Environment (GEN) — Title 10. Nuisance Control
Statutes in effect as of October 1, 2026.
Subtitle 1. General Powers and Duties of Secretary
Md. Code Ann., Envir. § 10-101 (2026)
Title 10. Nuisance Control
Subtitle 1. General Powers and Duties of Secretary
§ 10–101LinkCopy Citation
Notwithstanding the provisions of Title 20, Subtitle 3 of the Health - General Article, the Secretary is responsible for the general care of the sanitary interests of the people of this State.
Md. Code Ann., Envir. § 10-102 (2026)
Title 10. Nuisance Control
Subtitle 1. General Powers and Duties of Secretary
§ 10–102LinkCopy Citation
The Secretary shall investigate all nuisances that affect the public health and devise means for the control of these nuisances.
Md. Code Ann., Envir. § 10-103 (2026)
Title 10. Nuisance Control
Subtitle 1. General Powers and Duties of Secretary
§ 10–103LinkCopy Citation
(a)
The Secretary may adopt rules and regulations to govern the character and location of:
(1)
Plumbing;
(2)
Drainage;
(3)
Water supply;
(4)
Offensive trades; and
(5)
Disposal of any waste material, including sewage or garbage.
(b)
The Secretary may adopt rules and regulations to govern the sanitary condition of:
(1)
Streets;
(2)
Cesspools;
(3)
Outhouses; and
(4)
Any sanitary feature connected with any of these.
Md. Code Ann., Envir. § 10-104 (2026)
Title 10. Nuisance Control
Subtitle 1. General Powers and Duties of Secretary
§ 10–104LinkCopy Citation
The Secretary may enter on and inspect any private property to determine whether a nuisance exists.
Md. Code Ann., Envir. § 10-105 (2026)
Title 10. Nuisance Control
Subtitle 1. General Powers and Duties of Secretary
§ 10–105LinkCopy Citation
The Secretary may bring an action to enjoin any person from committing any nuisance subject to this title.
Subtitle 2. Nuisance Abatement
Md. Code Ann., Envir. § 10-201 (2026)
Title 10. Nuisance Control
Subtitle 2. Nuisance Abatement
§ 10–201LinkCopy Citation
(a)
The health officer for each county:
(1)
May investigate any condition in the county that is dangerous to human health; and
(2)
Shall investigate and report on the sanitary conditions of schools, places of business, and places of employment in the county.
(b)
Except in Baltimore County, on the written complaint of a physician or of at least 2 persons who claim to be affected by the condition, the health officer for the county where the condition allegedly exists immediately shall investigate any complaint that any of the following is in a condition dangerous to human health:
(1)
Any watercourse, well, spring, open ditch, gutter, cesspool, drain, outhouse, pigpen, or other place.
(2)
Any accumulation or deposit of any substance.
(c)
If the health officer finds that the condition of the place or thing investigated may injure the life or health of any person, the place or thing is in a state of nuisance and the health officer shall serve a written notice to the person who is causing the nuisance, ordering the person to abate the nuisance within a time specified in the notice.
(d)
A person may not refuse or neglect to comply with the requirements of a notice served under this section.
(e)
If a question arises between health officers as to the jurisdiction or duties of a health officer in the abatement of any unhealthy nuisance, the question shall be referred to the Secretary, who shall settle the question.
Md. Code Ann., Envir. § 10-202 (2026)
Title 10. Nuisance Control
Subtitle 2. Nuisance Abatement
§ 10–202LinkCopy Citation
(a)
On the written complaint of 2 physicians or of at least 3 persons who claim to be affected by the condition, the Secretary shall investigate any complaint that any of the following is in a condition that injures any adjacent property or that is dangerous to human health:
(1)
Any watercourse, well, spring, open ditch, gutter, cesspool, drain, outhouse, pigpen, or other place.
(2)
Any accumulation or deposit of offensive or noxious matter.
(3)
Any house, building, trades establishment, or manufacturing place.
(4)
Any water in which mosquito larvae breed.
(b)
(1)
If the Secretary finds that the condition of the place or thing investigated may injure any adjacent property or may injure the life or health of any individual, the place or thing is in a state of nuisance and the Secretary shall serve a written notice to the person who is causing the nuisance, ordering the person to abate the nuisance within a time specified in the notice.
(2)
The notice shall be served:
(i)
On the person who is causing the nuisance; or
(ii)
If the person who is causing the nuisance cannot be found, on the owner or occupant of the property where the nuisance exists.
(c)
(1)
The Secretary may file a complaint in the circuit court for the county where the nuisance exists if:
(i)
The person served with the notice fails to comply with the requirements of the notice; or
(ii)
Although the person served complies with the requirements of the notice, the nuisance is likely to recur on the same property.
(2)
A complaint filed under this subsection may seek a court order requiring the person served with the notice to do any or all of the following:
(i)
To comply with the requirements of the Secretary’s abatement notice.
(ii)
To abate the nuisance within a time specified in the order.
(iii)
To prevent the nuisance from recurring.
Md. Code Ann., Envir. § 10-203 (2026)
Title 10. Nuisance Control
Subtitle 2. Nuisance Abatement
§ 10–203LinkCopy Citation
(a)
(1)
If, after investigation, the Secretary finds that any of the following conditions exists, the place or thing as to which the condition exists is in a state of nuisance:
(i)
The contents overflow or leak from an outhouse, a water closet, a septic tank, or a cesspool and present a hazard to public health.
