Summit County, OH Trash & Recycling: Pickup Rules & Schedules (2026)
Key Facts
- Exempt collection hours
- 6:00 a.m. to 9:00 p.m.
- Outside exempt hours
- Treated as nuisance-noise violation
- First violation
- Warning to desist
- Repeat violation
- 4th-degree misdemeanor, up to $250
- Enforced by
- Local political subdivision's officer
- Applies to
- All townships, villages, cities countywide
Summary
Summit County's countywide noise ordinance treats refuse collection as exempt from its nuisance-noise rules only when the collection happens between 6:00 a.m. and 9:00 p.m. Outside that window, Sec. 509.08(e)(7)'s exemption no longer applies, and collection noise can be cited under the same section's general ban on loud, disturbing sounds.
(b) Nuisance Conditions Prohibited. (1) No person shall cause, produce or create within the County any loud unreasonable sounds, so as to create offensive sounds or conditions which are a nuisance or a menace to the health, comfort, and safety of the public... (e) Exemptions. Exempted from these nuisance noise regulations: ... (7) Refuse collection occurring between 6:00 a.m. and 9:00 p.m.
Full Breakdown
Sec. 08(b)(1) bars, countywide, loud unreasonable sounds that create offensive sounds or conditions which are a nuisance or a menace to the health, comfort, and safety of the public. m. falls outside the exemption, leaving it subject to the general nuisance test in Sec. 08(b) and the eleven-factor enforcement review in Sec. 08(d), which weighs items such as the time of day or night the noise occurs and whether the noise is produced by a commercial or noncommercial activity, a factor directly relevant to a commercial hauling truck.
Complaints are investigated by the law enforcement officer of the local political subdivision at the source of the complaint, and a sound level meter is not required to issue a citation. , lawfully scheduled sporting events, parades, fireworks, festivals and concerts, and emergency work. Sec. 08(g) applies the whole section, including this exemption, in all townships, villages and municipal corporations within the County of Summit, though individual municipalities may still adopt their own separate noise regulation for collection hours within their limits. The section derives from Ord. 2005-558, adopted January 9, 2006.
Violations & Fines
Refuse collection outside the 6:00 a.m. to 9:00 p.m. exemption window can draw the same escalating response as any other noise nuisance under Sec. 509.08(f): a first complaint results in a warning and a request to desist, a violation after that warning is a minor misdemeanor, and any further violation is a misdemeanor of the fourth degree with fines up to $250.00, with each day charged as a separate offense.
Frequently Asked Questions
What hours can trash and recycling trucks legally run in Summit County?
Can I file a noise complaint about an early garbage pickup?
Does the 6 a.m. to 9 p.m. window apply to private haulers and recycling trucks too?
What is the penalty if a hauler keeps collecting outside those hours?
Sources & Official References
Other rules in Summit County
Compare Summit County to another location·View the Ohio trash & recycling overview
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