"The summonses started escalating," said Betty Davis, an 80-year-old retired homeowner on Dean Street who's received $930 in fines in 2024.
When Mayor Eric Adams took office nearly three years ago, he made it his personal mission to solve New York City's seemingly intractable rat problem. "I hate rats, and I'm looking to kill and get rid of rats in the city," he said in December 2022.
Citywide, the number of rodent-related summonses issued by the Department of Health and Mental Hygiene (DOHMH) doubled between 2021 and 2022, the year Adams became mayor, and has since remained relatively constant.
The uptick in fines does not appear to have led to an overall reduction in citywide rodent activity. 311 complaints are the metric most commonly cited by city officials to track the severity of infestations.
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