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

Section 77-59, part of Chapter 77's minimum standards, puts the burden of rodent prevention on the property itself. Subsection A requires grounds, buildings and structures to stay free of insect, vermin and rodent harborage and infestation, and any extermination method used must conform with generally accepted practice. Subsection B specifically targets basements: where the potential for rodent infestation exists, windows and other basement openings must be appropriately ratproofed with wire mesh or other suitable material. Subsection C adds a seasonal screening rule that runs May 1 to November 1: building entrances need self-closing devices or screens, and windows or other ventilation openings must be screened against mosquitoes, flies and other flying insects, except in upper-story rooms of multiple dwellings high enough to be naturally free of them.

Subsection D covers the exterior generally, requiring every structure used for human habitation to be kept vermin- and rodent-free; where a rodent or vermin problem actually exists, every exterior window, door and other opening within two feet of ground level or below must be screened or protected with acceptable wire mesh, and any defect, crack or hole has to be tightly sealed to keep vermin and rodents out. This sits alongside § 77-8's duty on owners to maintain service facilities and § 77-9's duty on rooming-house operators to exterminate insects, rodents or other pests, so both landlord and, under § 77-10, an occupant confined to their own unit's infestation share responsibility for compliance.