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Listed below are specified city ordinances that will be subject to civil penalties as opposed to criminal offenses.

Municipal Beach Rules and Regulations 

Placement of Litter, $300.00 Fine: It shall be unlawful to throw, place, deposit, sweep or scatter, or cause to be thrown, placed, deposited, swept, or scattered, any paper, food, cigarette butts, bottles, cans, trash, fruit peelings or other refuse upon the beaches or structures erected hereon. Beach goers must have their trash in a container at all times. Littering shall also include the release into the air or surface of balloons, helium or otherwise, and/or heat or flame operated devices sometimes referred to as "sky lanterns", "Chinese lanterns" or "floating lanterns", to include, with regard to balloons or lanterns, helium, foil, Mylar or "bio-degradable" devices or items from any location in the city, including the beach, structures on the beach and waters adjacent thereto, and such activity shall be classified as "littering" and subject to the prohibition herein. 

Glass or Breakable Containers, $300.00 Fine: It shall be unlawful for any person to take or carry upon the beaches or structures erected thereon any glass or breakable containers. 

Disturbing Dune Vegetation, $300.00 Fine: It shall be unlawful for any person to pick, gather, remove, walk in the dunes, or otherwise disturb the vegetation present on sand dunes, including sea oats 

Smoking/Vaping, $300.00 Fine: It shall be unlawful for any person to smoke, vape or use tobacco or related products on any beach on Tybee Island.  Click here  Version OptionsCitations & OrdinancesHeadlineto read the new ordinance.

Pets on the Beach, $300.00 Fine: It shall be unlawful for any person who owns, is in control of, or is in charge of, any dog or other pet, to allow or take that dog or other pet upon the beaches or structures erected thereon. This does not include properly certified guide dogs, or similar animals assisting the blind, deaf, or other physically handicapped persons. 

Read Georgia Laws on Service Dogs and Emotional Support Animals

Dogs Running at Large, $300.00 Fine: It shall be unlawful for any dog to be on public streets, lanes, highways, roads, parks, beaches, or other public property of the city or loose on vacant lots or unenclosed lots so that the dog may freely have access to such property, unless that dog is held firmly on a leash held by a person or is firmly under the control of the person or is confined within an authorized dog park of the city. It shall be the duty of any owner or possessor or any person who harbors or keeps any dog to confine securely the same within the limits of the owner’s premises and not to permit that dog to run or have access to run the public streets, lanes, highways, roads, parks, beaches, or other public property or other peoples property except as set forth above.

Prohibited Beverage Containers in Public Areas, $300.00 Fine: No glass or breakable containers, bottles or glass cups shall be used in public areas for the consumption of beverages in any of the public parking lots, sidewalks, walkways, or beaches of the city.

Exception to the Rules: Exceptions to any of the above rules and regulations may be allowed by way of a special permit granted by the mayor and council or by a permit granted by the city manager pursuant to his or her authority to grant a commercial film production permit. In the case of the overnight storage of unattended personal property, a permit to do so may be granted when special circumstances exist as determined by the city manager who shall be authorized to issue such permits. 

Georgia Laws on Service Dogs and Emotional Support Animals

Georgia law and federal law protect your right to have service dogs in public places and housing.

Under Georgia law and the federal Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA), people with disabilities may bring their service animals to all public accommodations, such as restaurants, museums, hotels, and stores. These laws also require those who operate transportation services to allow service animals. 

Georgia law and the ADA differ in some important ways, but public accommodations in Georgia must comply with both sets of laws, and their patrons are entitled to rely on whichever law provides the most protections. Read on to learn which animals qualify as service animals, which public accommodations must allow them, and more. 

What Counts as a Service Animal in Georgia?

Under Georgia law, those who are blind or have a visual disability, are deaf, or have another physical disability may bring a guide dog or service dog into public accommodations. The dog must have been trained specially to provide assistance by a school for seeing-eye, hearing, service, or guide dogs. The law defines a physical disability as a physiological deficiency or defect that renders the person unable to move around without aid, or limits the ability to walk, climb, ascend, sit, rise, or perform related functions. Note that this definition doesn’t include mental, developmental, or intellectual disabilities. Therefore, psychiatric service animals are likely not covered by the law, unless they assist someone who also has a disability that creates the mobility or sensory restrictions discussed above.

The ADA defines a service animal as a dog that is individually trained to perform tasks or do work for the benefit of a person with a physical or mental disability. (In some cases, a miniature horse may also qualify as a service animal under the ADA.) The tasks or work the animal does must be directly related to the person’s disability.

Neither law covers ordinary pets or what some call “emotional support animals”: animals that provide a sense of safety, companionship, and comfort to those with psychiatric or emotional disabilities or conditions. Although these animals often have therapeutic benefits, they are not individually trained to perform specific tasks for their handlers. Under the ADA and Georgia law, owners of public accommodations are not required to allow emotional support animals, only service animals.

Public Accommodations Must Allow Service Animals

Under Georgia law, people with disabilities may bring their service animals on any form of public transportation, buses, airlines, hotels and other lodging places, places of accommodation, amusement, or resort, and all other places to which the public is invited.

Under the ADA, the definition of public accommodations is also very broad. It includes:

• hotels and other lodging establishments
• public transportation terminals, depots, and stations
• restaurants and other places that serve food and drink
• sales or rental establishments
• service establishments
• any place of public gathering, such as an auditorium or convention center
• places of entertainment and exhibit, like theaters or sports stadiums
• gyms, bowling alleys, and other places of exercise or recreation
• recreational facilities, such as zoos and parks
• libraries, museums, and other places where items are collected or displayed publicly
• educational institutions, and
• social service centers.

Rules for Your Service Animal in Georgia

You may not be charged extra to bring your service animal to any public accommodation. However, you may be required to pay for any damage your animal causes.

A public accommodation is not required to allow your service animal to remain if it poses a direct threat to the health or safety of others. If, for example, your service dog is growling and lunging at other patrons, and you are unable to stop the behavior, the dog might have to leave. An establishment may also exclude a service animal that isn’t housebroken or is out of control.