The Texas Commission on Environmental Quality encourages Texas cities to follow “pay as you throw” fee structures for garbage collection. This is because federal and state policies encourage ways to reduce the total volume of trash collected to further reduce the amount placed into landfills. A change was made by City Council in June 2002, with an amendment to the Houston Code of Ordinances, Chapter 39. The change states that ONLY those households exceeding a 90-gallon capacity per week will pay an extra capacity fee. This amendment was created to avoid charging households that are not excessive with trash waste from having to pay any extra fees. So, if your household throws away more than 90-gallons of garbage per week, you will need to pay extra for the extra garbage.