Newark, NJ Public Health Rules: Rodent Control (2026)

Chapter 16:20, Vermin Control, opens with definitions that matter for enforcement: 'rat harborage' is any condition sheltering rats and favoring their multiplication, and 'ratproofing' means construction that blocks rats from entering a building's exterior walls, floors, basements, roofs and foundations. Section 16:20-2 bans letting a premises become vermin or rat infested, regardless of intent. Section 16:20-3 layers on a construction-era rule: any building erected, repaired, altered or extended after October 27, 1952 must include ratproofing provisions. The Health Officer enforces this under § 16:20-4 by inspecting any premises he or she has good reason to believe isn't ratproof, and the Director can issue further rules under § 16:20-5.

Once an inspection finds a vermin or rat infested condition, § 16:20-6 puts the owner or occupant on notice to take immediate remedial measures; interfering with, damaging or removing ratproofing construction is separately banned under § 16:20-7, except when the interference is necessary for lawful construction, in which case the ratproofing must be promptly restored. The chapter also targets a common cause of rat harborage: § 16:20-8 bans dumping garbage, rubbish, filth, old lumber or other rat harborage on any vacant lot, alley, sidewalk, street or private lot, and offers a $150 reward, paid after conviction and approved by the Director of the Department of Health and Community Wellness with Municipal Council consent, to anyone whose tip leads to a conviction. Section 16:20-9 rounds out the chapter by requiring that outdoor pet or bird feeding use containers that stop food from scattering and attracting rats.