Dog owners, take note: New York City's fine for failing to pick up after Fido has just more than doubled, to $250.
The Sanitation Department announced the new penalty was taking effect Thursday. Gov. David Paterson signed the increase into law in July, but there was a 90-day delay before the effective date. The change also needed the city Environmental Control Board's approval.
The fine had been $100 since New York's so-called pooper scooper law was passed in 1978 and became a model for many other communities. It requires dog owners and walkers to clean up their pets' droppings from streets and other public places.
The Sanitation Department issued 763 tickets for pooper-scooper violations in the budget year that ended in July, up about 30 percent from the year before.
