Farmington Hills, MI Trash & Recycling: Recycling Requirements (2026)

Sec. 14-6(a) commands every owner, lessee or occupant of a premises to separate recyclable materials and place them in an approved container at the curb on the assigned collection day, following the director of public services' rules and regulations. The approved container itself remains city property under Sec. 14-6(b): if it is lost, stolen or damaged, the property owner must replace it at their own cost unless the hauler caused the loss, and unauthorized possession of a container is itself a chapter violation. Sec. 14-6(c) bars mixing nonrecyclable materials into the recycling container.

Under Sec. 14-6(d), failing to separate recyclables releases the city and its contractor from any duty to pick up the solid waste from the curb at all, on top of any other penalty the chapter imposes. Sec. 5 carves out exemptions for individuals living alone who are certified blind or permanently or temporarily physically disabled by a Michigan-licensed physician to the point they cannot sort materials. Low-income households are not excused from separating but can apply for fee relief: Sec. 5 waives the full recycling fee for households at or below $8,000 in annual gross income and half the fee for households up to $13,500, with applications filed by July 1 each year through the city assessor, or referred to a three-member recycling board of review for hardship cases.