There isn’t much some people expect government to do. And that’s why government grows bigger and bigger, and more and more costly. The Raleigh City Council has now determined that garbage carts left on the curb are such a problem, government must intervene with more rules — and yes — a fine — and yes — more enforcers.

The new rules, approved Tuesday by the City Council, shorten the length of time that carts, including recycling and yard waste containers, are allowed to remain on the curb. Under the current rules, carts can’t be out any earlier than noon the day before pickup and must be off the curb by 7 p.m. the day after they’re emptied.

The new timeline bars residents from taking their carts out earlier than sundown the day before pickup. Carts will have to be rolled back by sunrise the day after pickup.

Violators will get warnings followed by fines starting at $100. Tickets will go to landlords instead of tenants, a change intended to get the attention of property owners.

Predictably, here is the next step in the garbage cart police effort — more government employees.

In budget talks this spring, council members will discuss adding more code enforcement officers to the solid waste services staff – an item likely to compete with many other priorities in a tight budget year. Each additional employee would cost about $55,000.