Barrow County, GA Property Maintenance: Vacant Lot Maintenance (2026)
Key Facts
- Applies to
- Any private or public property, vacant or improved
- Owner duty
- Keep property free of litter/refuse
- County remedy
- Removal after notice, cost billed to owner
- Cost recovery
- Lien plus 6% annual interest
- First-offense fine
- $500 minimum under § 78-34
Summary
Every owner of private or public property in unincorporated Barrow County, developed or vacant, must keep it free and clear of litter and other refuse that threatens public safety, welfare, property values or good order under Barrow County Code § 78-37(a). Section 78-37(b) lets the board of commissioners remove hazardous litter itself after notice and bill the owner for the cost.
(a)Duties of property owner. Each owner of private or public property in the county shall keep the property free and clear of any litter or other refuse which may constitute a threat or detriment to the public safety, welfare, property values, morality or good order.(b)Removal of litter and other refuse. Each person who owns private property in the county shall, at such time as the county may prescribe, remove to a prescribed and approved location or permit county employees to enter and remove from such property any and all litter and other substances which might endanger the health, safety, morality, order, property values or welfare of residents of the county. A failure to remove such litter or other substances may result, whenever the board of commissioners deems necessary and after reasonable notice, in the removal of such litter or other substances which might endanger the health, safety or welfare of residents of the county by the board of commissioners, in which event the costs or expenses thereof shall be chargeable to and paid by the owners of such property and may be collected by the county in the manner provided in this article.
Full Breakdown
Sections 78-37(a) and (b), part of the Debris and Waste Control Environmental Ordinance in chapter 78, article II, impose a general upkeep duty that applies to any parcel in the unincorporated county, including a vacant or unimproved lot, not only occupied residences. Subsection (a) requires each owner of private or public property in the county to keep it free and clear of any litter or other refuse that could threaten public safety, welfare, property values, morality or good order, language broad enough to reach dumped debris, construction scrap or accumulated trash on an empty lot as much as a yard around a house.
Subsection (b) backs that duty with a self-help remedy: if an owner does not remove litter or other substances that might endanger health, safety or welfare when the county prescribes, the board of commissioners can, after reasonable notice, send county employees onto the vacant property to remove it, and then charge the cost back to the owner through the collection process set out in section 78-35, including magistrate, state or superior court action and a lien against the property. This is separate from the 12-inch grass and weed height rule in subsection (c); a vacant lot can be cited under (a)-(b) for accumulated litter or debris even where vegetation height is not the issue.
Violations & Fines
Article II's penalty section, 78-34, applies here too: a first violation of the litter-free-property duty draws a minimum $500 fine, a second or later violation draws at least $1,000, and a judge can add up to 60 days in jail, with each day of noncompliance a separate offense. Owners who ignore a county cleanup notice also face a cost-recovery lien under section 78-35 for the removal expense plus six percent annual interest until paid.
Frequently Asked Questions
Does Barrow County regulate junk and debris on an empty, unimproved lot?
What can the county do if a vacant lot owner won't clean it up?
Is this the same rule as the grass-height ordinance?
Sources & Official References
Other rules in Barrow County
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