GENERAL REFERENCES
Property Maintenance — Ch. 266.
[1997 Code § 226-1]
This chapter shall be known and may be cited as the "Absecon
City Anti-Litter Regulations."
[1997 Code § 226-2]
As used in this chapter:
Any contrivance now known or hereafter invented, used or
designated for navigation or for flight in the air. The word "aircraft"
shall include helicopters and lighter-than-air dirigibles and balloons.
A litter storage and collection receptacle which will contain
litter in such a manner as to prevent it from being carried or deposited
by the elements upon any street, sidewalk or other public place or
upon any private property.
The City of Absecon City.
Any printed or written matter, any sample device, dodger,
circular, leaflet, pamphlet, paper, booklet or any other printed or
otherwise reproduced original or copies of any matter of literature:
Which advertises for sale any merchandise, product, commodity
or thing;
Which directs attention to any business or mercantile or commercial
establishment or other activity, for the purpose of either directly
or indirectly promoting the interest thereof by sales;
Which directs attention to or advertises any meeting, theatrical
performance, exhibition or event of any kind for which an admission
fee is charged for the purpose of private gain or profit; but the
terms of this subsection shall not apply where an admission fee is
charged or a collection is taken up for the purpose of defraying the
expenses incident to such meeting, theatrical performance, exhibition
or event of any kind, when either of the same is held, given or takes
place in connection with the dissemination of information which is
not restricted under the ordinary rules of decency, good morals, public
peace, safety and good order, provided that nothing contained in this
subsection shall be deemed to authorize the holding, giving or taking
place of any meeting, theatrical performance, exhibition or event
of any kind without a license where such license is or may be required
by any law of this State or under any ordinance of this City; or
Which, while containing reading matter other than advertising
matter, is predominantly and essentially an advertisement and is distributed
or circulated for advertising purposes or for the private benefit
and gain of any person so engaged as advertiser or distributor.
Putrescible animal and vegetable wastes resulting from the
handling, preparation, cooking and consumption of food.
Any printed or written matter, any sample or device, dodger,
circular, leaflet, pamphlet, newspaper, magazine, paper, booklet or
any other printed or otherwise reproduced original or copies of any
matter of literature not included in the aforesaid definitions of
a "commercial handbill" or "newspaper."
Garbage, refuse and rubbish as defined herein, and all other
waste material, which, if thrown or deposited as herein prohibited,
tends to create a danger to public health, safety and welfare.
Any newspaper of general circulation as defined by general
law, any newspaper duly entered with the Post Office Department of
the United States, in accordance with Federal statute or regulation,
and any newspaper filed and recorded with any recording officer provided
by general law, and, in addition thereto, shall mean and include any
periodical or current magazine regularly published with not fewer
than four issues per year and sold to the public.
A park, reservation, playground, beach, recreation center
or any other public area in the City owned or used by the City and
devoted to active or passive recreation.
Any person, firm, partnership, association, corporation,
company or organization of any kind.
Any dwelling house, building or other structure designed
or used either wholly or in part for private residential purposes,
whether inhabited or temporarily or continuously uninhabited or vacant,
and shall include any yard, grounds, walk, driveway, porch, steps,
vestibule or mailbox belonging or appurtenant to such dwelling house,
building or other structure.
Any and all streets, sidewalks, boulevards, alleys or other
public ways and any and all public parks, squares, spaces, grounds
and buildings.
All putrescible and nonputrescible solid wastes (except body
wastes), including garbage, rubbish, ashes, street cleanings, dead
animals, abandoned automobiles and solid market and industrial wastes.
Nonputrescible solid wastes consisting of both combustible
and noncombustible wastes, such as paper, wrappings, cigarettes, cardboard,
tin cans, yard clippings, leaves, wood, glass, bedding, crockery and
similar materials.
Every device in, upon or by which any person or property
is or may be transported or drawn upon a highway, including devices
used exclusively upon stationary rails or tracks.
[1997 Code § 226-3]
No person shall throw or deposit litter in or upon any street,
sidewalk or other public place within the City except in public receptacles,
in authorized private receptacles for collection or in official City
dumps or sanitary landfill sites.
