Madison County, IL Trash & Recycling: Pickup Rules & Schedules (2026)

Chapter 112 of the Madison County Code, the Residential Recycling Code, puts collection oversight with the Building and Zoning Department. Any person or company hauling garbage, municipal waste or recyclables to or from sites in the county must hold a vehicle license before operating; licenses run a full year starting June 1 and the annual fee is $60 per vehicle, paid to Building and Zoning. Vehicles owned by a municipality or township are exempt from the fee but still must be licensed and file reports.

Every application must list the business name, manager, legal representative, address, and each vehicle's year, make, model, VIN, plate number, weight and cubic-yard capacity, plus a material separation plan showing how the hauler will collect, process and market recyclables under the county's separation rule. The county has 30 days to act on an application; missing that window automatically issues a 30-day temporary license. An incomplete application can draw a conditional license naming what must still be fixed, and failing to meet those conditions revokes it.

A denial must state its reason in writing, and the applicant has 15 calendar days to request a hearing. Licensees must file tonnage reports twice a year, by July 31 and January 31, covering municipal waste, recyclables by commodity, and landscape waste collected; missing a report is itself a violation and can trigger suspension or revocation. Every truck must carry a copy of the permit and display the county sticker in the upper right corner of the windshield. A hauler may not dispose of residential waste until recyclables are separated out, unless the waste comes from a municipality or township with its own recycling agreement with the county.