Ulster County, NY Ordinances (2026)

Ulster County requires anyone buying and reselling secondhand jewelry, precious metals, electronics or coins to hold a County Clerk-issued dealer license.

Ulster County requires every tobacco retailer to hold a Department of Health license, renewed annually, with new stores barred within 1,000 feet of a school.

Ulster County caps engine idling at five minutes for County-owned vehicles and personal vehicles on County property: a fleet policy, not a rule for the general driving public.

Stormwater management in Ulster County is regulated by NYS DEC SPDES general permits and local MS4 programs in Kingston and urbanized towns. Construction disturbing 1 acre or more…

Ulster County requires residents to separate grass clippings, leaves, brush and clean wood from the trash for composting, though on-site home composting stays legal.

In Ulster County, residential and commercial trash collection is not run by the County itself: it is provided by licensed private haulers regulated by the Ulster County Resource…

Ulster County makes it a misdemeanor to dump refuse from outside the County into any refuse disposal area within it. Section 304-3 bans depositing out-of-County garbage, industrial…

Ulster County requires every resident and business to separate glass, metal, plastic, paper and cardboard from the trash before disposal, enforced by the Resource Recovery Agency.

Ulster County's Food Waste Prevention and Recovery Act forces large food scraps generators to donate edible surplus and divert the rest to composting or an organics recycler, phased in…

Ulster County makes it a violation to remove, take without authorization, or dispose of a County-issued recycling container anywhere but back to the issuing municipality, or to use one…

Ulster County requires a building permit before work covered by the Uniform Code or Energy Code, including construction, enlargement, alteration, or demolition of any building or…

Ulster County requires anyone doing electrical work for the public to hold a County Master Electrician or contractor license, not just a local building permit.

Ulster County's Fire Code operating-permit rule for open burning specifically excludes recreational fires and portable outdoor fireplaces, so backyard fire pits do not need a county…

Ulster County bans polystyrene foam food service ware under the Food Service Waste Reduction Act. No chain restaurant, food service establishment, or County facility, concession, or…

Ulster County restaurants and fast food establishments may only give out plastic beverage straws when a customer specifically asks for one.

Ulster County bans smoking on all county-owned or leased property, including parks and building grounds, enforced by the Board of Health with fines up to $500.

Ulster County can condemn, order repaired, or demolish any building or structure found unsafe or unfit for human occupancy, then bill the owner for the cost.

Ulster County requires an operating permit before anyone runs a mobile food preparation vehicle, the county's fire code term for a food truck with cooking equipment producing smoke or…

Ulster County bars soliciting, peddling and vending of any kind on County-owned or County-leased property, parking lots and buildings. The only carve-outs are the County fairgrounds on…

Ulster County limits how and how long a dog can be tethered outdoors, capping stationary restraint at five hours a day and requiring proper harness, length and shelter.

Ulster County requires yard waste kept out of the trash for composting, but its recycling law explicitly protects residents' right to compost on-site or privately instead.