The 14 licensed residential trash haulers — that operate within the city of St. Paul — will have at least 60 days to work out the major components of a citywide contract to pick up residential garbage.

The St. Paul City Council authorized the minimum 60-day negotiation period, which starts on August 15. The timetable is set by state law, which governs efforts to move from an open to organized system of residential trash collection.

An initial meeting will focus on sharing the priorities that have been set out by the city, such as customer service, low rates, a reduction in illegal dumping and incentives to recycle. Subsequent meetings will take place twice a month and focus on the particulars of those priorities.

If the city and the haulers are unable to make major progress on a proposal after 60 days, the city has the option of organizing an options committee to study other possibilities, such as a citywide contract with one or two haulers, or a series of haulers separated by zone.