Lafayette, LA Landscaping Rules: Tree Trimming (2026)
Key Facts
- Coverage
- entire LCG service area (city + rural parish)
- Default rule
- tree company hauls debris to permitted landfill
- Owner opt-out
- signed written consent form required
- Filing
- consent form to LCG environmental quality div.
- Records
- tree company retains form copy 1 year (§74-70)
- Penalty
- misdemeanor, up to $500 fine/6 mo (§74-72)
Summary
Any "tree company" trimming, cutting or removing a tree anywhere in Lafayette Consolidated Government's service area must haul all limbs, branches, trunks and debris to a permitted landfill under § 74-70, unless the property owner signs a written consent form letting the debris stay behind for the owner to dispose of.
As part of its agreement for the trimming, cutting and/or removal of a tree located within the service area, every tree company shall remove all limbs, branches, trunks and other debris generated by its operation and shall dispose of same in a duly permitted and authorized landfill or other facility, unless the property owner consents in writing by signing a form provided by the tree company and approved by the public works director pursuant to section 74-72 that said debris shall remain upon his property and shall be his disposal responsibility (the "consent form"). All consent forms shall be either hand delivered, mailed (United States Mail, properly addressed and first-class postage pre-paid) or faxed to the environmental quality division of LCG. Additionally, the tree removal company shall retain a copy of all consent forms for a period of one year.
Official source re-checked September 7, 2026: no newer edition of the code had been published (publisher’s edition: Code of Ordinances: Supplement 65).
Full Breakdown
Chapter 74 defines a tree company as any company or entity that engages in work for hire trimming, pruning, or removing trees on private property, and § 74-2 applies the chapter across the whole "service area", the City of Lafayette plus the rural, unincorporated area of Lafayette Parish, not just inside city limits. Section 74-70 requires the tree company to remove and dispose of all limbs, branches, trunks and other debris generated by its work at a duly permitted landfill, unless the property owner signs a consent form, provided by the tree company and approved by the public works director, agreeing to keep and dispose of the debris himself.
S. Postal Service, or faxed to LCG's environmental quality division, and the tree company must keep a copy of every consent form for one year. Section 74-71 directs the public works director to issue tree companies a standard form that must warn property owners about the risks of taking on debris disposal themselves, explain their removal responsibility, lay out disposal options, and flag any disposal method, such as burning, that city-parish or other law prohibits.
Violations & Fines
Section 74-72 makes it a misdemeanor for a tree company to fail to remove and properly dispose of tree debris from its work, without first obtaining and keeping a signed consent form, punishable by a fine of up to $500.00, up to six months' imprisonment, or both, with each separate incident charged as a separate offense.
Frequently Asked Questions
Does a tree company have to haul away branches after trimming my tree?
Where does the tree company file that consent form?
Does this rule only apply inside Lafayette city limits?
What happens if a tree company dumps debris without a consent form?
Sources & Official References
Other rules in Lafayette
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