Falls Church, Virginia’s Fiscal Year 2027 budget, passed by City Council on May 11, 2026, raises the annual solid waste fee 4% for every curbside customer. A large gray trash cart (64/65-gallon) now costs $348 a year, up from $336, and a small cart (35-gallon) costs $246, up from $236. The new rate lands on the real estate tax bill starting November 2026 (City of Falls Church).
Context photo: A strip mall streetscape in Falls Church, Virginia. Ser Amantio di Nicolao, 2019-07-20. CC BY-SA 3.0 · Source. Resized for web.
Why the fee moved
The city says the 4% increase reflects “operational factors such as contract costs and subscriber cart-size distribution,” not a flat cost-of-living adjustment. The fee funds curbside collection for residents in single-family homes and townhomes who use the city’s gray (trash), green (recycling) and yellow (organics) carts (City of Falls Church).
The cart-size window already closed for 2026
Falls Church runs one request window a year for curbside customers to switch cart sizes. In 2026 it ran from Friday, January 16, to Monday, February 16. Only households that filed the form in that window get a new cart; city staff are swapping carts during the regular collection cycle in September 2026. A resident who missed the window keeps the cart they have until the next annual cycle opens, and someone who has just moved in should email Recycling@fallschurchva.gov to ask about their options (City of Falls Church).
Why residents switch size
The city’s own reasoning: the 35-gallon cart carries the lower fee and suits a smaller household, and on average those homes send less trash to the incinerator. The 64/65-gallon cart holds more and is typically the choice for homes with three or more residents (City of Falls Church).
What this is not
This is a solid waste fee change for curbside customers of the City of Falls Church, set through the city’s own FY2027 budget process — it is not a countywide or Virginia-wide rate, and it does not change collection days or set-out rules on its own.
