Trash & Recycling in Simi Valley, CA

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

Illegal Dumping

Simi Valley prohibits dumping discards, solid waste, or recyclables on the ground, in water, or in any place where they may be exposed to flies, mosquitoes, or rodents, except at an approved sanitary landfill or recycling facility.

Key details: Prohibits: Dumping waste/recyclables. Applies to: Public or private land, water. Allowed only at: Approved facilities. Code section: SVMC 6-3.06.

Illegal dumping of waste or recyclables violates SVMC 6-3.06 and is enforced by the city, which may abate the accumulation and cite the responsible party.

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

Yard Waste Collection

Simi Valley requires single-family households to sort yard waste into the green organics container under the City's three-container collection system (SVMC 6-3.14(c)). Sweeping clippings, prunings, or brush into a gutter, street, or watercourse is banned outright, and yard waste must be kept in an enclosed container until pickup (SVMC 6-12.504).

Key details: Container: Green container for yard waste and food scraps. Authority: SVMC 6-3.14(c), added by Ord. No. 1332 (2022). Gutter ban: No sweeping or blowing yard waste into gutters. Storage: Must be kept in an enclosed container. Gardener exception: Incidental hauling allowed under SVMC 6-3.28(e).

Sorting violations under Chapter 6-3 default to City Code infractions: up to $100 for a first offense, $200 for a second within a year, and $500 for a third or later offense under SVMC 1-2.03(a). Sweeping or blowing yard waste into a gutter, street, or watercourse is a separate stormwater violation under SVMC 6-12.504(a); the City Attorney can pursue civil fines under Title 1, Chapter 8, plus investigation costs and attorney's fees, and SVMC 6-12.801(b)(2) makes it a misdemeanor punishable by up to $1,000 and/or six months in County Jail.

Recycling Rules

Simi Valley bars recyclables collectors from charging owners for picking up recyclable materials and makes it a crime to take recyclables already set out for collection. Only the City's franchised collector may pick up recyclable commodities.

Key details: No-charge rule: SVMC 6-3.32(b). Scavenging ban: SVMC 6-3.16. Penalty class: Infraction or misdemeanor, Sec. 6-3.33. Noise standard: Collectors must minimize noise, 6-3.32(c). Who may collect: Only licensed/franchised collector.

A recyclables collector who charges for pickup violates Section 6-3.32(b); anyone other than the licensed collector who takes recyclables already set out for collection violates the scavenging ban in Section 6-3.16. Under Section 6-3.33, violations of Chapter 3 are chargeable as an infraction with a fine set by City Council resolution or as a misdemeanor, and unpaid fines may be recovered through Chapter 2 of Title 1 of the Municipal Code.

Recycling Requirements

Every single-family household and commercial generator in Simi Valley must participate in the City's three-container system, sorting recyclables into the blue container, organic waste into the green container, and everything else into the gray container.

Key details: Residential mandate: SVMC 6-3.14(c). Commercial mandate: SVMC 6-3.05. System: Blue (recyclables), green (organics), gray (waste). Self-hauler duty: Record-keeping under Sec. 6-3.15. Composting alternative: On-site allowed per Sec. 6-3.03.

Failing to participate in the three-container system or misdirecting materials, placing gray-container waste in the green or blue container, is enforced as a violation of Chapter 3 under Section 6-3.33, chargeable as an infraction with a fine set by City Council resolution or as a misdemeanor. Commercial generators that fail to subscribe to the required collection service under Section 6-3.05 face the same penalty framework, and the City can review and require adjustment of a noncompliant generator's service level.

Dumpster Rules

Businesses in Simi Valley cannot drop a bin or roll-off box on public property without an encroachment permit, and every business owner must keep an accessible, clean storage area for its dumpster under Municipal Code Sections 6-3.12(d) and 6-3.21(a). Commercial haulers also face a collection-hours curfew and a 200-foot no-collection buffer around schools during drop-off and dismissal.

Key details: Public property: Encroachment permit required for bin or drop box. Business duty: Keep dumpster area accessible, clean, in repair. Collection curfew: No hauling 7:00 p.m. to 4:00 a.m.. School buffer: 200 feet, closed during drop-off/dismissal. Vehicle upkeep: CHP inspection annually, cleaned weekly.

Placing a commercial bin or roll-off box on public property without an encroachment permit violates Section 6-3.21(a), and a business that lets its dumpster area go unmaintained or overflow with loose discards violates Section 6-3.12(d)'s upkeep duty. Haulers who collect outside the 7:00 p.m. to 4:00 a.m. window, or within 200 feet of a school during arrival or dismissal without Director authorization, are in violation of Section 6-3.21(g)-(h) and subject to code enforcement citation.

