Trash & Recycling in Sacramento, CA

If you live in Sacramento or are thinking about moving there, trash & recycling are one of those things you probably won't think about until they affect you directly. Sacramento has 9 specific rules on the books covering different aspects of trash & recycling, and some of them might surprise you.

Collection Schedule

Sacramento requires every residential property owner to subscribe to city garbage collection at least once a week, sets exact carts-out and pickup-hour windows, and fines residents whose containers sit at the curb outside those windows.

Key details: Garbage service: Mandatory for residential owners, § 13.10.210. Minimum frequency: At least once per week. Standard container: 32-gallon automatic-lift cart. Curb window: Out 12 hrs before, in 12 hrs after pickup. Residential collection hours: 6 a.m.-7 p.m. (8 p.m. DST).

Setting a container out early, leaving it at the curb late, or placement that blocks a doorway or the right-of-way violates § 13.10.100 and is an infraction under subsection (E). Beyond specific infractions, § 13.10.150 makes any Chapter 13.10 violation a public nuisance carrying civil penalties of $250 to $25,000 per violation per day and potential misdemeanor liability under Cal. Government Code § 36900, pursued through Chapter 1.28 administrative penalty proceedings.

Dumpster Rules

Sacramento requires a screened trash and recycling enclosure for any multi-unit building with five or more units, and for commercial, office, or public projects whose garbage receptacles aren't stored inside the building, under Sacramento City Code § 17.616.040. The enclosure needs 6-foot masonry walls, heavy-gauge metal gates with cane bolts, and can't sit in a required parking space.

Key details: Governing section: Sacramento City Code § 17.616.040. Triggers enclosure: Multi-unit (5+ units), commercial/office/public projects. Wall standard: Solid masonry, minimum 6 feet tall. Gate standard: Heavy-gauge metal gates with cane bolts. Parking rule: Enclosure may not occupy a required parking space.

Operating a covered multi-unit or commercial project without a compliant recycling and trash enclosure, or letting trash accumulate into a public nuisance, is enforceable through the city's code enforcement process, which can require construction or repair of the enclosure and cite the property owner for maintenance failures under § 17.616.040(F) and (H). Placing a dumpster in a required parking space is a separate development-standard violation under subsection D.

Yard Waste Collection

Sacramento bars dumping yard waste in streets or gutters except through its seasonal loose-in-the-street collection program, which caps piles at two cubic yards per parcel and blocks placement more than seven days before the scheduled collection day. Food waste can never go in the street or be mixed into yard waste.

Key details: Street placement allowed only via: Seasonal loose-in-the-street program. Volume cap: 2 cubic yards per parcel. Earliest set-out: 7 days before scheduled collection. Food waste in street: Prohibited outright. Routine yard waste: Green organic-waste cart, § 13.10.420.

Violations of Chapter 13.10, including improper street dumping of yard waste, carry civil penalties of not less than $250 and not more than $25,000 for each violation and each day it continues, plus criminal, civil, or administrative remedies under Chapter 1.28 (§ 13.10.150). Improper segregation of organic waste is separately punishable as an infraction under Cal. Gov't Code § 36900 (§ 13.10.450(D)). Appeals of a solid waste manager determination go to the city council within 10 days (§ 13.10.160).

Recycling Rules

Sacramento requires every business, non-residential property, and multi-family residential property to source separate recyclables and organic material from trash and subscribe to franchised hauler service under City Code § 13.24.510 and § 13.24.520. Recycling pickup must run at least monthly, containers must be color-coded, and the Solid Waste Manager enforces compliance citywide.

Key details: Recycling minimum: Monthly collection, § 13.24.510(A)(3). Organics minimum: Weekly collection, § 13.24.510(A)(4). Container colors: Blue recyclables, green organics, gray trash. Enforcing agency: Sacramento Solid Waste Manager. Civil penalty: $250-$25,000 per day of violation.

Violating any provision of Chapter 13.24, including the recycling and source-separation duties, exposes a property to a written notice of violation followed by an administrative enforcement order from the Solid Waste Manager, plus civil penalties of 'not less than $250 or more than $25,000 for each day the violation continues' under § 13.24.670(C); an unresolved violation is also a misdemeanor and a public nuisance. A cited party has 10 calendar days to file a written appeal with a nonrefundable fee.

Mandatory Organics Recycling

Sacramento sets minimum organics-recycling service levels by property type in City Code § 13.24.600(B), a 64-gallon can per 25 units for apartment buildings of five or more units, and per-employee or per-container minimums for offices, restaurants, and bars, implementing the state's SB 1383 organic-waste diversion mandate.

Key details: Multi-unit minimum: 64-gal can per 25 units, § 13.24.600(B). Office minimum: 32-gal can per 25 employees. Restaurant/bar minimum: 64-gal can or equivalent. State mandate tie-in: SB 1383 compliance required since 1/1/2022. Exemption threshold: Under 10-20 gal/week organic waste.

