Beaufort County, SC Trash & Recycling: Recycling Rules (2026)
Key Facts
- Governing section
- Beaufort County Code of Ordinances § 62-32(e)
- Who must offer recycling
- Every licensed solid waste hauler
- Also covers
- Business, commercial, and industrial customers
- Monthly report due
- 10th business day of each month
- License appeal window
- 15 days to county council
Summary
Every solid waste hauler licensed to operate in Beaufort County must advertise and offer a residential curbside recycling program to its customers wherever the county or a municipality is not already providing one. The requirement rides along with the hauler's annual collector/hauler license.
(e)Licensed solid waste haulers shall advertise and offer, at a minimum, a residential curbside recycling program to all of their residential customers, where not otherwise offered by the county or a municipal government.
Official source re-checked September 7, 2026: no newer edition of the code had been published (publisher’s edition: Code of Ordinances: Supplement 55 Update 1 | Community Development Code: Supplement 16).
Full Breakdown
Beaufort County Code of Ordinances § 62-32(e) requires that licensed solid waste haulers advertise and offer, at a minimum, a residential curbside recycling program to all of their residential customers, where not otherwise offered by the county or a municipal government. This sits inside the broader collector/hauler licensing article: § 62-32(b) requires every privately operated solid waste collector in the county to hold both a collector/hauler license and a vehicle permit for each truck in its fleet, issued by the county administrator and running from issuance through June 30 each year.
Operating without that license and permit is a misdemeanor. Section 62-32(i) extends the recycling obligation further, requiring licensed collectors to offer recycling service to their business, commercial, and industrial customers as well, not just residential ones. Section 62-32(c) backs the recycling mandate with a reporting requirement: every licensed collector/hauler must report to the county administrator each month, broken down by solid waste district, the number of residential customers served and the tons of residential solid waste and recovered material collected, due by the close of business on the tenth business day of the month.
A collector found mixing residential and commercial loads, or otherwise violating this section, forfeits its license to collect or haul solid waste in the county under § 62-32(d), and a collector whose license is revoked for repeated violations can appeal to county council in writing within 15 days under § 62-32(j).
Violations & Fines
A licensed hauler that fails to advertise or offer curbside recycling to its residential customers, or that fails to file its monthly tonnage report with the county administrator by the tenth business day, is in violation of Beaufort County Code of Ordinances § 62-32; repeated violations can cost the collector its license to operate in the county, appealable to county council within 15 days.
Frequently Asked Questions
Do private trash haulers in Beaufort County have to offer recycling?
Who licenses trash and recycling haulers in Beaufort County?
Can Beaufort County revoke a hauler's license for not recycling?
Sources & Official References
Other rules in Beaufort County
Compare Beaufort County to another location·View the South Carolina trash & recycling overview
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