Illegal dumping inside Kennewick is enforceable under the Washington statewide statute RCW 70A.205.195, which tiers penalties by volume: a class 3 civil infraction for less than 1 cubic foot, a misdemeanor for 1 cubic foot to less than 1 cubic yard, and a gross misdemeanor (plus mandatory litter-cleanup restitution) for 1 cubic yard or more. Local enforcement is by Kennewick Police and Code Enforcement; on private property the city pursues remediation under KMC 9.48 nuisance authority and may bill cleanup costs via RCW 35A.21.405.
Illegal dumping (solid waste deposited without authorization on public or private property) is treated as a serious offense in Washington, with statewide penalties that scale by volume in RCW 70A.205.195. Tier 1: littering one cubic foot or less is a class 3 civil infraction as defined in RCW 7.80.120, with a current monetary penalty around $50. Tier 2: littering more than one cubic foot but less than one cubic yard is a misdemeanor under Washington criminal law (up to 90 days in jail and a $1,000 fine). Tier 3: littering one cubic yard or more is a gross misdemeanor (up to 364 days in jail and a $5,000 fine), and the convicted person 'shall also pay a litter cleanup restitution payment' with the court distributing one-half to the landowner where the dumping occurred and one-half to the jurisdictional health department investigating the incident. Before requiring the property owner or lessee to remove dumped material themselves, the enforcing authority must 'take reasonable action to determine and identify the person responsible' for the dump - a 2023 amendment (SHB 2207, codified into 70A.205.195) added that protection to prevent shifting cleanup costs onto innocent landowners. Inside Kennewick, enforcement runs in three tracks: Kennewick Police can issue citations under RCW 70A.205.195 (especially when a dump-truck-volume drop is observed); Kennewick Code Enforcement handles complaints on private property under KMC 9.48 nuisance authority; and the Benton-Franklin Health District has jurisdictional health-department authority under RCW 70A.205 to investigate. Cleanup cost on private property where the dumper cannot be identified can be recovered by the city under RCW 35A.21.405's nuisance-abatement special-assessment process. Statewide solid waste handling rules (WAC Chapter 173-350) require that all waste be disposed at a permitted facility; the nearest options for Kennewick are the WM Kennewick Transfer Station and the Horn Rapids Landfill (Richland).
Penalty tiers under RCW 70A.205.195: less than 1 cubic foot = class 3 civil infraction (RCW 7.80.120); 1 cubic foot to less than 1 cubic yard = misdemeanor (up to 90 days / $1,000); 1 cubic yard or more = gross misdemeanor (up to 364 days / $5,000) plus mandatory litter-cleanup restitution split between the landowner and the jurisdictional health department. Continued or commercial-scale illegal dumping can be charged as a felony under separate provisions of RCW Chapter 70A.205. Disposal at a site that is not a permitted solid waste handling facility violates WAC Chapter 173-350 and triggers enforcement by the Washington Department of Ecology. On the property side, Kennewick may abate the dump under KMC 9.48 and recover costs as a special assessment under RCW 35A.21.405.
Kennewick, WA
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