Medford, MA Public Health Rules: Rodent Control (2026)
Key Facts
- Enforcement fine
- up to $300 per day (Sec. 6-120)
- IPM plan lead time
- 14 days before project start
- Large commercial IPM trigger
- project value over $1,000,000
- Utility IPM trigger
- over 1,500 linear feet in right-of-way
- Enforcing officials
- building commissioner, DPW and health directors
Summary
Chapter 6, Article IV of the Medford Revised Ordinances attaches a rodent control fee and, for larger projects, a mandatory integrated pest management plan to building, utility, dumpster, food-service and landfill permits, with Sec. 6-120 authorizing permit revocation and fines up to $300.00 per day for noncompliance.
Sec. 6-112. - Permits for buildings, earthworks, street openings and utility installation.(a)Buildings and earthworks.(1)All permits issued by the building commissioner for earth displacement and land clearing activities on residential and commercial property will be subject to a separate fee designated for rodent control. ... (2)In addition to the fee required above, building permits issued for certain activities will require the implementation of an integrated pest management plan as a condition of the permit. IPM plans must be submitted to the health department and implemented a minimum of 14 days prior to the start of the project. ... ... Sec. 6-120. - Enforcement, penalties and fines.(a)Failure to comply with this ordinance may result in revocation of the permit and/or fines of up to $300.00 per day, in accordance with Medford Board of Health Regulation "Noncriminal Disposition of Ordinance, By-law, Rule, or Regulation Violations."
Full Breakdown
Sec. 6-112 requires every building permit for earth displacement or land clearing to carry a separate rodent control fee set by the city council, and requires a submitted integrated pest management, or IPM, plan at least 14 days before work starts for demolition, renovation or construction on abandoned properties, large commercial projects valued over $1,000,000, and residential subdivision construction. Utility work triggers the same fee once a disturbance or installation exceeds 500 linear feet in the paved right-of-way or 250 feet outside it, and triggers a mandatory IPM plan once it exceeds 1,500 linear feet in the right-of-way or 750 feet outside it, though the public works director can waive the 14-day advance period in an emergency.
Sec. 6-113 through Sec. 6-115 extend the same fee-and-plan structure to dumpster permits, food establishment permits (with temporary food service exempted), and landfill, transfer station, recycling facility and offal-vehicle permits. Sec. 6-116 requires anyone permitting the keeping of certain animals to show the lot has been inspected and treated for rodents under the State Sanitary Code, 105 CMR 410.550. Sec. 6-117 extends IPM planning to public property, and Sec. 6-118 specifies that every IPM plan must include a licensed pest control operator's initial survey, details on traps, bait and pesticides used, and a complaint-response procedure with a named contact.
Violations & Fines
Sec. 6-120 allows revocation of the permit and fines of up to $300.00 per day for failing to comply with the rodent control article, applied under the city's noncriminal disposition regulation. The building commissioner, the public works director, the health director and their designees enforce the permits their own offices issue, and every fine collected is deposited into a dedicated account used for rodent control measures.
Frequently Asked Questions
Which Medford permits carry a rodent control fee?
When does a project need an integrated pest management plan?
What must an IPM plan contain under Medford's ordinance?
What is the penalty for skipping a required rodent control permit or plan?
Sources & Official References
Other rules in Medford
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