Adams County, CO Trash & Recycling: Collection Schedule (2026)
Key Facts
- Minimum frequency
- Once per month, trash and recycling
- License required
- Adams County Solid Waste Hauler license
- Recycling trigger
- Required if hauler offers regular trash service
- Rates
- Unregulated, set by each hauler
- Annual report due
- January 31 via ReTRAC Connect
- Max fine
- $1,000 per day, graduated by offense
Summary
Every solid waste hauler licensed to work in unincorporated Adams County must collect trash and offer curbside recycling at least once a month under Ordinance No. 17. The county sets no fixed pickup day: each licensed hauler schedules its own route, and rates are entirely the hauler's call.
Recycling collection service shall mean the regular collection of recyclable materials from residential, commercial, or multi-family customers at least once per month. Regular landfill materials collection shall mean the regular collection of landfill materials from residential, commercial, or multi-family customers at least once per month. ... All Solid Waste Haulers providing regular collection of landfill materials from residential, multi-family or commercial customers shall offer curbside recycling collection services, to include at a minimum the materials designated in the Minimum Recyclables List, on a regular and recurring schedule.
Full Breakdown
Adams County doesn't run its own trash trucks; residents and businesses contract directly with a private hauler that holds a county Solid Waste Hauler license under Ordinance No. 17, effective February 17, 2024. The ordinance defines both 'Regular landfill materials collection' and 'Recycling collection service' as collection occurring at least once per month from residential, commercial or multi-family customers, setting the county's floor for how infrequently a hauler can pick up. Any hauler that provides regular landfill collection must also offer curbside recycling covering, at minimum, the items on the county's Minimum Recyclables List, on a regular and recurring schedule, and must tell customers about that recycling option when service starts and again every year.
Haulers that only do short-term junk removal or roll-off dumpster work for construction projects don't have to offer recycling. The Director of Community and Economic Development licenses and enforces against haulers; nonprofits collecting for fundraising, people hauling their own waste, non-paying landlords removing a tenant's leftovers, and contractors hauling their own incidental construction debris don't need a hauler license. Licensed haulers must file an annual diversion report, broken out by material type, through the county's ReTRAC Connect system by January 31 each year.
Violations & Fines
Hauling without an Adams County license, or licensed hauling that skips the monthly minimum or the required recycling offer, is a civil infraction under C.R.S. § 30-15-402(1) punishable by up to $1,000. Repeat violations escalate: up to $500 a day for a first or second offense, at least $750 a day for a third, and up to $1,000 a day after that, plus a $10 court surcharge, with each day of noncompliance counted separately.
Frequently Asked Questions
Does Adams County run its own trash pickup?
How often is my hauler required to collect trash?
Is my hauler required to offer recycling?
Can I hire any trash company I want?
Sources & Official References
Other rules in Adams County
Compare Adams County to another location·View the Colorado trash & recycling overview
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