Scranton, PA Animal Ordinances: Wildlife Feeding (2026)

Scranton does not have a single comprehensive wildlife-feeding ordinance. Local enforcement runs through Chapter 169 of the Code of Ordinances at https://ecode360.com/11604508, which addresses nuisance animals and conditions, read together with property-maintenance rules against accumulations of food that attract vermin. Two state-level frameworks layer on top. First, 58 Pa. Code Section 137.33 at https://www.pacodeandbulletin.gov/Display/pacode?file=/secure/pacode/data/058/chapter137/s137.33.html&d=reduce (issued by the Pennsylvania Game Commission under 34 Pa.C.S. Section 103) makes it unlawful to intentionally lay or place food, fruit, hay, grain, chemical, salt, or other minerals anywhere in Pennsylvania for the purpose of feeding bears or elk, or in any manner that may cause bears or elk to congregate or habituate an area — black bears are increasingly common in the Scranton/Lackawanna corridor and the ban applies citywide. Second, 58 Pa. Code Section 137.34 prohibits feeding wild, free-ranging cervids (deer) within designated Disease Management Areas to limit Chronic Wasting Disease spread. CWD DMAs are mapped by the Pennsylvania Game Commission at https://www.pa.gov/agencies/pgc/wildlife/wildlife-health/wildlife-diseases/chronic-wasting-disease and are amended after each detection — northeast Pennsylvania DMAs (including the DMA 7 captive-facility area) have expanded in recent years and Lackawanna County's status should be verified against the current PGC map before placing feeders for deer. The Pennsylvania Game Commission Wildlife Conservation Officers in the Northeast Region (Dallas, PA) enforce both 137.33 and 137.34. Songbird feeders are not prohibited but should be maintained to prevent spilled seed from attracting rats — under-maintained feeders that produce vermin can attract Chapter 169 nuisance citations.