Because state law folds SB 1383 compliance into this chapter, a shortfall can be enforced two ways: as an ordinary Chapter 13.24 violation, notice of violation, administrative order, and civil penalties of $250 to $25,000 per day under § 13.24.670(C), or under the state penalty schedule at California Code of Regulations title 14, § 18997.2, which § 13.24.610(B) expressly incorporates.

Bin Placement Rules

Sacramento requires garbage, recycling and organics carts to be grouped at the curb, kept clear of obstructions, and screened from public view except during a narrow collection window. Carts may sit out no more than 12 hours before and after the scheduled pickup day.

Key details: Set-out window: No earlier than 12 hrs before pickup. Pick-up window: No later than 12 hrs after pickup. Curb distance: Within 2 feet of street curb. Obstruction clearance: At least 3 feet from obstructions. Collection hours (residential): 6:00 a.m.-7:00/8:00 p.m..

A violation of § 13.10.100 is an infraction under § 13.10.100.E, enforced by the city's solid waste division. Improper container sorting under § 13.10.070 is likewise punishable as an infraction, with fines set under California Government Code § 36900. Persistent early set-out, late pickup of empty carts, or unscreened storage can draw code-enforcement notices in addition to the infraction citation.

Recycling Requirements

Sacramento City Code requires every owner of residential and residential mixed-use property to subscribe to the city's recycling collection service and to source-separate recyclables from trash. Recyclables become city property once set curbside, and mixing refuse or plastic bags into the recycling cart is an infraction.

Key details: Recycling service: Mandatory for residential/mixed-use owners. Container size: 32-gallon automatic-lift cart. Recyclable ownership: City-owned once set curbside. Non-recyclables/bags in cart: Infraction, § 13.10.340(C). Civil penalty range: $250-$25,000 per day, per violation.

Placing plastic bags or non-recyclable refuse in the recycling cart, or scavenging a curbside cart, is an infraction under §§ 13.10.340(C) and 13.10.120(D). More broadly, § 13.10.150 makes any violation of Chapter 13.10 a public nuisance subject to civil penalties of $250 to $25,000 per violation per day, plus misdemeanor exposure under Cal. Government Code § 36900 where the section does not specify an infraction, enforced through Chapter 1.28 administrative penalty proceedings.

Pickup Rules & Schedules

Sacramento requires every residential and residential mixed-use property to subscribe to city garbage collection service, keep at least one 32-gallon automatic-lift container, and receive pickup no less than once a week. Crews collect only between 6 a.m. and 7 p.m. (8 p.m. during daylight saving time) in residential areas, and between 4 a.m. and 7 p.m. elsewhere.

Key details: Minimum container: 32-gallon automatic-lift, one per unit. Minimum frequency: At least once per week. Residential hours: 6 a.m.–7 p.m. (8 p.m. DST). Other-area hours: 4 a.m.–7 p.m. (8 p.m. DST). Vacancy suspension: 30+ consecutive days vacant, reduced fee.

Violating this chapter carries civil penalties of not less than $250 and not more than $25,000 per separate violation per day it continues, plus criminal, civil, or administrative remedies under Chapter 1.28, and the violation is also declared a public nuisance (§ 13.10.150). A person may also be guilty of a misdemeanor punishable under Cal. Gov't Code § 36900. Anyone adversely affected by a solid waste manager or director determination may appeal to the city council within 10 days of the decision (§ 13.10.160).

Bulk Item Disposal

Sacramento requires multi-family residential properties to subscribe to a bulky-item removal service for tenants' furniture and household belongings under City Code § 13.24.520(A)(7), with pickup guaranteed at least once every twelve months; business properties carry a parallel duty under § 13.24.510(A)(2).

Key details: Multi-family minimum: Once every 12 months, § 13.24.520(A)(7). Business duty: 'As needed,' § 13.24.510(A)(2). Provider: Must use franchised waste hauler. Enforcing agency: Solid Waste Manager. Penalty: $250-$25,000 per day.

Failure to maintain the required bulky-item service triggers the same enforcement path as any Chapter 13.24 violation: a notice of violation, then an administrative enforcement order from the Solid Waste Manager, and civil penalties of 'not less than $250 or more than $25,000 for each day the violation continues' under § 13.24.670(C), plus potential misdemeanor liability. Owners have 10 calendar days to appeal an order in writing.

The Bottom Line

Sacramento's trash & recycling rules are a mixed bag. Some areas are strict, others are relaxed, and the details matter. The best approach is to check the specific rule that applies to your situation rather than assuming Sacramento is broadly strict or permissive.

All of the above reflects Sacramento's municipal code as of our last review. If you need specifics on fines, exemptions, or filing requirements, the detailed ordinance pages linked above have the full breakdown.