York County, PA Public Conduct: Loitering Rules (2026)

Section 75-26 of the York County Code's Parks and Recreation Rules and Regulations is a single sentence: no person shall remain in an area of the park system for no obvious reason or maliciously prowl around. The section gives Park Rangers a tool to move people along in the absence of any other identifiable violation, and it works together with § 75-19E, which lets a Ranger demand identification from anyone reasonably suspected of violating the rules, and § 75-19C, which requires compliance with any lawful instruction a Ranger gives.

A person asked to leave a closed or hazardous area can also be cited separately under § 75-37 if the area has been closed for safety reasons. Because § 75-26 turns on the Ranger's assessment of whether a person's presence has no obvious reason, it is enforced case by case rather than through a fixed time limit or curfew. Enforcement runs through §§ 75-38 and 75-39: York County Park Rangers and any police officer with jurisdiction may enforce the rule, and a Ranger who witnesses a violation may arrest and detain the person and issue a nontraffic citation under the Pennsylvania Rules of Criminal Procedure.

A conviction is a summary offense, fined not less than $75 nor more than $800 plus costs of prosecution and restitution, and punishable by up to 30 days in jail, or both, with all fines paid to the County of York.