Lafayette, LA Trash & Recycling: Recycling Requirements (2026)
Key Facts
- Recycling mandate scope
- City residential units only
- Billing method (city)
- Monthly with utility bill
- Scavenging fine (1st offense)
- $25.00
- Scavenging fine (3rd+ offense)
- $100.00
Summary
Inside the City of Lafayette, curbside recycling collection is mandatory and billed alongside trash service; the mandate and its service charge apply city-only, not parish-wide, and scavenging set-out recyclables is a fineable offense.
Sec. 74-60. - Service charges for collection and disposal—Established. In order to provide for the health and welfare of Lafayette City-Parish residents, solid waste, yard waste, bulky waste and recyclables (city only) collection and disposal service is mandatory for all residential units located within the service area. There is levied a service charge to defray the expense of collection, transportation and disposal of solid waste, yard waste, bulky waste and recyclables (city only), and only those residential units so charged may be serviced by the contractor.
Official source re-checked September 7, 2026: no newer edition of the code had been published (publisher’s edition: Code of Ordinances: Supplement 65).
Full Breakdown
Sec. 74-60 draws a clear line the consolidated government uses throughout Chapter 74: "solid waste, yard waste, bulky waste and recyclables (city only) collection and disposal service is mandatory for all residential units located within the service area," with a service charge levied to cover collection, transportation and disposal costs, assessed once permanent electrical service is connected. The "(city only)" parenthetical is doing real work, it signals that while trash and yard waste service is mandatory parish-wide within the service area, the recycling piece of that mandate is limited to residential units inside city limits, not the unincorporated parish.
Sec. 74-61 backs this up on the billing side: city residential units are billed monthly with utility charges, while rural-area units are billed separately by the contractor under the current LCG contract. Once recyclables are properly set out at curbside, Sec. 00 for a third and each subsequent conviction, each separate removal counted as its own violation.
Violations & Fines
Scavenging recyclables set out for collection is fined $25.00 for a first conviction, $50.00 for a second, and $100.00 for a third and each subsequent conviction under Sec. 74-41(b), with each individual removal treated as a separate offense. Non-payment of the mandatory recycling/solid-waste service charge is referred to the city-parish attorney and can result in a $50.00-per-week fine capped at $200.00 under Sec. 74-23(b).
Frequently Asked Questions
Is curbside recycling mandatory everywhere in Lafayette Parish?
Can someone else take my recycling out of my bin before pickup?
How is city recycling service billed?
Sources & Official References
Other rules in Lafayette
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