Committee Approves Up To $5,000 Fines for Illegal Dumping in Parks
And costs could go higher if cleanup costs exceed $5,000. Full board approval remains.
Milwaukee County is preparing to go after those illegally dumping waste and other debris in county parks.
The Milwaukee County Board of Supervisors is on its way to raising the fine for illegal dumping from $200 to as much as $5,000. Also, if the cost to clean up a site is more than $5,000, the county’s attorneys are prepared to go after violators in court.
The massive parks system makes enforcement difficult; it’s too big to catch all the violators with cameras and new dumpsites can pop-up just as frequently as they are shut down.
Earlier this year, Sup. Shawn Rolland proposed boosting the fine for dumping to $5,000, as a deterrent and to help the county recoup the cost of cleanup. The fine would not apply to park patrons who are simply littering, but to more severe cases of illegal dumping.
An argument could be made that a municipality has the authority to establish these fines, Corporation Counsel Scott Brown told supervisors on the Committee on Parks and Culture Tuesday. But his office believes state statutes do give the county the authority to set its own fine.
“I think it’s a pretty weak argument and I’d be comfortable defending [the county fine] in court any day,” Brown said.
The ordinance change will go before the full board for final approval later this month.
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Related Legislation: File 24-575
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About time! Now the problem (given the County’s precarious finances) will be enforcement.