Important Regulations

Here are some important regulations you might want to be aware of.

NOISE CONTROL

Construction Activities / Air Conditioners, Heat/Cool Pumps, & Generators
Construction Activities:
Temporary activities directly associated with site preparation, assembly, erection, repair, alteration, renovation, construction, or demolition of improvements, or other similar activities, including, but not limited to, moving heavy equipment, delivering materials, loading or unloading/operating equipment with audible "back-up" warning devices, or allowing engines to idle.

Section 140-2

Weekdays (non-holidays). No construction activities shall commence prior to 7:00 a.m. on weekdays, & all construction activities shall end no later than 7:00 p.m.
Saturdays. No construction activities shall commence prior to 9:00 a.m. on Saturdays, & all construction activities shall end no later than 7:00 p.m.
Sundays. Construction activities are prohibited on Sundays unless the activity is interior work that cannot be heard by neighbors.
Holidays. Construction activities on a holiday weekday are limited to the hours of 9:00 a.m. to 7:00 p.m., on holiday Saturdays are limited as set forth in Subsection B, and on holiday Sundays are limited as set forth in Subsection C.
Air conditioners, heat/cool pumps, & generators shall not be operated in violation of Montgomery County, Maryland noise level standards, as amended. At the time of installation, equipment shall be subject to noise testing to assure compliance with the noise level standards, as measured at the receiving property line.

Lawn Maintenace Activities / Ban on Gas-Powered Leaf Blowers
Lawn Maintenance Activities:
Any & all activities or tasks associated with the care or maintenance of a lawn, garden, flower bed, tree or other landscaping.
Power Equipment:
Motorized equipment such as a lawn mower, chainsaw, leaf blower or other similar equipment utilized to perform lawn maintenance activities.

Section 140-3

Lawn maintenance activities that involve the use of power equipment are permitted on non-holiday weekdays between the hours of 8:00 a.m. and 7:00 p.m., with the sole exception that lawn maintenance work that involves the use of power equipment is also permitted on non-holiday weekdays between the hours of 7:00 p.m. and 8:00 p.m. if only one piece of power equipment is used.
Lawn maintenance activities that involve the use of power equipment are permitted on weekends and holidays between the hours of 9:00 a.m. and 7:00 p.m.
It shall be unlawful for any person to engage in the use of a gas-powered blower.

Exception for Snow Removal Equipment
Section 140-4
The above requirements shall not be construed to apply to the use of any snow removal equipment.

In case of severe noise problems, call the Town Hall. After business hours, you can reach out to the Mayor. These numbers can be found on the Staff Directory page here & The Mayor & Town Council page here.

RIGHT-OF-WAY & OVERGROWN VEGETATION
Maintenance of Trees & Shrubbery Near Town Sidewalks
Section 155-1

Maintenance of public right-of-way.
1. The owner of private property adjoining a public right-of-way shall maintain that portion of the right-of-way located between the lot line and the edge of the paved street in a safe and sanitary condition. Said owner shall not permit grass or weeds to grow within the right-of-way to a height in excess of 12 inches above the ground. Nothing herein shall be deemed to require an owner of private property adjoining a right-of-way to repair sidewalks or curbs located within the right-of-way.
2. The owner of private property adjoining a public right-of-way shall not place any structure, wall, fence, tree, hedge, shrubbery, or any other plant growth, except low-growing plantings, within the right-of-way without a license to use the right-of-way issued by the Town. Any tree, hedge, shrubbery, or other plant growth located within the right-of-way as of 2018 may be maintained, but not replaced, provided that it does not interfere in any manner with pedestrian or vehicular traffic and is maintained in such a manner and at such height that a clear and unobstructed view is available to pedestrians and vehicle traffic.
3. The owner of private property adjoining a public right-of-way shall not permit any structure, wall, fence, tree, hedge, shrubbery, or any other plant growth location on such owner's private property to extend into the right-of-way in such manner that interferes with pedestrian or vehicular traffic. Any structure, wall, fence, tree, hedge, shrubbery, or any other plant growth located on private property adjoining a right-of-way shall be maintained in such a manner and at such height that a clear and unobstructed view of the right-of-way is available to pedestrians and vehicular traffic.
Any structure, wall, fence, tree, hedge, shrubbery, or any other plant growth located within the public right-of-way, shall be removed by and at the expense of the owner and occupant of the abutting private property upon the request of the Town or its designee. The Town or its designee may request removal as a result of a violation of any provision of this Code or when otherwise deemed necessary for the public health, safety, or welfare, or for the public use of the right-of-way. The Town or its designee may take such action as is necessary to restore the right-of-way or return the right-of-way to a condition required by this section. The cost of any restoration or corrective action may be specially assessed against the abutting private property and collected with the property taxes or collected by a suit for damages.
Any person who violates any provision of this section or allows a violation of any provision of this section on his or her property shall be guilty of a municipal infraction and shall be jointly and severally subject to a penalty of $100 for each day that a violation exists. If a violation occurs, there shall be a rebuttable presumption that all owners of the property allowed the violation.

