Billings, MT Trash & Recycling: Collection Schedule (2026)
Key Facts
- Residential frequency
- Once-a-week automated cart collection by Public Works
- Yard waste service
- Seasonal; period set by Public Works with city council
- Set-out window
- Night before and day of collection only
- Cart removal deadline
- End of the designated collection day
- Cart clearance
- Four feet around each cart or container
- Cart sizes
- 64-gallon or 96-gallon solid waste cart
- Who may collect
- City only, except Sec. 21-214(a)(1) to (3)
Summary
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.
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. ... 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 service for construction and demolition debris per a written agreement approved by the city council; and (3) As provided by MCA 7-2-4736, preservation of existing garbage or solid waste service in the event of annexation.
Official source re-checked September 7, 2026: no newer edition of the code had been published (publisher’s edition: Code of Ordinances: Supplement 66 Update 2).
Full Breakdown
Billings defines residential service in Sec. 21-201 as once-a-week automated collection of solid waste carts provided by the Public Works Department. A property counts as residential only if it is a permanent dwelling that receives that weekly cart service, and motels and hotels are specifically excluded. Everything else is commercial, and Public Works can reclassify multiplex residential properties as commercial so they can be served with commercial containers.
Yard waste is a separate, seasonal program. Sec. 21-201 says the service period is established by Public Works in consultation with city council, so the start and end dates are not fixed in the code. Sec. 21-207 gives each residential customer one solid waste cart and up to two yard waste carts. Subdivisions with no on-site storage for yard waste carts are designated ineligible and are not issued them, and Sec. 21-205 states that yard waste service is not available to commercial customers. Yard waste carts cannot contain plastic bags, while yard waste placed in a solid waste cart must be bagged and tied.
Set-out timing is in Sec. 21-211(g). Carts are allowed in the street right-of-way, sidewalk or alley, without obstructing it, the night before and on the day of collection only, and they must be removed from the right-of-way by the end of the designated collection day. Sec. 21-211(d) requires four feet of clearance around each cart, and Public Works will not pick up a cart that lacks it. Sec. 21-209 offers a 64-gallon or a 96-gallon solid waste cart, and a household with the 64-gallon cart cannot have a second one.
Sec. 21-214 makes the city the exclusive collector. It is unlawful for anyone else to be in the business of collecting, removing and disposing of solid waste within city jurisdiction, except under Secs. 21-215 and 21-203, for council-approved drop-box service for construction and demolition debris, or where MCA 7-2-4736 preserves existing service after annexation. The city administrator, with council consent, can call for bids on areas opened to private haulers.
The chapter does not print a weekday map or a holiday calendar, so your collection day comes from Public Works rather than from the code text. These rules were enacted by Ord. No. 26-5935, adopted August 24, 2026, which replaced the former Art. 21-200.
Violations & Fines
Under Sec. 21-223, a violation of Article 21-200 is a municipal infraction punishable by civil penalties set in Sec. 18-1304. An overfilled cart, or a cart with required bagging missing, is not collected until the next regularly scheduled service day. A cart left out past the end of the collection day can be damaged at the customer's expense, and spills that trace back to a customer can be billed for cleanup. Anyone other than the city who collects solid waste for hire breaks Sec. 21-214 unless an exception applies.
Frequently Asked Questions
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Sources & Official References
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