San Antonio, TX Trash & Recycling: Collection Schedule (2026)

Sec. 14-30(a) states that use of city garbage, brush, and refuse collection, removal, and disposal services, and payment of the fees for them, is mandatory for residences except as exempted under subsection (d). 00 parks environmental fee per unit; those charges are billed monthly on the CPS Energy utility bill under Sec. 14-31. Sec. 14-11 governs what residential refuse looks like on the ground: household refuse goes in the city-designated container, refuse containers are brown, and everything placed in them must be in sealed bags to keep the cart sanitary and prevent windblown litter.

Recycling and organics each receive once-per-week collection on days the director designates, and refuse collection follows the same placement and removal windows in Sec. that night. The only exemption from mandatory service is in Sec. 14-30(d): apartment houses and mobile home parks may be excused from the fees if they submit written proof of acceptable private garbage removal and the director approves it. Sec. 14-31(b) backs the mandate financially, allowing the city to discontinue utility and solid waste service to a delinquent account. Providing unfranchised private residential collection is separately barred under Sec. 14-45(b) unless the property is exempted under Sec. 14-30(d).