Gulfport, MS Trash & Recycling: Dumpster Rules (2026)
Key Facts
- Container emptying
- Within 2 business days when full
- 3 notices in 6 months
- Triggers required lockable enclosure
- Enclosure deadline
- 60 days after written notice
- Civil fine
- $250 per violation
- Enforcing agency
- Department of Urban Development
Summary
Gulfport requires businesses to keep required trash containers clean and free of surrounding rubbish, and to empty a full container within two business days. Three maintenance notices in six months forces the property owner and operator to build a lockable enclosure around the dumpster within 60 days.
Section 308.3.3. Commercial Dumpster Maintenance. Operators of establishments generating garbage and required to use containers must ensure that these containers are kept clean and sanitary, with no accumulation of rubbish or garbage surrounding them. If the operator receives three (3) notices within a six (6) month period for failing to maintain the containers and their surroundings, the property owner, in collaboration with the operator, must construct a lockable barrier or fencing within 60 days of written notice. This barrier or fencing must comply with current and applicable building codes and zoning ordinances.
Official source re-checked September 7, 2026: no newer edition of the code had been published (publisher’s edition: Code of Ordinances: Supplement 68).
Full Breakdown
3 (Commercial Dumpster Maintenance) puts the burden on operators of establishments that generate garbage and are required to use containers: they must keep those containers clean and sanitary, with no rubbish or garbage accumulating around them. If an operator receives three separate notices within a six-month period for failing to maintain the containers and their surroundings, the property owner and operator together must build a lockable barrier or fencing around the container within 60 days of written notice, and that structure has to comply with current building codes and zoning ordinances.
2, amending the same chapter, adds that once a required container is full, it must be emptied within two business days, excluding federal holidays, so a business can't leave an overflowing dumpster sitting through a long weekend. 1 authorizes a $250 civil fine for each uncorrected violation, with every additional day treated as a separate offense. 2, with the hearing held by the Chief Administrative Officer and a further appeal available to the City Council for a $50 filing fee.
Violations & Fines
Failing to keep a required dumpster clean, letting rubbish accumulate around it, or missing the 60-day enclosure deadline after three notices in six months is a Property Maintenance Code violation. The Department of Urban Development can assess a $250 civil fine under Section 106.4.1 for each violation, with each day of continued noncompliance a separate offense, subject to appeal within seven days.
Frequently Asked Questions
How often must a commercial dumpster be emptied in Gulfport?
What happens if a business keeps getting cited for a dirty dumpster?
Who enforces Gulfport's dumpster rules and what's the fine?
Sources & Official References
Other rules in Gulfport
Compare Gulfport to another location·View the Mississippi trash & recycling overview
See something wrong?
Help us keep this page accurate. If you notice an error or outdated information, let us know.