Cobb County, GA Trash & Recycling: Holiday Pickup Schedule (2026)
Key Facts
- Governing provision
- Code of Ordinances § 102-70(2)
- Baseline service
- At least once per week (§ 102-70(1))
- Holiday rule
- Collector alternates days, guarantees one pickup that week
- Enforcing agency
- Sustainability, Waste and Beautification Department
- Base penalty
- Up to $1,000 fine and/or 60 days jail
- Curbside window
- 6 p.m. day before to 11 p.m. pickup day
- Scope
- Unincorporated Cobb County only; cities have own codes
Summary
Cobb County doesn't cancel trash pickup for holidays: it shifts it. Code of Ordinances § 102-70(2) requires every permitted residential hauler in the unincorporated county to alternate collection days during any week containing a legal holiday, guaranteeing at least one pickup that week. The rule binds collectors, not just guidance, and sits alongside a once-per-week baseline enforced by the sustainability, waste and beautification department.
All residential collectors shall comply with the following requirements: (1)Collection schedule: Collectors shall provide residential collection service at least once per week. No undue disturbance shall be created in residential areas during residential collection.(2)Collection during holidays: During a week which includes a legal holiday, collectors shall alternate collection days, if necessary, to ensure that collection service is provided at least once during such a holiday week.(6)Customer service: Each collector permitted hereunder shall maintain a published telephone number and a responsible person in charge of customer service to provide the following to the head of the sustainability, waste and beautification department and to each customer:a.A written policy specifying the terms of all services to be afforded to or agreements with each customer; andb.A customer service system to resolve disputes with or complaints against the collector.
Official source re-checked September 7, 2026: no newer edition of the code had been published (publisher’s edition: Code of Ordinances: Supplement 53).
Full Breakdown
Section 102-70 of the Cobb County Code of Ordinances sets the baseline service standard for every permitted residential solid waste collector operating in unincorporated Cobb County: at least one collection per week, with no undue disturbance in residential areas. Subsection (2) carves out the holiday exception that gives this rule its teeth. In any week that contains a legal holiday, whether Thanksgiving, Christmas, New Year's Day, or another recognized holiday, the hauler must alternate its normal collection days as needed so that every customer still receives at least one pickup that week.
The obligation runs against the collector, not the county: Cobb does not publish a single county-wide holiday calendar, because each permitted hauler sets its own shifted route and is required, under subsection (6), to keep a published customer-service phone number and a written policy explaining its service terms and complaint process. Residents who need to know which day their pickup lands on during a holiday week call their own hauler's customer service line rather than the county. The rule sits inside Article II, which also requires collectors to give the county's sustainability, waste and beautification department at least ten days' written notice of any change in service level under section 102-70(3) and to dispose of collected waste only at a state or county permitted facility under section 102-70(4).
on the third day after if the hauler misses the scheduled stop. under section 102-71 except for emergency work. This chapter governs unincorporated Cobb County only; Marietta, Smyrna, Kennesaw, Acworth, Powder Springs, and Austell each run their own holiday collection schedules under their own municipal codes.
Violations & Fines
A hauler that skips a holiday-week stop entirely, rather than shifting it, violates section 102-70(2) and faces the general penalty in section 102-14: up to $1,000.00 and/or 60 days in jail for a first offense, rising by $200 for a second violation and $650 for a third within 12 months, and a flat $1,000.00 for a fourth or later violation in that span. The sustainability, waste and beautification department can also suspend a collector's permit for up to 30 days for repeated documented failures under sections 102-58 and 102-59.
Frequently Asked Questions
Will my trash still get picked up during a holiday week in Cobb County?
What day does my collection move to when a holiday falls in my pickup week?
What happens if my hauler skips my street entirely during a holiday week?
Does this holiday shift rule apply inside Marietta or Smyrna?
How late can I leave my can out if my pickup shifts for a holiday?
Sources & Official References
Other rules in Cobb County
Compare Cobb County to another location·View the Georgia trash & recycling overview
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