Yuba County, CA Public Health Rules: Rodent Control (2026)

Section 7.36.310 of the County's Property Maintenance Ordinance lists 14 conditions that create a public nuisance, and subsection (a)(7) covers property 'which is likely to or does harbor rats or other vectors, feral cats, and other non-domesticated animal nuisances,' except as exempted in § 7.36.320(4). That exemption matters for rural parcels: firewood stacked for domestic heating does not count as rodent harborage if it conforms to burn-pile storage rules, and brush or logging slash piled for burning is excused while burning is unsafe or illegal (§ 7.36.320(4)(a)-(b)). Working farms get a further shield: agricultural activity conducted 'in a manner consistent with accepted customs and established standards' is not a nuisance if there is no actual threat to public health or safety, covering livestock raising, orchards, and 4-H projects (§ 7.36.320(4)(c)), and Civil Code § 3482.5's right-to-farm protection applies once an operation has run lawfully for three years (§ 7.36.310(b)).

Abatement runs through a hearing before an Administrative Law Judge, or the Board of Supervisors if none is available (§§ 7.36.510, 7.36.512). Administrative penalties escalate under § 7.36.420: up to $100 per day for a first violation, up to $200 per day for a second violation of the same notice within the prior year, and up to $500 per day after that, plus penalties can run two to five times a permit fee if the violation could otherwise be permitted. Penalties are stayed while a hearing is pending but resume once the abatement period in § 7.36.640(a)(2) runs out.