Wisconsin's Department of Natural Resources requires a septage servicing business license for anyone in the business of removing and disposing of domestic septage, and its general permit defines domestic septage to include portable restrooms. The operator in charge must meet a certification grade that depends on the disposal method, and septage may not be mixed with other waste. This guide explains those rules as the DNR's own text presents them.
Key takeaways
- The DNR septage servicing business license applies to the business that pumps and disposes of domestic septage.
- The DNR's general permit for septage storage defines domestic septage to include the waste from portable restrooms.
- The operator in charge must meet a certification grade set by the disposal method; the grade is not stated on this site.
- Septage may not be mixed with other waste under the DNR's general permit.
- No fee, bond amount, grade number or deadline is stated here.
- The Milwaukee site does not describe any Milwaukee septage ordinance, because none on this subject was found.
What counts as domestic septage
The DNR's general permit defines domestic septage to include the waste from portable restrooms. That places a portable unit inside the state's septage rules rather than outside them.
A portable restroom holds human waste and a chemical that controls smell. Under the DNR's permit text, that contents is domestic septage, and the rules for its storage, pumping and disposal apply to it.
The definition matters because it decides who needs a license. A business that pumps the contents is in scope, and a customer who only uses the unit is not.
The permit also sets how the waste is stored before disposal, and the hauler follows those terms on every load.
Who needs the septage servicing license
Anyone in the business of removing and disposing of domestic septage needs the DNR's septage servicing business license. A rental company that hires a hauler is still asked for the hauler's license.
The license is for the business that does the pumping and the disposal. The customer does not need one to rent a unit, and the question is asked of the hauler.
A company that delivers a unit and hires a separate pumping business is not exempt from the question. The customer asks who pumps the tank and whether that business holds the state license.
The DNR sets the license terms and the fee. This guide does not state either, because a figure printed here could be out of date when a customer reads it.
The operator in charge and the certification grade
The operator in charge must meet a certification grade that depends on the disposal method. The grade belongs to the individual in charge, and the hauler names that person on request.
The grade is set by the disposal method the hauler uses. A hauler that disposes of its waste by a different method needs an operator with the matching grade.
The customer can ask the hauler to name the operator in charge and to show the certification. That is a reasonable question on the first call.
This guide does not state a grade number. The DNR's certification structure is the authority, and a grade written here could be wrong for a particular method.
Why waste may not be mixed
The DNR's general permit says septage may not be mixed with other waste. The rule keeps the load in the form the permitted disposal site is set up to accept.
Mixing septage with other material changes what the disposal site has to handle, and it can take the load outside the permit it was carried under.
Rinse water, cleaning liquid and other waste are kept out of the tank. A hauler that adds them to a unit's load is breaking the rule, and the customer should ask how the tank is kept separate.
The rule applies to every load, not only to the ones that look dirty. The hauler is expected to know it and to follow it each time.
Where the waste goes
The waste goes to a permitted disposal site named by the hauler. A site that is not named or not permitted is not acceptable for a customer's unit.
The disposal site is the last link in the chain. The hauler's arrangement with it is part of the license arrangement, and the site must be permitted for septage.
The customer can ask for the site's name and then check the permit with the DNR. The DNR's own listings are the source for that check.
A pumping that is not recorded with its site is a gap, and the hauler is asked to fill it before the next visit.
Hauling from outside Wisconsin
A hauler from another state that pumps units in Wisconsin must meet the Wisconsin requirements for that work. The home-state license alone does not cover work done in the state.
The Wisconsin rules apply to the work done in Wisconsin, wherever the business is based. A hauler is asked for its Wisconsin license, not only its license at home.
A hauler that cannot show the Wisconsin license for the work is not used for a unit in the service area.
The searches did not review every hauler's position, so the check is made for each hauler on the first call.
Other Wisconsin communities and their ordinances
Some Wisconsin communities outside Milwaukee have added their own ordinances on septage haulers, which can require a state license and certified operators. Those ordinances are not Milwaukee rules and are not described as such here.
A municipal ordinance in another Wisconsin community requires haulers there to hold a current state septage license, employ state-certified operators and follow the state's rules for septage. That ordinance binds that community only.
A customer in Milwaukee or the suburbs should not assume such an ordinance applies. The question is put to the office for the place where the pumping happens.
The state license is still the baseline. A hauler without it cannot pump a unit anywhere in the state.
What a customer can check without a license number
A customer does not need to read a license number to ask the right questions. A short set of checks confirms whether the hauler is the kind of business the state rules cover, and what it is expected to show.
Ask whether the business that pumps the unit is the same business that rents it, or whether a separate hauler does the pumping. The answer decides which license is asked for.
Ask for the operator in charge by name and ask what certification the work requires for the disposal method. A hauler that cannot say is not ready to show the state's requirement.
Ask where the waste goes. A named disposal site is the sign of a hauler that knows its arrangement, and a site that is not named is a question to press.
What the state rule means for a rental order
For a rental order, the septage rule shapes three things: who pumps the unit, how the load is kept separate and where it is taken. Each of those is written on the order so the customer and the hauler both have the same facts.
The order names the hauler that will pump the unit. A unit pumped by an unnamed or unlicensed business is not a unit this service would place, and the customer is told why.
The order describes how the load is kept separate. The unit's contents are not mixed with rinse water or other waste, and the crew follows that on every visit.
The order records the disposal site for each pumping, so the record shows where the waste went. That record is the proof the state rules were followed, and it is kept with the rental record.
Keeping the paperwork with the order
The paperwork is what proves the state rules were followed. A file for each rental holds the hauler's license details, the operator's name, the disposal site and the visit record.
Start the file on the first call with the hauler's name and the license details the hauler gives. The file is updated when the operator in charge changes or when a new disposal site is used.
Keep each pumping in the record with its date, the unit, the hauler and the site. A gap in the record is a question the customer can ask, and the answer should be in the file.
Give the customer a copy of the paperwork on request. A customer who can show the hauler's license and the disposal arrangement is better placed to answer a neighbor, an inspector or an insurer.
Frequently asked questions
Does a portable toilet count as septage?
Under the DNR's general permit text, domestic septage includes the waste from portable restrooms, so the septage rules apply.
Does the customer need a license?
No. The hauler that pumps the unit needs the DNR septage servicing license, and the customer asks for the hauler's license on the first call.
What is the certification grade for?
It is the certification the operator in charge must meet, set by the disposal method. The grade is not stated on this site.
Can the waste be mixed with anything?
No. Septage may not be mixed with other waste under the DNR's general permit.
How can I check a hauler's license?
Ask the hauler for its license details and confirm them with the Wisconsin Department of Natural Resources.
Is there a Milwaukee septage ordinance?
None was found in the searches for this site, so none is described here. The state rules apply across the city and the suburbs.
Sources
This guide is general information for Milwaukee County homeowners, not a substitute for an on-site inspection. Prices are estimates. See our disclaimer.