Skowhegan, ME Public Health Rules: Rodent Control (2026)

The rule is in Section V.2 of the Property Maintenance Ordinance, adopted at the Annual Town Meeting on June 13, 2022. Subsection (g) requires basement foundations to be enclosed so as to prevent entry of vermin. Subsection (h) requires all structures to be kept free from insect and rodent infestation, requires extermination of any structure in which insects or rodents are found by approved processes that will not be injurious to human health, and requires proper precautions after extermination to prevent re-infestation.

Section II defines infestation as the presence, within or contiguous to a structure or premises, of insects, rats, vermin or other pests. The words contiguous to matter: the definition reaches pests next to the structure as well as inside it, and it covers premises, meaning the lot and anything on it. Section V.1(a) supports the same goal outside, since it lists exterior accumulations of refuse, household trash, junk, debris, scrap lumber and building materials, used furniture and inoperable appliances as conditions of the grounds. The nuisance definition reprinted in Section II also lists causing or suffering any offal, filth or noisome substance to collect or remain in any place to the prejudice of others.

Section VII puts responsibility on owners, operators and occupants, who are jointly and severally liable for violations and for the corrective actions required. Section III applies the standard to residential and nonresidential structures alike, so a restaurant, a rental house and a private home are held to the same wording.