[1997 Code § 226-4]
Persons placing litter in public receptacles or in authorized
private receptacles shall do so in such a manner as to prevent it
from being carried or deposited by the elements upon any street, sidewalk
or other public place or upon private property.
[1997 Code § 226-5]
No person shall sweep into or deposit in any gutter, street
or other public place within the City the accumulation of litter from
any building or lot or from any public or private sidewalk or driveway.
Persons owning property or occupying property shall keep the sidewalk
in front of their premises free of litter.
[1997 Code § 226-6]
No person owning or occupying a place of business shall sweep
into or deposit in any gutter, street or other public place within
the City the accumulation of litter from any building or lot or from
any public or private sidewalk or driveway. Persons owning or occupying
places of business within the City shall keep the sidewalk in front
of their business premises free of litter.
[1997 Code § 226-7]
No person, while a driver or a passenger in a vehicle, shall
throw or deposit litter upon any street or other public place within
the City or upon private property.
[1997 Code § 226-8]
No person shall drive or move any truck or other vehicle within
the City unless such vehicle is so constructed or loaded as to prevent
any load contents or litter from being blown or deposited upon any
street, alley or other place. Nor shall any person drive or move any
vehicle or truck within the City, the wheels or tires of which carry
onto or deposit in any street, alley or other place mud, dirt, sticky
substances, litter or foreign matter of any kind.
[1997 Code § 226-9]
No person shall throw or deposit litter in any park within the
City except in public receptacles and in such a manner that the litter
will be prevented from being carried or deposited by the elements
upon any part of the park or upon any street or other public place.
Where public receptacles are not provided, all such litter shall be
carried away from the park by the person responsible for its presence
and properly disposed of elsewhere as provided herein.
[1997 Code § 226-10]
No person shall throw or deposit litter in any fountain, pool,
pond, lake, stream, creek, bay or any other body of water within the
City.
[1997 Code § 226-11]
No person shall throw or deposit any commercial handbill in
or upon any sidewalk, street or other public place within the City,
nor shall any person hand out or distribute or sell any commercial
handbill in any public place; provided, however, that it shall not
be unlawful on any sidewalk, street or other public place within the
City for any person to hand out or distribute, without charge to the
receiver thereof, any noncommercial handbill to any person willing
to accept it.
[1997 Code § 226-12]
No person shall throw or deposit any commercial or noncommercial
handbill in or upon any vehicle; provided, however, that it shall
not be unlawful in any public place for a person to hand out or distribute,
without charge to the receiver thereof, a noncommercial handbill to
any occupant of a vehicle who is willing to accept it.
[1997 Code § 226-13]
No person shall throw or deposit any commercial or noncommercial
handbill in or upon any private premises which are temporarily or
continuously uninhabited or vacant.
[1997 Code § 226-14]
No person shall throw, deposit or distribute any commercial
or noncommercial handbill upon any private premises if requested by
anyone thereon not to do so or if there is placed on said premises
in a conspicuous position near the entrance thereof a sign bearing
the words "No Trespassing," "No Peddlers or Agents," "No Advertisements"
or any similar notice indicating in any matter that the occupants
of said premises do not desire to be molested or have their right
of privacy disturbed or to have any such handbills left upon such
premises.
[1997 Code § 226-15]
A.
No person shall throw, deposit or distribute any commercial or noncommercial
handbill in or upon private premises which are inhabited, except by
handing or transmitting any such handbill directly to the owner, occupant
or other person then present in or upon such private premises; provided,
however, that in case of inhabited private premises which are not
posted as provided in this chapter, such person, unless requested
by anyone upon such premises not to do so, may place or deposit any
such handbill in or upon such inhabited private premises if such handbill
is so placed or deposited as to secure or prevent such handbill from
being blown or drifted about such premises or sidewalks, streets or
other public places, and except that mailboxes may not be so used
when so prohibited by Federal postal law or regulations.
B.
Exemption for mail and newspapers. The provisions of this section
shall not apply to the distribution of mail by the United States,
nor to newspapers (as defined herein), except that newspapers shall
be placed on private property in such a manner as to prevent their
being carried or deposited by the elements upon any street, sidewalk
or other public place or upon private property.
