New Orleans, LA Public Health Rules: Rodent Control (2026)

Section 26-161 sits in Division 4 of the Minimum Property Maintenance Code (Chapter 26, Article IV), the citywide standard for every occupied and vacant structure in the city. Subsection (a) requires all structures and exterior property to be kept free from rodent harborage and infestation, and where rodents are found, the code demands they be 'promptly exterminated by approved processes which will not be injurious to human health,' with follow-up precautions to stop re-infestation. Subsection (b) puts the extermination duty squarely on the owner before a unit is rented or leased: a landlord cannot hand over an infested apartment and call it the tenant's problem.

Once the tenant is in place, subsection (c) shifts day-to-day pest control to the occupant, but only for infestations the occupant's own habits cause; if the infestation stems from a structural defect, the owner remains responsible under the same subsection. The Department of Code Enforcement's code official handles inspections and notices, and contested cases go to an administrative hearing officer under Chapter 6, Article II of the Code, per § 26-231. Penalties are set by § 26-232: a fine up to the cap fixed in § 26-37 for each noticed violation, and every day a violation continues after notice is deemed a separate offense, so an unresolved rodent problem compounds quickly.

Related sections in the same division reinforce the duty: § 26-170 requires foundation walls be kept free of cracks 'to prevent the entry of rodents and other pests,' and § 26-157 requires exterior areas be kept free of the trash accumulation that draws rodents in.