1. (a) No person shall litter, sweep, throw or cast, or direct, suffer or permit any servant, agent, employee, or other person under his or her control, to litter, sweep, throw or cast any ashes, garbage, paper, dust or other rubbish and refuse of any kind whatsoever, in or upon any street or public place, vacant lot, air shaft, areaway, backyard court, park, or alley.
(b) No person shall spit upon a sidewalk of a street or public place, or on a floor, wall or stairway of any public or private building or premises used in common by the public, or in or on any public transportation facility.
2. (a) Every owner, lessee, tenant, occupant or person in charge of any building or premises shall keep and cause to be kept the sidewalk, flagging and curbstone abutting said building or premises free from obstruction and nuisances of every kind, and shall keep said sidewalks, flagging, curbstones, and air shafts, areaways, backyards, courts and alleys free from garbage, refuse, rubbish, litter, debris and other offensive material. Such persons shall also remove garbage, refuse, rubbish, litter, debris and other offensive material between the curbstone abutting the building or premises and the roadway area extending one and one-half feet from the curbstone into the street on which the building or premises front. Such persons shall not, however, be responsible for cleaning the garbage, refuse, rubbish, litter, debris and other offensive material which accumulates at catch basins located within the one and one-half foot distance from the curbstone into the street.
(b) Every owner, lessee, tenant or person in charge of any vacant lot shall keep and cause to be kept the sidewalk, flagging and curbstone abutting said vacant lot free from obstruction and nuisances of every kind, and shall keep said sidewalks, flagging and curbstones free from garbage, refuse, rubbish, litter, debris and other offensive material. Every owner, lessee, tenant or person in charge of any vacant lot shall keep and cause to be kept said vacant lot free from garbage, refuse, rubbish, litter, debris and other offensive material. Such persons shall also remove garbage, refuse, rubbish, litter, debris and other offensive material between the curbstone abutting the vacant lot and the roadway area extending one and one-half feet from the curbstone into the street on which the vacant lot fronts. Such persons shall not, however, be responsible for cleaning the garbage, refuse, rubbish, litter, debris and other offensive material which accumulates at catch basins located within the one and one-half foot distance from the curbstone into the street.
3. No lime, ashes, coal, dry sand, hair, waste paper, feathers, or other substance that is in a similar manner liable to be blown by the wind, shall be sieved, agitated, or exposed, nor shall any mat, carpet, or cloth be shaken or beaten, nor shall any cloth, yarn, garment, material or substance be scoured or cleaned, nor shall any rags, damaged merchandise, barrels, boxes, or broken bales of merchandise or goods be placed, kept, or exposed in any place where they or particles therefrom will pass into any street or public place, or into any occupied premises, nor shall any usual or any reasonable precautions be omitted by any person to prevent fragments or any substances from falling to the detriment or peril of life or health, or dust or light material flying into any street, place, or building, from any building or erection, while the same is being altered, repaired or demolished, or otherwise. In demolishing any building or part thereof, the material to be removed shall be properly wet in order to lay dust incident to its removal.
4. No one, being the owner, or in charge or in control of any vehicle, or of any receptacle, shall litter, drop or spill, or permit to be littered, dropped or spilled any dirt, sand, gravel, clay, loam, stone or building rubbish, hay, straw, oats, sawdust, shavings or other light materials of any sort, or manufacturing, trade or household waste, refuse, rubbish of any sort, or ashes, manure, garbage, or other organic refuse or other offensive matter, in or upon any street or public place.
5. [Repealed.]
6. No swill, brine, offensive animal matter, noxious liquid, or other filthy matter of any kind, shall be allowed by any person to fall upon or run into any street, or public place, or be taken to or put therein.
7. No person shall prevent, or otherwise interfere with, the sweeping or cleaning of any street, the removal of snow or ice from any street or the collection or removal of any solid waste or recyclable material from any street, by any employee of the department.
8. The violation of any provision of this section shall constitute an offense punishable by a fine of not less than fifty dollars nor more than two hundred fifty dollars, or by imprisonment not to exceed ten days, or both; provided that the violation of subdivision 1 of this section, or the violation of subdivision 6 of this section by means of the act of public urination, shall constitute an offense punishable only by a fine of not less than fifty dollars nor more than two hundred fifty dollars, or by imprisonment not to exceed one day.
9. Any person violating the provisions of this section shall be liable for a civil penalty in the following amounts, provided that for the purposes of this subdivision, the term "first violation" means any number of violations issued for a single incident:
a. (1) not less than 50 and not more than 250 dollars for a first violation, except that the civil penalty shall be not less than 250 and not more than 350 dollars for a second violation of subdivision 4 or 6 of this section within any 12 month period, and not less than 350 and not more than 450 dollars for a third or subsequent violation of subdivision 4 or 6 of this section within any 12 month period;
(2) notwithstanding subparagraph (1) of paragraph a of this subdivision, 50 dollars for a first violation of paragraph (a) of subdivision 2 or of subdivision 3 of this section, or of any rules promulgated pursuant thereto, 100 dollars for a second violation of such paragraph or subdivision or of any rules promulgated pursuant thereto within any 12 month period, and 100 dollars for a third or subsequent violation of such paragraph or subdivision or of any rules promulgated pursuant thereto within any 12 month period;
b. notwithstanding paragraph a of this subdivision, for any natural person violating subdivision 6 of this section by means of the act of public urination:
(1) 75 dollars for a first violation, and
(2) not less than 250 and not more than 350 dollars for any second violation within any 12 month period, and
(3) not less than 350 and not more than 450 dollars for any third violation within any 12 month period;
c. notwithstanding paragraph a of this subdivision, for any natural person violating subdivision 1 of this section:
(1) 75 dollars for a first violation, and
(2) 300 dollars for any second violation within any 12 month period, and
(3) 400 dollars for any third violation within any 12 month period; and
d. notwithstanding paragraph a of this subdivision, for any natural person violating subdivision 4 of this section:
(1) 200 dollars for a first violation; and
(2) 350 dollars for any second violation within any 12 month period; and
(3) 450 dollars for any third violation within any 12 month period.
10. In the instance where a notice of violation is issued for breach of the provisions of this section and sets forth thereon civil penalties only, such process shall be returnable to the office of administrative trials and hearings pursuant to section 1049-a of the charter.
11. In the event that a violator fails to answer such notice of violation within the time provided therefor by the rules and regulations of the environmental control board, a tribunal of the office of administrative trials and hearings, pursuant to section 1049-a of the charter, he or she shall become liable for additional penalties. The additional penalties shall not exceed four hundred fifty dollars for each violation, provided that such penalties imposed for a violation of this section for the act of public urination shall not exceed 150 percent of the penalties enumerated in paragraph b of subdivision 9 of this section, and further provided that such penalties imposed for violations of subdivision 1 of this section shall not exceed 150 percent of the penalties enumerated in paragraph c of subdivision 9 of this section.
(Am. L.L. 2016/075, 6/13/2016, eff. 8/12/2016; Am. L.L. 2018/131, 7/29/2018, eff. 11/26/2018; Am. L.L. 2018/137, 7/29/2018, eff. 11/26/2018; Am. L.L. 2021/080, 7/18/2021, eff. 11/15/2021)
Editor's note: For related unconsolidated provisions, see Appendix A at L.L. 1995/076, L.L. 2007/050, L.L. 2013/056, L.L. 2016/075 and L.L. 2021/080.