[1997 Code § 226-16]
No person in an aircraft shall throw out, drop or deposit within
the City any litter, handbill or any other object.
[1997 Code § 226-17]
No person shall post or affix any notice, poster or other paper
or device calculated to attract attention of the public to any lamppost,
public utility pole or shade tree or upon any public structure or
building, except as may be authorized or required by law.
[1997 Code § 226-18]
No person shall throw or deposit litter on any occupied private
property within the City, whether owned by such person or not, except
that the owner or person in control of private property may maintain
authorized private receptacles for collection in such a manner that
litter will be prevented from being carried or deposited by the elements
upon any street, sidewalk or other public place or upon private property.
[1997 Code § 226-19]
The owner or person in control of any private property shall
at all times maintain the premises free of litter; provided, however,
that this section shall not prohibit the storage of litter in authorized
private receptacles for collection.
[1997 Code § 226-20]
No person shall throw or deposit litter on any open or vacant
private property within the City, whether owned by such person or
not.
[1997 Code § 226-21]
A.
Notice to remove. The Governing Body of the City is hereby authorized
and empowered to notify the owner of any open or vacant private property
within the City, or the agent of such owner, to properly dispose of
litter located on such owner's property which is or may become
dangerous to public health, safety or welfare. Such notice shall contain
a description of the property affected, sufficiently definite in terms
to identify it, and a notice that unless the litter is properly disposed
of within 10 days after service of notice, the City will proceed with
the removal and proper disposition of such litter and shall cause
the costs of such removal and disposition to be charged as a municipal
lien against the premises.
B.
Service of notice to remove. The notice referred to in paragraph
A. above may be served upon an owner, resident in the City, in person
or by leaving it at his usual place of residence with a member of
his family above the age of 14 years. If an owner shall not reside
in the municipality, notice may be served upon him personally or mailed
to his last known post office address by registered or certified mail,
or it may be served upon the occupant of the property or upon the
agent of the owner in charge thereof. If the owner of the property
is unknown or service cannot for any reason be made as above directed,
notice thereof shall be published at least once, not less than 10
days before the proposed removal or proper disposition, in a newspaper
circulating in the municipality. There may be inserted in the advertisement
notice to the owners of several different parcels of land. Notice
to infant owners or owners of unsound mind shall be served upon their
guardians. Where lands are held in trust, service shall be made upon
the trustee. Where lands are held by joint tenants, tenants in common
or tenants by the entirety, service upon one of the owners shall be
sufficient and deemed and taken as notice to all.
C.
Filing of proof of service. Proof of service of such notices shall
be filed within 10 days thereafter or within 10 days of the publication
of such notices with the officer having charge of the record of tax
liens in the City, but failure to file the same shall not invalidate
the proceedings if service has actually been made as herein provided.
D.
Municipal liens. When the City has effected the removal or proper
disposition of such dangerous litter or has paid for its removal and
proper disposition, an accurate account of the cost and expense thereof
shall be kept, and a true statement under oath or affirmation shall
be filed by the officer of the City in charge of such removal or proper
disposition with the City Clerk. The Governing Body shall examine
the same, and if it is properly made shall confirm it and file such
report with the Clerk of the City, who shall record it in a book to
be kept for that purpose. When so recorded, the costs and charges
stated in said statement shall constitute a municipal lien against
the premises. Such statement recorded in accordance with the provisions
hereof shall be prima facie evidence that all legal formalities have
been complied with and that the work has been done properly and satisfactorily
and shall be full notice to every person concerned that the amount
of the statement constitutes a municipal lien against the property
affected and that the same is due and collectible as hereinafter provided.
E.
The amount so charged shall forthwith become a lien upon such lands
and shall be added to and become and form a part of the taxes next
to be assessed and levied upon such lands, the same to bear interest
at the same rate as taxes, and shall be collected and enforced by
the same officers and in the same manner as taxes.
[1997 Code § 226-22]
Any person who shall violate any provision of this chapter shall
be fined in an amount not exceeding $200 or be imprisoned in the County
jail for a term not exceeding 90 days, or both, upon conviction of
such violation. Each day such violation is committed or permitted
to continue shall constitute a separate violation and shall be punishable
as such hereunder.
