Tuscaloosa, AL Trash & Recycling: Illegal Dumping (2026)

Sec. 13-62(a) bars throwing, dumping or discharging, or causing or permitting the dumping of, gravel, cement, paper, wood, garbage, cans, trash, debris, refuse or litter of any kind on public streets or ways, or upon public or private premises or a vacant lot. Consent from the person controlling private property is a defense, but the defendant carries the burden of raising it, which does not shift the overall burden of proof. Sec. 13-62(b) targets dumping from a moving vehicle specifically and creates a rebuttable presumption that the driver committed, authorized or permitted the violation whenever illegal litter comes from that vehicle, unless the vehicle is a for-hire passenger carrier.

Related sections fill in specific dumping scenarios: Sec. 13-63 separately bans leaving hazardous debris such as nails, broken glass, brush, machinery parts or old iron on any street or public way; Sec. 13-65 bans dumping wood, garbage, cans, trash, tires or debris in any drainage ditch or easement; and Sec. 13-66 makes it unlawful to drive a vehicle that is loaded or maintained so that gravel, asphalt, tar, trash or debris blows or spills onto the street, requiring the operator to clear resulting debris immediately or have the director of environmental services remove it and bill the responsible party. Sec. 13-64 exempts properly authorized temporary placement of trash or leaves for city collection from Secs. 13-62 and 13-63.