City creates escalating penalty for violations of trash regulations

By: City of Hampton

Jan. 13, 2023 – In an effort to control increasing costs of trash collection, Hampton will begin issuing violations and fines for customers who fail to follow the regulations.

These measures will go into effect July 1 to give residents time to get better acquainted with the rules and to avoid fines. 

For the first violation of a calendar year, residents will receive a written warning. For the second, a $50 fine will be issued, and for each subsequent violation a $75 fine.

The solid waste ordinance covers a wide variety of issues, including: 

  • Violations that could cause serious injuries to the collection staff, such as hazardous waste or hot coals being placed in the trash bins, or oversize trees too big to pick up with the existing equipment; or could injure the staff at the trash-to-steam plant, such as gasoline, oil, compressed gas cylinders. 
  • Violations that keep neighbors from getting their trash collected, for example parking too close to a trash or recycling bin or allowing a basketball hoop to remain in  the street. 
  • Violations that create litter, including bins that are overfilled so that the lid won’t close. (As soon as that bin is picked up, the open lid begins to dump items too soon, before it reaches the truck.)
  • Violations that increase the city’s costs (which get passed to other customers): Putting out construction materials or large trees that should be the responsibility of a contractor; landlords who evict tenants and place a large amount of items at the curb, often not on the collection day; putting too many bulk items at the curb at a time; placing items in bulk trash that shouldn’t go into the landfill and create fines and cleanup costs (poisons, propane tanks, car engines and parts, cans with paint in them); repeatedly putting non-recyclables into recycling containers.
  • Violations that detract from a neighborhood or are an annoyance to neighbors: Trash not placed in a bin that attracts wildlife or rodents; stinky trash left out, not in an enclosed bin; or leaving trash or recycling bins on the street too long (it should be put out no sooner than 3 p.m. the day before and removed by midnight of collection day).

Hampton has special collection services for elderly or handicapped residents who are unable to roll their toters to the curb. Also, Hampton and other Peninsula localities hold special collections for hazardous materials monthly.