City Council OKs tough fly dump bill, imposes 6 month jail term

An ordinance introduced by Alds. Michael D. Chandler (24th) and Shirley Coleman (16th) that passed the City Council earlier this week imposes stiffer penalties on fly dumpers that includes serving 6 months in jail, performing 200 hours of community services and paying up to $2,500 in fines.

"The reward money has been increased from $100 to $500 for the arrest and conviction of the illegal fly dumpers in our community," said Chandler. "It's costing the city $7.5 million annually to clean the vacant lots in the ward, which includes illegal fly dumping material," he said.

"So far this year, we've spent $3.8 million in cleaning up various city-owned lots. These dumpers are …