Washington County, OR Trash & Recycling: Pickup Rules & Schedules (2026)

04, Solid Waste Control, runs residential and commercial pickup through an exclusive-franchise certificate system rather than direct municipal collection. 120 makes it unlawful for any person to collect, store, transport or dispose of waste for compensation in the unincorporated areas of the county without first obtaining a sanitary service certificate from the board, or to collect outside the service area listed on that certificate. 130 exempts cities, federal and state agencies, and a short list of others, such as nonprofit recyclers and people hauling sludge, dead animals or disaster debris under contract.

050, the board promulgates the actual standards of service, including the frequency and regularity of collection, proper container design and maintenance, and vehicle construction requirements to keep waste from dropping, sifting, leaking or escaping onto public roads; those standards are issued as the county's Solid Waste and Recycling Administrative Rules rather than fixed numeric days in the code itself. 665 makes it unlawful for anyone other than the generator, a county officer or employee, or the certificate holder's employee to enter a collection container without the container owner's authorization, protecting curbside bins from scavenging between set-out and pickup.

040, including site inspections of businesses regulated by the chapter. 670 sets a fine of up to five hundred dollars per violation, with each day of continued unlicensed collection a separate offense, rising to a thousand dollars for a repeat violation within two years.