James City County, VA Trash & Recycling: Recycling Requirements (2026)

Section 10-31 creates the only recycling program in the James City County code, and it comes with two concrete conditions for participants. Under subsection (b), residents who subscribe to the optional curbside recycling collection service shall use an authorized container approved by the director and shall pay a user fee. The authorized-container requirement means a resident cannot simply set recyclables at the curb in any bin; the director of general services must have approved the specific container type for the material to be picked up. Because the service is subscription-based, only residential properties inside the recycling collection service area the director designates are eligible to sign up in the first place.

Subsection (f) puts fee-setting authority with the county administrator rather than fixing a dollar figure in the ordinance itself: the user fee for curbside recycling collection service shall be set by the county administrator. That lets the fee change administratively as program costs change without amending chapter 10. Residents who want to know the current fee or which containers the director has authorized need to check with General Services, since neither figure is printed in the code. Failing to meet either requirement, using an unauthorized container or not paying the fee, exposes a subscriber to termination of service under subsection (g), which is the article's enforcement tool rather than a fine.