Huntington, NY Public Health Rules: Rodent Control (2026)

Article VI of Chapter 124, Extermination, opens with Section 124-22, which makes the owner, person-in-charge or occupant of a structure responsible for keeping it in compliance with the article's standards and treats any failure, neglect or refusal to do so as a chapter violation. Section 124-23 sets the substantive rule: all structures shall be kept free from insect and rodent infestation, and any structure where insects or rodents are found must be promptly exterminated using approved processes that will not injure human health, followed by precautions to prevent re-infestation.

The section splits responsibility by occupancy type. Under Subsection (A), the owner of any structure must exterminate before renting or leasing it out. Under Subsection (B), the occupant of a one-family dwelling or a single-tenant nonresidential structure bears the extermination duty on the premises. Under Subsection (C), the owner of a building with two or more dwelling units, a rooming house, or a nonresidential multiple occupancy is responsible for extermination in shared or public areas and the exterior property, though an occupant who causes an infestation within their own area becomes responsible for that area.

Subsection (D) makes every occupant responsible for the continued rodent- and pest-free condition of their own space, and Subsection (E) shifts responsibility back to the owner whenever the infestation stems from a structural defect, such as the foundation-wall gaps or unguarded basement openings addressed in Section 124-14(E), (O) and (P).