Trash & Recycling in Inglewood, CA

If you live in Inglewood or are thinking about moving there, trash & recycling are one of those things you probably won't think about until they affect you directly. Inglewood has 10 specific rules on the books covering different aspects of trash & recycling, and some of them might surprise you.

Illegal Dumping

Inglewood's Stormwater Management and Discharge Control Ordinance bans dumping refuse, rubbish, garbage or animal feces on any street, alley, storm drain or private lot under Municipal Code Sec. 10-204(B). Illegal dumping is a misdemeanor punishable by up to $1,000 and six months in jail, or a tiered infraction, and each day of an uncorrected violation is a separate offense.

Key details: Governing ordinance: Stormwater Mgmt & Discharge Control, Ord. 23-09. Prohibited locations: Streets, storm drains, private land, waterways. Container exemption: Approved receptacles at pickup locations. Misdemeanor penalty: Up to $1,000 fine and/or 6 months jail. Infraction alternative: $100/$250/$500 tiered fines.

Illegal dumping under Sec. 10-204(B) is a misdemeanor punishable by up to a $1,000 fine and six months in jail (Sec. 10-211(G)), or, at the prosecutor's discretion, an infraction with fines of $100 for a first offense, $250 for a second, and $500 for each additional offense (Sec. 10-211(H)). Each day of an uncorrected violation counts as a new offense.

This is one of the stricter rules in Inglewood's municipal code. If you are unsure whether your situation complies, it is worth checking with the city before proceeding.

Collection Schedule

Inglewood requires refuse to be collected from every place or premises at least once each calendar week under Municipal Code Sec. 7-19(2). The City's contract agent sets the actual routes, days and hours under Sec. 7-22, subject to Administrative Authority approval, and must notify the public whenever a route or schedule changes.

Key details: Minimum service: Weekly collection citywide, Sec. 7-19(2). Who sets routes/hours: Contract agent, approved by Administrative Authority. Change notice: Public notice required for route/schedule changes. Penalty class: Infraction under Sec. 1-18.1(a). Infraction fines: $100/$200/$500 for 1st/2nd/3rd violation.

Sec. 7-19 is specifically listed among the sections the City classifies as infractions at Sec. 1-18.1(a). A violation of the weekly-collection requirement is therefore punishable under the general infraction penalty at Sec. 1-18: up to $100 for a first violation, $200 for a second within one year, and $500 for each additional violation within that year.

Holiday Pickup Schedule

Inglewood Municipal Code Sec. 3-41(4)(b) lifts the street sweeping and refuse collection parking prohibition whenever the posted collection day falls on one of seven named City holidays, or any additional holiday the City Council declares exempt by resolution or ordinance. Residents don't risk a citation for leaving a car parked on a holiday that lands on their normal pickup day.

Key details: Governing section: IMC Sec. 3-41(4)(b). Exempt holidays: New Year's, MLK Day, Memorial Day, July 4, Labor Day, Thanksgiving, Christmas. List can grow: Council may add holidays by resolution or ordinance. Effect: No parking citation risk on an exempt collection-day holiday. Penalty class: Infraction (Sec. 1-18.1(a)).

Parking on a posted street sweeping or refuse collection curb on a day that is not one of the seven listed holidays, or a Council-declared additional holiday, is an infraction under Sec. 1-18.1(a): up to $100 for a first violation, up to $200 for a second within a year, and up to $500 for each further violation that year, per Sec. 1-18. On an exempt holiday, the posted restriction simply does not apply and no citation is warranted.

If you are coming from a city with tighter rules, you will find Inglewood gives residents more flexibility on holiday pickup schedule.

Bin Placement Rules

Inglewood residents and businesses must set refuse containers at the curb or alley along their collection route, never in the public highway except on pickup day. Carts cannot go out before 4:00 p.m. the day before collection and must come back in within twelve hours after the contract agent empties them, per Municipal Code § 7-19.

Key details: Set-out window: No earlier than 4:00 p.m. the day before pickup. Pickup removal window: Must be removed within 12 hours after emptying. Placement location: Curb in front or alley in rear, per route. Collection frequency: At least once every calendar week. Enforcing authority: Public Works Administrative Authority; contract agent runs routes.

Placing a can out before 4:00 p.m. the day prior to collection, leaving it curbside more than twelve hours after it's emptied, or setting refuse anywhere in the public highway outside the scheduled route day violates § 7-19(4). Code enforcement can also cite the responsible party under § 7-18 for keeping premises in an unsanitary condition if refuse is left accumulating beyond a week.

Dumpster Rules

Only the City's licensed refuse franchisee may place a dumpster, bin, box or roll-off for hire in Inglewood; anyone who hires an outside hauler risks having the container posted, impounded within 48 hours, and its owner billed for every cost. Municipal Code § 7-26 governs the notice, impound and appeal process.

Key details: Who may collect for a fee: Only the City or its licensed franchisee. Removal deadline after notice: 48 hours from posting. Appeal deadline: 14 days from impound, to City Administrator. Appeal hearing timeline: Held within 30 days of written appeal. Unclaimed container: Deemed abandoned after 30 days.

Placing or hiring an unpermitted hauler's dumpster, bin or roll-off in Inglewood exposes the owner to a notice of violation, mandatory removal within forty-eight hours, and impoundment if it isn't removed in time; the violator is also liable to the City for every fine, storage and disposal cost tied to the impound. A container left unclaimed for thirty days after impound is treated as abandoned and disposed of at the City's discretion.

Compared to other cities, Inglewood takes a harder line on dumpster rules. The enforcement and penalty structure reflects that.

