Kent, WA Public Health Rules: Rodent Control (2026)
Key Facts
- Method
- Adopts King County Code 8.38.010-.030 by reference
- Adopting section
- KCC 8.06.010
- Penalty
- Misdemeanor, up to $300 fine or 30 days
- State authority
- RCW 17.16.010 et seq.
- Cross reference
- KCC 11.03 environmental policy; KCC 15.08.050
Summary
Kent doesn't write its own rodent-control standards: KCC 8.06.010 adopts King County's rodent regulations (codified as KCC 8.38.010 through 8.38.030 of the King County Code) by reference, and a copy is kept on file at the city clerk's office. Violating the adopted county standards is a misdemeanor under KCC 8.06.020.
8.06.010 Adoption of King County Code provisions by reference. King County Ordinance 2910, sections 2 and 7 and Ordinance 1946, section 2, together with any future additions or amendments thereto, now codified as KCC 8.38.010 through 8.38.030 of the King County Code, a copy of which is on file in the city clerk's office, is adopted.
Official source re-checked September 8, 2026: no newer edition of the code had been published (publisher’s edition: current through Ordinance 4542, passed June 16, 2026).
Full Breakdown
06 of the Kent City Code is only two sections long because it incorporates King County's rodent-control law wholesale rather than duplicating it. 030, together with any future additions or amendments thereto, meaning Kent automatically picks up King County's later changes to those sections without needing its own amendment. , which authorizes local health authorities to require property owners to eliminate rat harborage and infestation. Property owners who create conditions that harbor rats or other rodents, such as accumulated garbage, uncontained food waste, or overgrown vegetation offering cover, can also be cited separately under Kent's weeds and vegetation nuisance chapter, whose definition of health hazard expressly includes vegetation providing rodent harborage.
Because Kent adopted the county's substantive standards rather than writing its own, a copy of the adopted King County ordinances is kept on file in the city clerk's office for reference, and county code enforcement definitions and procedures for rat-proofing, extermination requirements, and inspection apply within Kent city limits.
Violations & Fines
KCC 8.06.020 makes a violation of the adopted rodent-control standards a misdemeanor: a fine of up to $300, imprisonment of up to 30 days, or both. Because the chapter incorporates King County's substantive rodent-control rules by reference, the specific conduct that triggers a citation, such as failing to eliminate a rat harborage, is defined in the adopted King County Code sections, not restated in Kent's own text.
Frequently Asked Questions
Does Kent have its own rodent-control ordinance?
What happens if I'm cited for a rodent violation in Kent?
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Sources & Official References
Other rules in Kent
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Rodent Control in Nearby Cities
How other cities in King County handle rodent control.