Dallas, TX Trash & Recycling: Recycling Requirements (2026)

Dallas City Code Sec. 18-3(a) requires every occupant of a residence or duplex to keep enough solid waste containers on hand to handle peak output without overloading them, and specifies that those containers must be city-owned rollcarts. A resident may use a blue rollcart as the container for recyclable materials, but every other rollcart on the property must be a city-issued cart; homeowners cannot substitute their own bins for the standard service. Under Sec. 18-3(a)(2)(E), non-recyclable material dropped into the blue cart is a violation, and the director of sanitation can have that cart pulled from the property if it keeps happening.

The recycling cart must also meet the same handling rules as the garbage cart: it cannot be loaded to the point of spillage, it has to be closed or secured at the top, and a 60-to-65-gallon cart cannot weigh more than 200 pounds loaded, 250 pounds for a 90-to-96-gallon cart, per Sec. 18-3(a)(3)(E). A resident who wants a second recycling cart can request one from the director of sanitation for a fee set out in Sec. 18-9(c)(1). Sec. 18-4(a)(2) makes it an offense for anyone other than city sanitation crews to collect recyclable material from a residence, though the code carves out exceptions for charitable organizations gathering clothing or newspapers, and for a private recycler working under a written agreement who takes only clean containers or paper products listed in Sec. 18-4(a)(2)(E)(i)-(ii).