Recycling Rules

Inglewood runs recycling through one City-franchised hauler that must route source-separated recyclables to a facility that actually recovers them; no other person may collect, transport or charge for hauling recyclable material within city limits. Municipal Code § 7-53.3 sets the franchisee's routing duties and the City's exclusive-service rule.

Key details: Governing ordinance: § 7-53.3, Ord. 22-07 (April 5, 2022). Who may collect recyclables: City's licensed franchisee only. Facility disclosure deadline: Franchisee reports facilities by Nov. 1 yearly. Facility data response time: 60 days to answer City capacity requests. Reporting frequency: Quarterly CALRecycle report copies to City.

Hauling recyclable material for a fee without City authorization, or a franchisee routing source-separated recyclables to a facility that doesn't actually recover them, violates § 7-53.3 and is enforceable through the same notice-of-violation and administrative citation process as the rest of Article 5, with civil penalties running $50 to $500 depending on how many violations the same party has racked up under § 7-53.13(e).

This is one of the stricter rules in Inglewood's municipal code. If you are unsure whether your situation complies, it is worth checking with the city before proceeding.

Pickup Rules & Schedules

Every single-family home in Inglewood must subscribe to the franchisee's three-container weekly service and sort food and yard waste into the green organic container, recyclables into the blue container, and everything else into the black container, under Municipal Code Sec. 7-53.4, the City's SB 1383 compliance ordinance. Contaminating a container triggers escalating City fines.

Key details: Mandatory service: 3-container weekly pickup, every single-family home. Adopted: Ord. 22-07, April 5, 2022 (SB 1383). Sorting: Blue=recyclables, green=organics, black=refuse. First contamination: Notice via cart tag, no fee. Penalty range: $50-$100 to $250-$500 per violation.

Placing prohibited materials in the wrong container draws a notice of contamination, and repeat offenses can bring processing fees plus administrative citation fines: $50 to $100 for a first violation, $100 to $200 for a second, and $250 to $500 for a third or subsequent violation under Sec. 7-53.13(e). Recipients may appeal via a hearing under Chapter 11, Article 11.4.

This is one of the stricter rules in Inglewood's municipal code. If you are unsure whether your situation complies, it is worth checking with the city before proceeding.

Yard Waste Collection

Tree and bush trimmings set out for Inglewood's weekly collection must be bundled to a strict size, four feet long, eighteen inches around, sixty pounds, or boxed loose in an uncompacted container under 150 pounds. Municipal Code § 7-25 sets the format; oversized branches belong in the City's separate SB 1383 green-waste stream instead.

Key details: Bundle limit: 4 ft long, 18 in diameter, 60 lb max. Loose container limit: 150 lb gross weight, not compacted. Green waste size (SB 1383 program): Under 6 in diameter, 36 in length. Collection frequency: At least once every calendar week. Governing sections: § 7-25 (bundling) and § 7-53.2 (green waste).

Bundles over four feet, eighteen inches or sixty pounds, or refuse containers loaded past one hundred fifty pounds, are noncompliant under § 7-25 and the contract agent can leave them uncollected until they're resized; repeated over-limit set-outs or refuse left accumulating longer than the one-week limit in § 7-18 can draw a code enforcement notice and citation.

Mandatory Organics Recycling

Every Inglewood single-family home must subscribe to weekly three-container collection and sort food scraps and yard trimmings into the green organics cart under the City's SB 1383 ordinance. Mixing organics into the black refuse container is a code violation that can draw an administrative citation.

Key details: Governing ordinance: Ord. 22-07, adopted April 5, 2022. Required service: Weekly 3-container collection: black, blue, green. First violation penalty: $50 to $100 civil fine. Repeat violation penalty: $100 to $500 per § 7-53.13(e). Civil penalties began: January 1, 2024 (2022-23 education-only).

A first violation of the organics-separation mandate carries a $50 to $100 civil penalty, a second violation $100 to $200, and a third or later violation $250 to $500, per § 7-53.13(e). The City typically issues a cart-tag notice of contamination before penalizing repeat offenders and can pursue unpaid citations as a civil action once a household ignores multiple notices.

This is one of the stricter rules in Inglewood's municipal code. If you are unsure whether your situation complies, it is worth checking with the city before proceeding.

Recycling Requirements

Every Inglewood home and apartment building must subscribe to the City's franchised blue-container recycling service and keep source-separated recyclables out of the black refuse cart. Multifamily properties carry extra duties: color-coded or labeled containers, tenant education within fourteen days of move-in, and City inspection access, all under Municipal Code § 7-53.

Key details: Governing ordinance: Ch.7 Art.5 § 7-53 et seq., Ord. 22-07 (2022). Minimum service: Weekly blue-container recycling pickup required. Tenant education deadline: Within 14 days of move-in. Container color deadline: Old containers exempt until Jan 1, 2036. De minimis waiver threshold: Under 20 gal/week (10 gal if under 2 cu.yd. service).

Failing to subscribe to blue-container recycling service, mixing recyclables into the black refuse cart, or ignoring container labeling and tenant-education duties under § 7-53.5 exposes a responsible party to a notice of violation and civil penalties of $50-$500 depending on how many times the violation recurs, assessed under § 7-53.13(e) and collectible through an administrative citation or, for repeat noncompliance, a civil court action.

This is one of the stricter rules in Inglewood's municipal code. If you are unsure whether your situation complies, it is worth checking with the city before proceeding.

The Bottom Line

Inglewood is tougher than many cities when it comes to trash & recycling. Out of the 10 rules covered here, 6 are rated strict. If you are a homeowner, renter, or business owner in Inglewood, take the time to understand these requirements before they become a problem. Most violations come with fines, and some repeat violations can escalate.

This guide is based on Inglewood's current municipal code. Local rules can and do change, so check the individual ordinance pages for the latest details, penalties, and FAQs.