Trash & Recycling in Billings, MT (2026)
7 verified trash & recycling rules for Billings, Montana, sourced directly from the municipal code and official government pages.
Verified from official government sources
Pickup Rules & Schedules
Billings residents can set solid waste and yard waste carts out the night before collection and on collection day only, and must clear them off the street right-of-way by the end of that day. Every cart needs four feet of clearance and a fully closing lid, or public works skips it until the next regular service day.
Billings Cart Placement and Pickup Preparation Rules
Some RestrictionsBillings City Code § 21-211(d), (f), (g)
Customers shall keep the area around carts and containers clean. A minimum clearance of four (4) feet shall be maintained around each cart or container. Public works will not pick up carts and containers that do not have appropriate clearance. ... Do not overfill the carts. The lids on residential solid waste and yard waste carts must be able to close completely. Overfilled carts and carts cont...
Bin Placement Rules
In Billings, solid waste and yard waste carts go out to the sidewalk, street right-of-way, or alley the night before collection and on collection day only, and they cannot obstruct any of those spaces. Carts must come off the street right-of-way by the end of the collection day, and public works will not pick up a cart that lacks four feet of clearance.
Billings Trash Cart Placement and Storage Rules
Some RestrictionsBillings City Code § 21-210(a), (b); § 21-211(d), (g)
Underground cart and container storage is not permitted. When collection is made from the street, storage of carts and containers shall not be close to the curb area except on collection days. ... Residential solid waste carts stored in an alley shall be placed adjacent to the owner's property on the collection side of the alley. ... Customers shall keep the area around carts and containers cle...
Bulk Item Disposal
Billings collects bulky items like furniture, TVs, and mattresses from residential customers only on an on-call basis, with an added charge under the city's annual rate resolution.
Billings Bulky Waste Pickup Rules
Some RestrictionsSec. 21-218
will collect extra and bulky solid waste from residential customers on an on-call basis. Extra solid waste includes items equivalent to a 32-gallon container or approximately two (2) feet by two (2) feet and will be charged per the annual rate resolution. [...] Bulky solid waste includes items greater than seventy-five (75) pounds or larger than a 32-gallon container or two (2) feet by two (2) ...
Illegal Dumping
Billings bans depositing solid waste on city right-of-way, city property, or anyone else's land without the express consent of the city, owner, or occupant. The ban also reaches material that escapes from an unsecured load while a vehicle is driven inside the city limits. A violation is a municipal infraction punished by civil penalties set in section 18-1304.
Billings Outdoor Dumping of Solid Waste Ban
Heavy RestrictionsSec. 21-219, Billings Municipal Code
Any person who deposits, causes to be deposited, or allows solid waste to be deposited upon a city right-of-way, city property or the premises or property of another without the express permission or consent of the city, owner, or occupant is in violation of this section. This prohibition includes the release or escape of any solid waste or other transported material from an unsecured load whil...
Yard Waste Collection
Billings lets residents put yard waste in either a solid waste cart or a yard waste cart, with two conditions. Yard waste carts take only yard waste and no plastic bags, and yard waste in a solid waste cart must be bagged and tied. Contractors haul their own yard waste at their own expense, and commercial customers get no yard waste service. Public Works runs the program under Sec. 21-205.
Billings Yard Waste Cart and Disposal Rules
Some RestrictionsBillings City Code Sec. 21-205
Yard waste may be disposed of in either a solid waste cart or a yard waste cart. Yard waste carts shall be used only for yard waste and must not contain plastic bags. Yard waste placed in a solid waste cart must be bagged and tied. All yard waste resulting from the work of a contractor or the like shall be removed by means provided by and at the sole expense and cost of the contractor. Yard was...
Dumpster Rules
Only the City of Billings Public Works Department collects commercial dumpsters and carts. Section 21-214 makes it unlawful for any private person to run a solid waste collection business inside city limits, with three exceptions: special permits, drop-box service for construction and demolition debris under a council-approved written agreement, and annexed areas whose existing service is preserved under MCA 7-2-4736.
Billings Dumpster and Commercial Container Rules
Significant RestrictionsBillings City Code § 21-214
(a) It is unlawful for any person other than the city to engage in the business of collecting, removing and disposing of solid waste within the jurisdiction of the city, or for any person other than the city, its agents or employees to do or perform any of the things herein required to be done or performed by the city, except: (1) As provided in sections 21-215 and 21-203 ; (2) For drop-box ser...
Collection Schedule
Billings Public Works picks up residential solid waste carts once a week by automated truck, and runs a seasonal yard waste service whose dates it sets in consultation with city council. Under Sec. 21-214 only the city collects solid waste inside city limits, with three narrow exceptions.
Billings Trash Collection Schedule and City Service Rules
Some RestrictionsBillings City Code Sec. 21-201; Sec. 21-214
Residential service means once-a-week automated collection of solid waste carts provided by the public works department from residential properties. ... Yard waste service means the city's seasonal collection service for residential yard waste using yard waste carts provided by public works. The service period shall be established by the public works department in consultation with city council...
Looking for Yellowstone County county-wide rules?
County ordinances apply to unincorporated areas and may supplement Billings city rules.
Trash & Recycling in Yellowstone County →