(ii)
An outhouse, a water closet, or a cesspool is not flytight and watertight and presents a hazard to public health.
(2)
The Secretary summarily may abate any condition that is in a state of nuisance under this subsection.
(b)
Before summarily abating a nuisance under this section, the Secretary shall:
(1)
Serve an abatement order on the owner of the property where the nuisance exists or, if the owner cannot be found, on the occupant or tenant of the property; or
(2)
If the property is unoccupied and the owner cannot be found, attach an abatement order to the property where the nuisance exists.
(c)
(1)
The abatement order shall require and state:
(i)
A time period within which the owner, occupant, or tenant of the property where the nuisance exists shall abate the nuisance; and
(ii)
The work and materials necessary to abate the nuisance.
(2)
The time period within which to abate the nuisance may not be less than 24 hours nor more than 5 days from the date and hour that the order is served.
(d)
(1)
If the owner, occupant, or tenant served with an abatement order fails to abate or only partially abates the nuisance within the time specified in the order, the Secretary or a representative of the Secretary shall:
(i)
Enter on the property; and
(ii)
At the expense of the owner, occupant, or tenant of the property, do any work and use any materials necessary to abate the nuisance.
(2)
The Secretary may not expend more than $500 to abate the nuisance.
(e)
If, within 60 days after the Secretary has completed an abatement under this section, the owner, occupant, or tenant does not pay to the Secretary the cost of the abatement, the Secretary shall file suit against the owner, occupant, or tenant in the district court for the county where the nuisance was abated.
(f)
A person may not:
(1)
Interfere with the Secretary or a representative of the Secretary summarily abating a nuisance under this section; or
(2)
Refuse to allow the Secretary or a representative of the Secretary to enter on any property for the purpose of summarily abating a nuisance under this section.
Subtitle 3. Prohibited Acts; Penalties
Md. Code Ann., Envir. § 10-301 (2026)
Title 10. Nuisance Control
Subtitle 3. Prohibited Acts; Penalties
§ 10–301LinkCopy Citation
A person who refuses or neglects to comply with the requirements of a notice served under § 10-201 of this title is guilty of a misdemeanor and on conviction is subject to a fine not exceeding $50.
Md. Code Ann., Envir. § 10-302 (2026)
Title 10. Nuisance Control
Subtitle 3. Prohibited Acts; Penalties
§ 10–302LinkCopy Citation
(a)
A person who fails to exercise due diligence under a court order to abate a condition under § 10-202 of this title is guilty of a misdemeanor and on conviction is subject to:
(1)
A fine not exceeding $10 for each day the condition is not abated; and
(2)
The cost of prosecution.
(b)
A person who knowingly or willfully acts contrary to a court order to abate a condition under § 10-202 of this title is guilty of a misdemeanor and on conviction is subject to:
(1)
A fine not exceeding $20 for each day the violation continues; and
(2)
The cost of prosecution.
Md. Code Ann., Envir. § 10-303 (2026)
Title 10. Nuisance Control
Subtitle 3. Prohibited Acts; Penalties
§ 10–303LinkCopy Citation
In addition to any other penalty provided by law, a person is guilty of a misdemeanor and on conviction is subject to a fine not exceeding $100 or imprisonment not exceeding 30 days or both, if the person:
(1)
Interferes with the Secretary or a representative of the Secretary summarily abating a nuisance under § 10-203 of this title; or
(2)
Refuses to allow the Secretary or a representative of the Secretary to enter on any property for the purpose of summarily abating a nuisance under § 10-203 of this title.
Md. Code Ann., Envir. § 10-304 (2026)
Title 10. Nuisance Control
Subtitle 3. Prohibited Acts; Penalties
§ 10–304LinkCopy Citation
A person who violates any rule or regulation that the Secretary adopts under Subtitle 1 of this title is guilty of a misdemeanor and on conviction is subject to a fine for each offense not exceeding the lesser of the penalty provided by the rule or regulation or $100.
Md. Code Ann., Envir. § 10-305 (2026)
Title 10. Nuisance Control
Subtitle 3. Prohibited Acts; Penalties
§ 10–305LinkCopy Citation
(a)
In this section, “nuisance” includes:
(1)
Any condition that is dangerous to health or safety, such as an inadequately protected swimming pool or ditch;
(2)
Any condition that may adversely affect the public health, such as an unsanitary outhouse, a foul pigpen, an improperly functioning sewage system, an unkempt junkyard, an unkempt scrap metal processing facility, an excessive accumulation of trash or garbage, dead animals, a contaminated water supply, an inadequately protected water supply, or a rat harborage;
(3)
Housekeeping in any building that is so poor that the health of the owner, occupants, employees, or neighbors may be endangered; and
(4)
Any condition that may endanger health through the spreading of the condition by any means, including by streams, surface drainage, air currents, winged life, domestic animals, or human beings.
(b)
In Cecil County or Allegany County, in addition to any other penalty imposed by this subtitle, a person who refuses or neglects to comply with a notice or order to abate a nuisance by the Secretary, or by the health officer for the county where the nuisance exists, is guilty of a misdemeanor and on conviction is subject to a fine not exceeding $100 a day for each day the violation continues.