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

Mandatory Organics Recycling

Simi Valley requires every single-family household to sort waste into three carts: green for food scraps and yard waste, blue for recyclables, and gray for trash, under Municipal Code Section 6-3.14(c). Adopted to meet the state's SB 1383 organic-waste mandate, the rule bars residents from dumping food waste or recyclables into the gray cart, and commercial generators face parallel three-container and food-recovery duties.

Key details: Containers: Green (organics), blue (recyclables), gray (trash). Applies to: Single-family homes and commercial generators. Adopted: Ordinance No. 1332, effective Feb. 22, 2022. Composting: Backyard composting allowed if screened from street. Food recovery: Tier One/Two generators must recover edible food.

The Public Works Director enforces Chapter 3 through the 'enforcement action' authority defined in Section 6-3.02, which reaches administrative citations, fines, penalties, and other legal or equitable remedies for noncompliance. Gray-cart contamination with food waste or recyclables, or a commercial edible food generator's failure to contract with a food recovery organization, can trigger a citation, and the City or its designated enforcement entity may access commercial premises to review food-recovery records.

Pickup Rules & Schedules

Simi Valley Municipal Code Section 6-3.13 requires households and businesses to prepare discards for pickup exactly as the city directs, kept free of all liquids, and a collector may skip anything not prepared to spec. Once materials are set out, ownership passes to the franchised hauler, and residents remain responsible for any spilled or scattered debris until the truck removes it.

Key details: Prep rule: Discards must be free of all liquids. Ownership: Vests in collector once placed for pickup. Cleanup duty: Generator responsible for spilled or scattered debris. Minimum frequency: Weekly; twice weekly for food establishments. Commercial hours: No collection 7 p.m. to 4 a.m..

Discards prepared out of spec are simply left uncollected, and improperly bagged waste that spills or blows about can draw a nuisance or accumulation citation under related chapter provisions. Commercial haulers that collect outside the 7:00 p.m. to 4:00 a.m. window, or within 200 feet of a school during drop-off or dismissal without Director authorization, violate Section 6-3.21 and are subject to code enforcement action.

Bin Placement Rules

Simi Valley bars residents from putting trash carts at the curb early or leaving them out late: containers may go out no earlier than 4:30 p.m. the day before collection and must come back in by 10:00 p.m. on pickup day, per Municipal Code Section 6-3.12(b). Between collection days, carts and composting bins must stay screened from the street behind a fence, gate, or wall.

Key details: Earliest set-out: 4:30 p.m. day before collection. Latest pickup: 10:00 p.m. on collection day. Screening rule: Hidden by fence, gate, or wall otherwise. Right-of-way: Containers cannot obstruct sidewalks or streets. Alley placement: As close to property line as practicable.

A cart left at the curb before 4:30 p.m. the day before collection, or still out after 10:00 p.m. on pickup day, violates Section 6-3.12(b) and can draw a code enforcement notice. Leaving a cart or composting bin visible from the street outside the pickup window violates subsection (c) and is enforced the same way as other Chapter 3 discards violations, through the Director's administrative citation authority.

Collection Schedule

Every Simi Valley property owner must arrange discards collection through a city-franchised hauler, not an outside company, under Municipal Code Section 6-3.14(a)-(b). Solid waste must leave the premises at least once a week, and commercial food establishments must have it hauled away at least twice a week under Section 6-3.04(e), or the hauler can cut off service for nonpayment.

Key details: Minimum frequency: Weekly; twice weekly for food businesses. Hauler: Must be city-franchised or licensed collector. Nonpayment: Collector may suspend service after notice. Franchise fee cap: 10% of gross revenues.

A property that never arranges collection service, or a commercial owner that hires an unlicensed hauler instead of the city's franchisee, violates Section 6-3.14. Falling behind on hauler payments lets the collector suspend pickup once the city's notice procedure runs its course, leaving accumulated solid waste subject to separate nuisance abatement under Section 6-3.04's accumulation rules.

The Bottom Line

Simi Valley is tougher than many cities when it comes to trash & recycling. Out of the 9 rules covered here, 2 are rated strict. If you are a homeowner, renter, or business owner in Simi Valley, take the time to understand these requirements before they become a problem. Most violations come with fines, and some repeat violations can escalate.

Keep in mind that Simi Valley can amend these rules at any council meeting. For the most current version of any rule mentioned here, check the specific ordinance page, where we track updates as they happen.