Fort Collins, CO Public Conduct: Public Urination (2026)
Key Facts
- Governing section
- City Code Sec. 17-103, Bodily waste
- Covers
- Excrement, vomit, spittle, other bodily waste
- Where prohibited
- Any public or private property, absent a receptacle
- Penalty class
- Unclassified misdemeanor, Sec. 1-15(a)
- Maximum penalty
- $2,650 fine and/or 180 days jail
Summary
Fort Collins bans depositing human waste anywhere in the city that isn't a toilet or urinal. Sec. 17-103, Bodily Waste, covers public and private property alike and reaches excrement, vomit, and spittle in addition to urine, punishable as a misdemeanor under the Code's general penalty.
No person shall deposit, or permit to be deposited, on publicly or privately owned property, any human excrement, vomit, spittle or other human bodily waste unless such waste is deposited in a toilet, urinal, or other receptacle designed, intended and made available for such use.
Official source re-checked September 7, 2026: no newer edition of the code had been published (publisher’s edition: Municipal Code: Supplement 155 | Transitional Land Use Code (for project before May 17, 2024): Supplement 61 | Traffic Code: Supplement 27).
Full Breakdown
Sec. " The section sits in Chapter 17, Article I, In General, alongside the discharging-of-weapons and missile-throwing offenses, and was adopted by Ordinance No. 39, 2003. Because the prohibition covers privately owned property as well as public property, it is not limited to street or park enforcement; a violation can be cited anywhere in the city outside a proper receptacle. The section carries no separate, designated penalty class of its own, so it falls under the Code's catch-all misdemeanor classification at Sec. 1-15(a): an unclassified offense is punishable by a fine and surcharge up to $2,650, or imprisonment up to 180 days, or both, with no jail exposure for anyone under 18 as of the offense date.
Fort Collins Police Services enforces Chapter 17 offenses generally, and Sec. 1-15(g) allows the City to seek restitution from a Chapter 17 violator for extraordinary enforcement costs, such as sophisticated equipment or highly trained personnel, when those costs were incurred responding to the violation.
Violations & Fines
A Sec. 17-103 violation is an unclassified misdemeanor under the Sec. 1-15(a) general penalty, carrying a fine and surcharge of up to $2,650 or imprisonment up to 180 days, or both, with each day of a continuing violation potentially charged separately. The City may additionally seek restitution under Sec. 1-15(g) for extraordinary enforcement costs tied to the incident.
Frequently Asked Questions
Is public urination illegal in Fort Collins?
What is the penalty for violating the bodily waste ordinance?
Does the public urination ban apply on private property too?
Sources & Official References
Other rules in Fort Collins
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