Offensive, Dangerous, & Harmful Matter
Section 155-2
It shall be unlawful for any person or persons to cast or throw, discharge or cause to flow into any of the streets, avenues or alleys of the Town, or on any vacant lot, or to keep, collect, use or suffer to remain on his or their premises any noxious liquid, stagnant water or other offensive matter; or to collect or transport any such matter in other than approved containers. Whatever is dangerous to life or health; whatever renders air or food or water or other drink unwholesome or unfit for use of man; whatever odor or exhalations are offensive to the inhabitants or dangerous to the public health; whatever accumulations of animal or vegetable matter, solid or liquid; whatever growth of rank vegetation, which are dangerous or hurtful to the neighborhood, or are likely to become so, are declared to be nuisances and unlawful.

Refuse on Streets & Sidewalks
Section 164-5

No person shall discard any refuse on any public right-of-way.

PETS & ANIMALS

For any threatening situation or animal cruelty in progress, including a dog locked in a hot car, call 911.
For dead animal pickup call 311 during business hours.
For urgent and non-urgent animal issues, including a loose animal, cases of animal neglect, injured animals, & defecation or odor complaints, contact the Animal Services Division of Montgomery County Police at (301) 279-8000.
To report a lost pet, call Montgomery County Animal Services & Adoption Center at (240) 773-5900.

Adoption of County Code
Section 105-1
For purposes of establishing rules and regulations dealing with animal control, the Town adopts the provisions of Chapter 5 of the Montgomery County Code, except that a dog shall be deemed "at large" if it is either:

Off the premises of its owner and not leashed; or
Off the premises of its owner and leashed, but not under the immediate control of a responsible person capable of physically restraining it.

Montgomery County Code
Cruelty
Section 5-201

A person must not violate State laws against cruelty to animals, such as by:

violating general prohibitions against cruelty;
killing a dog or cat by an inhumane method;
abandoning a domestic animal;
giving away animals under certain circumstances;
selling or importing certain puppies and kittens;
selling or coloring a chick;
injuring certain horses;
killing or trapping a carrier pigeon;
poisoning a dog;
abuse or neglect of an animal;
aggravated cruelty to animals, in general;
failing to take actions required for the driver of a motor vehicle that hits and injures an animal; or
leaving a cat or dog in a vehicle under certain circumstances.

Dangerous & Potentially Dangerous Animals
Section 5-202

A person must not import, sell, trade, buy, barter, breed, raise, keep, or possess:
1. a wild animal; or
2. any animal that the County or any other jurisdiction finds is dangerous or a threat to public health or safety, including types of animals excluded from State law prohibitions on dangerous animals.
An animal is dangerous if the animal is:
1. a “dangerous dog” as defined in Md. Code, Criminal Law Article § 10-619;
2. any other animal that, without provocation , has killed or severely injured a person;
3. an animal that poses a physical threat to humans because of specific training or demonstrated behavior, or because the animal's bite is poisonous; or
4. a potentially dangerous animal that:
  1. bites a person without provocation;
  2. attacks a person or animal without provocation; or
  3. kills or severely injures a domestic animal outside the property of the potentially dangerous animal's owner.
An animal is potentially dangerous if:
1. the animal:
  1. bites a person without provocation;
  2. kills or severely injures a domestic animal outside the attacking- animal owner’s property;
  3. attacks or has unwanted contact with a person or animal without provocation; or
  4. was declared by the County or another jurisdiction as potentially dangerous (even if the other jurisdiction uses a different term); and
2. the Office notifies the owner that the animal is potentially dangerous.

An animal's actions in a qualified activity do not make the animal potentially dangerous.

