Dane County, WI Property Maintenance: Trash Bin Storage (2026)

Madison General Ordinance §10.18 governs residential solid waste collection, operated by the Streets Division with city-provided 95-gallon carts. Carts must be placed at the curb with handles facing the house and lids closed by 7:00 AM on the scheduled day, no more than 24 hours before collection, and retrieved within 24 hours after collection. Between pickups, carts must be stored in the side or rear yard, in a garage, or screened from public street view (MGO §10.18(5)). Overfilled carts with lids not closing are refused and tagged. Fitchburg, Middleton, Verona, Sun Prairie, and Stoughton use contracted private haulers (Pellitteri, Waste Management, GFL) with similar placement and screening rules in their local codes. Multi-family properties over 8 units must use commercial dumpsters screened per MGO §28.142 with opaque fencing. Dane County Code §47 regulates solid waste in unincorporated areas and prohibits accumulation creating nuisance conditions. Wisconsin Stat. §287.07 bans yard waste, electronics, tires, appliances with refrigerants, and rechargeable batteries from landfills; Dane County Landfill (Rodefeld) enforces these bans. Madison separates yard waste (curbside seasonal), leaf collection (fall), and large-item pickup (on-call, fee).