Auburn, AL Code Violation Reporting: Response Times (2026)
Key Facts
- Notice method
- Personal delivery or first-class mail, posted onsite
- Abatement deadline
- 14 days, extendable to 28 days
- Hearing request window
- 5 days from notice
- Circuit court appeal
- 10 days after hearing decision
- Governing law
- Code of Ala. § 11-67-92
Summary
When Auburn's code enforcement designates a property a public nuisance, such as overgrown weeds, City Code § 15-16 and Code of Ala. § 11-67-92 require written notice giving the owner 14 days to fix it, extendable to 28 days by the enforcing official. Owners get just 5 days from the notice to request a hearing disputing the finding.
(b)The enforcing official shall give the owner written notice in person or by first class mail. The notice shall apprise the owner of the facts of the alleged nuisance and require the condition be abated within the time stated in the notice or to request a hearing before an administrative official of the city designated by the city manager, to determine whether there has been a violation. (e)The notice shall require the owner to complete abatement of the nuisance within 14 days from the date of notice, provided the enforcing official may stipulate additional time, but in no case more than 28 days. (f)A property owner shall have five days in which to request a hearing before the administrative official to appeal the determination of the enforcing official.
Official source re-checked September 7, 2026: no newer edition of the code had been published (publisher’s edition: Code of Ordinances: Supplement 90).
Full Breakdown
Auburn's code-enforcement timeline for nuisance complaints runs through § 15-16, which adopts the notice procedure at Code of Alabama 1975 § 11-67-92. Whenever a city official or an employee designated by the city manager determines a nuisance exists, such as grass or weeds over 12 inches, the enforcing official must give the property owner written notice, delivered in person or by first-class mail, describing the alleged violation and posted in a conspicuous place on the property itself. The notice must set a deadline for abatement of no fewer than 14 days, though the enforcing official may grant the owner up to 28 days total.
The owner then has exactly 5 days from the date of the notice to request a hearing before an administrative official designated by the city manager to contest whether a nuisance actually exists. After that hearing, the administrative official's determination is sent to the owner by personal service or first-class mail. Any owner still aggrieved by that decision has 10 days to appeal further, to the Lee County Circuit Court, by filing notice of the appeal and a bond for court costs with the circuit clerk; the appeal is then docketed as a preferred case and tried without a jury.
Notice is sent to whoever the county's tax records list as the last person assessed for ad valorem tax on the property, and it is that owner's responsibility to update the enforcing official of any change in ownership.
Violations & Fines
An owner who misses both the 14/28-day abatement deadline and the 5-day appeal window loses the right to contest the nuisance finding. The city or its contractor then abates the condition directly, and the itemized cost of the work, including labor, equipment and materials, is presented to the city council, assessed against the property by resolution, and recorded as a lien collected with the Lee County ad valorem tax bill.
Frequently Asked Questions
How much notice does Auburn have to give before a nuisance is abated?
Can I appeal Auburn's nuisance determination before the city acts?
Who decides whether my property is a nuisance in Auburn?
Sources & Official References
Other rules in Auburn
Compare Auburn to another location·View the Alabama code violation reporting overview
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