Highlands County, FL Landscaping Rules: Composting (2026)

5-30 lets a residential or commercial property skip mandatory franchise collection if the owner disposes of all municipal solid waste generated on the property by composting on-site or recycling, and obtains a county exemption first; the underlying rule that solid waste ultimately reach the county landfill still applies, except to the extent the applicant can show it is properly handled by composting or recycling instead. Residential applicants file with the county administrator on county forms, providing the applicant's name and address, the property address, the reason for the exemption, the proposed on-site composting or recycling method, and an application fee set by the Board of County Commissioners; the application is due before June 1 each year to take effect for the following fiscal year.

The county administrator reviews the application and grants the exemption only after finding the applicant has a proper, sanitary and effective method that will handle all of the property's solid waste; an approved residential exemption removes the property from the solid waste assessment roll for that fiscal year. No exemption ever covers hazardous or bio-hazardous waste. Once granted, the property owner cannot switch to a different disposal method without the county administrator's written approval, and the county administrator can revoke the exemption and reinstate franchise collection if the waste is not actually being handled properly, in which case a prorated share of the assessment is billed for the rest of the year. A denial or revocation can be appealed to the Board of County Commissioners within 30 days.