Boone County, IN Trash & Recycling: Illegal Dumping (2026)

Section 90.04(A) of the Litter Control chapter, adopted by Ordinance 2004-16 on November 8, 2004, states it is unlawful for any person to deposit litter upon property owned by another without the owner's or lessee's consent, and it is a sufficient allegation of a violation simply to state that the accused deposited litter on property they did not own or lease; showing the owner's or lessee's permission is an affirmative defense the accused must raise. LITTER is defined broadly in § 90.02 to include uncontainerized garbage, trash, refuse, debris, grass clippings, construction material, vehicle parts, furniture, oil and even a dead animal carcass, so the section reaches far more than household trash dumped on a neighbor's land.

Enforcement runs through the Boone County Health Department and the Area Plan Commission under § 90.03, and a cited person must appear before the county's Violations Clerk within seven days to admit or deny the charge; a denial goes to a Hearing Board that decides by a preponderance of the evidence at its next regular meeting. Fines collected flow into the county's continuing Litter Ordinance Enforcement Fund under § 90.05, which the County Auditor administers and which cannot lapse into the general fund, so the money stays earmarked for litter enforcement and cleanup.