Declared dangerous or potentially dangerous elsewhere. An owner of an animal declared dangerous or potentially dangerous in another jurisdiction must remove the animal from the County within 10 days after receiving a citation or other notice of a violation of this Chapter unless the Executive Director waives this requirement and imposes conditions or restrictions for the animal to remain in the County.
Limited waiver. The Executive Director may waive the prohibitions for a specific animal only if the Executive Director finds that the animal is not a threat to public health or safety.
Confinement and microchipping. The Executive Director or the Board may impose any restriction or condition, including confinement or microchipping the animal, on the owner of a dangerous or potentially dangerous animal that is reasonably expected to protect the public health or safety. A person must not release the animal from confinement unless the animal is:
1. securely muzzled in a manner approved by the Office;
2. leashed; and
3. under the control of a person who is at least 18 years old and is physically able to restrain the animal.
When a potentially dangerous animal is off the owner’s premises or property it must be:
1. on a leash or harness; and
2. under the control of a person who is at least 18 years old and is physically able to restrain the animal.
Guard dogs. An owner of a guard dog must:
1. confine the dog;
2. transport the dog only in a humane, escape-proof manner;
3. ensure that the dog always wears a tag identifying the owner's name, address, and emergency phone number;
4. tell the Department of Police and the Fire Department the location of a working guard dog before placing the animal in service and provide emergency contact information about the owner; and
5. on demand by an animal control officer, produce the dog for examination by a specific veterinarian at the owner's expense.
Licensing records. The Executive Director must indicate in the licensing records whether a licensed animal is dangerous, potentially dangerous, or a guard dog.
Exceptions.
1. A dog serving a law enforcement agency is not a dangerous or potentially dangerous animal or a guard dog under this Section.
2. Animals in the possession of an animal sanctuary are not dangerous or potentially dangerous animals if the animal sanctuary:
  1. is a nonprofit organization qualified under §501(c)(3) of the Internal Revenue Code;
  2. operates a place of refuge for abused, neglected, impounded, abandoned, orphaned, or displaced wildlife; and
  3. does not conduct commercial activity with respect to any animal of which the organization is an owner.
3. Wild animals do not include kangaroos, wallabies, or sugar gliders.

Public Nuisance & Other Violations
Section 5-203

Allow an animal other than an altered cat to be at large. An animal that is participating in a qualified activity is not at large unless the animal leaves the activity.
Allow an animal to damage or defecate on property outside the owner’s property. An animal may defecate on public property or the common area of property in which the owner shares an interest if the owner immediately removes and disposes of the feces by a sanitary method approved by the Office. This paragraph does not affect any right of a common ownership community to regulate or ban animals from the community’s property.
Allow an animal to enter private property without the property owner's permission. The property owner may capture the trespassing animal humanely and promptly notify animal control or other appropriate law enforcement authorities, or humanely transport the animal to an animal shelter.
Allow a female dog or cat in heat to be outside a building or other secure enclosure that prevents attraction of other animals.
Allow an animal to cause an unsanitary, dangerous, or offensive condition because of the size or number of animals in a single location or because a facility is not appropriate for the animal or properly maintained.
Allow an animal to cause noise that is loud and persistent enough to disturb another person's quiet enjoyment.
Allow a dog to be on public school grounds on a day when school is in session, or in a public recreation area during an organized activity, unless the dog is controlled by a leash or similar restraining device. This paragraph does not apply to a dog participating in a qualified activity if the agency controlling the school or area gave permission to the owner of the dog or the sponsor of the qualified activity.
Allow a domestic or exotic bird, including a homing pigeon, to be in an aviary within 100 feet of any structure owned or leased by another person and used for human habitation or work. This paragraph does not apply to a bird:
1. other than a homing pigeon, inside the owner's dwelling;
2. in a pet shop;
3. in an Agricultural or Rural Residential zone; or
4. in a market for less than 24 hours for sale for human consumption.
Refuse or fail to obtain a license for a dog, cat, or ferret as required by State law or this Chapter.
Allow an animal to act in any other way that the Executive Director, the Board, or an animal control officer finds would cause any other public nuisance established by regulation. An action prohibited by the regulation is a violation even if the action does not qualify as a public nuisance because the owner has not received notice.
Sell, trade, or give a domesticated animal to another person at a place open to the public, except a business licensed to sell animals.
Public nuisance. An owner must not allow an animal to create a public nuisance by:
1. Behavior occurring after the owner received notice from the County in any form (such as an oral warning from an Office employee) of a violation because of the same behavior; or
2. An owner must prevent the owner’s animal from having unwanted contact with a person or another domesticated animal at all times.