Hillsboro, OR Trash & Recycling: Dumpster Rules (2026)
Key Facts
- Franchise required
- Any dumpster or drop box service in city limits, § 6.08.020(D)
- Hiring rule
- No contracting with a hauler lacking a City franchise, (J)
- Container placement
- Outside locked gates and garages, at the curb as directed, (K)
- Screening
- Site obscuring screening allowed for commercial and industrial containers
- Citation appeal
- To City Manager via City Recorder within 10 days
- Franchisee penalties
- Up to $500, $750, then $1,000 within 12 months
- Enforcing body
- City of Hillsboro, franchises awarded by City Council
Summary
In Hillsboro, nobody can provide dumpster or drop box service inside city limits, or advertise it, without a City franchise, and nobody can hire an unfranchised hauler. Customers must set carts and containers outside any locked gate or garage, at the curb where the franchisee directs, with safe access for the truck. The rules sit in Municipal Code § 6.08.020.
No person may: ... D. Provide solid waste management and collection services or drop box services within the corporate limits of the City, or advertise for the performance of those services, without obtaining a franchise from the City. ... K. Fail to provide safe access to the pickup point so as not to jeopardize the persons or equipment supplying solid waste management and collection or drop box service or the motoring public. Unless exempt under the standards adopted pursuant to HMC 6.08.050 (D), to protect the privacy, safety, pets and security of the customers, and to prevent unnecessary physical and legal risk to the franchisee and its employees, a customer shall place a roll cart or other container to be emptied on the appointed collection day outside any locked or latched gate and outside any garage or other building, and where applicable shall place such roll carts and containers at the curb or roadside as directed by the franchisee in such a fashion to allow for proper mechanical collection. Nothing contained herein shall prevent or discourage the use of site obscuring waste receptacle screening for commercial or industrial containers or drop boxes.
Official source re-checked September 7, 2026: no newer edition of the code had been published (publisher’s edition: Municipal Code: Supplement 1 | Community Development Code: Supplement 1).
Full Breakdown
Hillsboro does not let just any hauler place a dumpster inside the city. Municipal Code § 6.08.020(D) bars anyone from providing solid waste management and collection services or drop box services within the corporate limits, or advertising to do so, without a franchise from the City. Subsection (J) closes the other side: no one can contract for those services with a person who lacks a franchise. A homeowner or contractor renting a drop box needs a hauler holding a Hillsboro drop box franchise.
The City Council awards franchises by resolution under § 6.08.030(A). They are non-exclusive, and the Council delineates the areas of the city where each franchisee works, so franchisees operate only within their designated territory. Additional franchises are issued only on a showing of need, such as an inability by current franchisees to adequately handle increased needs for service.
Subsection (K) governs how customers handle containers once service starts. Every customer must provide safe access to the pickup point. Unless exempt under the standards adopted under HMC 6.08.050(D), the customer places the roll cart or other container on the appointed collection day outside any locked or latched gate and outside any garage or other building, and puts carts and containers at the curb or roadside as the franchisee directs, positioned for proper mechanical collection. Site obscuring screening for commercial or industrial containers and drop boxes is expressly allowed. The 6.08.050(D) standards are adopted by Council resolution and reviewed with franchisees at 5-year intervals beginning with 2021.
Neighboring subsections reach dumpsters too. Under (B), no one can remove the lid from, enter, or deposit solid waste into a container without the owner's permission. Under (H), a compactor must meet safety standards and fit the franchisee's equipment. Under (F), dumping more than 1 cubic foot of solid waste on public or private property without the owner's consent is prohibited.
Section 6.08.025(B) exempts some activity from the franchise rule in (D), including a collector hauling waste that the collector or its employee produced to a lawful disposal site, landscaping, gardening or tree service waste hauled by the person employed for that work, and activities of federal or state agencies.
Violations & Fines
Violations of this subchapter fall under the general penalty provisions of the Hillsboro Code, and the City can enforce through an administrative process or a citation, which can be issued to a company or its employee. Appeals go to the City Manager, filed with the City Recorder within 10 days. Franchisees face civil penalties of up to $500, then $750, then $1,000 within 12 months, per day or per occurrence. A franchise holder can also sue any other person for violating § 6.08.020 and seek injunctive relief.
Frequently Asked Questions
Can I rent a dumpster from any company for a Hillsboro project?
Where does my cart or container go on collection day?
Can my commercial dumpster be screened from view?
How do I contest a citation under the solid waste rules?
How much can I put in a roll cart?
Sources & Official References
Other rules in Hillsboro
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