works) and Title 19 (Recreation and Parks) and found no tree subtitle, and the county's own tree pages address only right-of-way trees and giveaway programmes. Absence of a provision is weaker evidence than an express exemption, so confirm with DPZ at 410-313-2350 if your tree is unusual.
- — Whether Howard County holds a delegated or blanket Maryland Roadside Tree Permit. The DNR Roadside Tree Program page names only Montgomery County as holding delegated authority.
Sources
- Wilde Lake Community Association — Tree Management FAQs
- Hickory Ridge Community Association — Tree Information
- Columbia Association — Who Handles What?
- Howard County Code, Title 16 Subtitle 12 — Forest Conservation
- Howard County Department of Planning and Zoning
- Howard County Bureau of Highways — Tree Maintenance
- Howard County Recreation and Parks — Forestry
- Maryland Natural Resources Article section 5-1602 — Forest Conservation Act applicability
- Maryland DNR — Licensed Tree Expert lookup
- Maryland Critical Area Commission — local planning and zoning contacts