Akron, OH Trash & Recycling: Illegal Dumping (2026)
Key Facts
- Threshold
- More than 5 pounds of waste
- Offense class
- Misdemeanor of the first degree
- Minimum fine
- Not less than $500, removal cost
- Fine flexibility
- Cannot be suspended or held in abeyance
- Governing chapter
- Codified Ordinances Title 9, Ch. 95, Art. 3
- Liability standard
- Strict liability, no intent required
Summary
Akron treats any dumping of more than five pounds of waste on public or private property or waters as a first-degree misdemeanor under Codified Ordinance § 95.40. Convicted dumpers face a mandatory minimum fine equal to the removal cost, never less than $500, and courts cannot suspend or waive that fine under any circumstances.
No person shall dump any waste or other refuse in an amount in excess of five pounds upon any public or private property or waters. "Dumping" includes, but is not limited to, discarding, dropping, placing, throwing, depositing or dispensing. "Waste" includes, but is not limited to, garbage, trash, dead animals, junk, tires, used automobile parts, used building materials, used oil, used chemicals, and any other similar substances, manmade or otherwise serving no functional use for which it was intended at the location it is dumped or which may become noxious, offensive, injurious, or dangerous to the public health, comfort, or safety. Penalty, see § 95.99.
Official source re-checked September 7, 2026: no newer edition of the code had been published (publisher’s edition: Code of Ordinances: Supplement 64).
Full Breakdown
40 makes it unlawful to dump more than five pounds of waste or refuse on any public or private property or waters within the city. The ordinance defines dumping broadly to include discarding, dropping, placing, throwing, depositing, or dispensing, and defines waste to include garbage, trash, dead animals, junk, tires, used automobile parts, used building materials, used oil, used chemicals, and any other substance no longer serving a functional purpose or capable of becoming noxious, offensive, injurious, or dangerous to public health, comfort, or safety.
The five-pound threshold means the law captures everything from a dropped mattress to a bag of household trash left on a vacant lot; lesser litter falls instead under the separate littering provisions in Article 1 of Chapter 95. 99(B): a conviction is a misdemeanor of the first degree, the most serious misdemeanor class in Akron's code. The court must impose a fine equal to the cost of removing the dumped material, but that fine can never be set below $500 even if removal costs less, and the judge has no discretion to suspend, reduce, or hold the fine in abeyance. 40 dumping. 99(F), so the city need not prove intent, only that the dumping occurred.
Violations & Fines
A § 95.40 conviction is a misdemeanor of the first degree, the most serious misdemeanor level in Akron's code. Beyond that criminal charge, § 95.99(B) requires a mandatory minimum fine equal to the cost of removing the dumped material, set at not less than $500, and the ordinance bars judges from suspending or holding that fine in abeyance regardless of circumstances. Because § 95.99(F) makes the chapter strict liability, prosecutors need not prove intent to dump, only that the deposit occurred and exceeded five pounds.
Frequently Asked Questions
How much waste triggers Akron's illegal dumping law?
What is the minimum fine for illegal dumping in Akron?
Does Akron have to prove intent to convict for dumping?
Sources & Official References
Other rules in Akron
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