Carroll County, MD Property Maintenance: Snow & Sidewalk Clearing (2026)
Key Facts
- Clearing deadline
- 12 hours after snow/ice forms or falls
- Overnight snow
- clear by 6:00 p.m. next day
- Responsible party
- owner, tenant, or occupant
- Covers
- occupied and unoccupied lots
- Inspections
- DPW voluntary, not mandatory
- Penalty
- misdemeanor, fine up to $100
Summary
Carroll County gives the owner, tenant, or occupant of a property 12 hours to clear ice or an accumulation of snow off the public sidewalk in front of that lot once it stops falling or forming. Snow that falls overnight, between 10:00 p.m. and 6:00 a.m., gets a grace period until 6:00 p.m. the following day. Violators face a misdemeanor fine.
(A) No person shall permit ice or an accumulation of snow to remain on any public sidewalk adjacent to a lot or parcel occupied by him or her or on a public sidewalk adjacent to any unoccupied lot or parcel owned by him or her for a period of longer than 12 hours after the same has formed or fallen. In the event snow falls between the hours of 10:00 p.m. and 6:00 a.m., the occupant will have until 6:00 p.m. the following day to clear the sidewalk.
Official source re-checked September 7, 2026: no newer edition of the code had been published (publisher’s edition: 2026 S-15: Supplement contains: Local legislation current through July 30, 2026).
Full Breakdown
066(A) of the county code applies to occupied lots and, separately, to unoccupied lots owned by the same person: the clock runs from the moment snow or ice forms or falls, and the property's owner, tenant, or occupant is on the hook either way. m. The Director of the Department of Public Works has discretion, not a mandate, to run voluntary sidewalk inspections "if funds and personnel are available" to check compliance with the maintenance duties in this same section, but inspection is not a precondition to a citation.
066, as the county's separate year-round sidewalk repair and maintenance obligation for abutting owners, so a property owner facing a snow complaint should check whether the underlying sidewalk itself is also out of compliance. The rule traces to Ord. 04-11, passed April 12, 2004, codified at 2004 Code § 197-30, and sits in the chapter's "Use of Streets" subchapter alongside the county's ban on sweeping refuse into streets.
Violations & Fines
A person who lets snow or ice sit on the sidewalk past the 12-hour (or 6:00 p.m. next-day) deadline is guilty of a misdemeanor under § 92.999(C), punishable by a fine not exceeding $100 per violation. Each uncleared sidewalk cited is treated as its own violation under that penalty section.
Frequently Asked Questions
How long do I have to shovel my sidewalk in Carroll County?
Does the deadline apply if the lot next to the sidewalk is vacant?
What happens if I don't clear my sidewalk in time?
Sources & Official References
Other rules in Carroll County
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