How Tempe Handles Trash & Recycling: A Practical Guide

Tempe maintains 149 local ordinances across all categories, and 8 of those deal specifically with trash & recycling. Here is a breakdown of what the city actually requires, what is prohibited, and where Tempe falls on the strict-to-permissive spectrum compared to other cities.

Recycling Rules

Anyone who wants to maintain a recycling container within Tempe, from bottle-and-can bins to donation-style drop points, must first get an annual permit from the Public Works Department under City Code Section 28-71. Operating an unpermitted container is unlawful, and a noncompliant one can be impounded.

Key details: Permit required: Annual permit from Public Works Dept.. Application info: Owner name, phone, container location/size. Developed sites: Site plan approval also required. Impound notice: At least 10 days before removal. Payment window: 60 days to reclaim impounded container.

Maintaining a recycling container without the required annual permit is a Code violation enforceable under Sections 28-11 through 28-13: the Public Works Director can issue a notice of violation, and three violations within a twelve-month period escalate to a misdemeanor prosecuted in Tempe Municipal Court. A noncompliant container can also be impounded under Section 28-15, with the owner billed for removal and storage and given sixty days to pay before the City disposes of it.

Bin Placement Rules

Tempe requires trash, recycling and green-organics carts at the front curb, lids facing the street, no earlier than 6 p.m. the night before pickup and off the curb by 8 p.m. the day of collection. Blocking the sidewalk or leaving a cart out late can bring a City relocation charge.

Key details: Earliest set-out: 6:00 p.m. day before collection. Must be removed by: 8:00 p.m. on collection day. Lid direction: Must open toward street or alley. Sidewalk rule: Cannot block pedestrian or vehicle path. Late-removal charge: City may bill owner to relocate cart.

Leaving a container at the curb outside the 6:00 p.m.-to-8:00 p.m. window, blocking a sidewalk, or failing to point the lid toward the street or alley violates Section 28-34 and lets the City move the container itself and bill the property owner for that service. Disturbing, tipping over or relocating a City-owned container without authorization is a separate violation of Section 28-35, and both fall under the general Chapter 28 penalty scheme in Sections 28-11 through 28-13, including notice of violation, civil fines and misdemeanor charges after three violations in a year.

Dumpster Rules

Commercial dumpsters and roll-off boxes in Tempe must stay painted, clean and marked with the hauling contractor's name and phone number, and Public Works decides both how many containers a business needs and where they can sit, favoring an inconspicuous spot over a visible one.

Key details: Container marking: Contractor name and phone number required. Maintenance standard: Painted, clean, sanitary at all times. Sizing authority: Public Works Director sets container count. Placement rule: Inconspicuous location required. Untraceable dumpster: Subject to City impoundment.

An unpainted, dirty or unmarked commercial dumpster, or one sited somewhere other than the inconspicuous location the Public Works Director approves, violates Section 28-36 and is enforceable under the Chapter 28 notice-of-violation and penalty process in Sections 28-11 through 28-13. An unmarked or untraceable container can also be impounded under Section 28-21(e), and a business that maintains too few containers for its actual waste volume under Section 28-36(b) faces the same civil enforcement path.

Illegal Dumping

Dumping garbage or solid waste on any Tempe street, alley, or private lot is a City Code violation, not just a mess. Section 28-57 bans depositing garbage or solid waste on streets, alleys, or premises outside the chapter's collection methods, and Section 28-51 bars hazardous waste, septic contents, and uncontained items left more than ten days before pickup. Violators face fines up to $2,500 under the Code's general penalty section.

Key details: Governing sections: City Code §§ 28-51, 28-57. Maximum fine: Up to $2,500 plus surcharges. Possible jail time: Up to six months. Uncontained item limit: No more than 10 days before pickup week. Enforcing department: Public Works Department via Tempe 311.

A Section 28-57 or 28-51 violation is punished under the City's general penalty, Section 1-7: a fine up to $2,500 plus surcharges, up to six months in jail, or both, at the sentencing judge's discretion, with up to three years' probation possible. Citations are issued and processed under Sections 1-8 and 1-9, giving the defendant fourteen days to pay or request a Tempe Municipal Court hearing. Each day the dumped waste remains constitutes a separate offense.

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

Pickup Rules & Schedules

Commercial haulers can't pull trash from a business or industrial property within 500 feet of a home between 6 p.m. and 6 a.m. Section 28-41 also gives a contractor just eight working hours to answer a City service call before Tempe can step in and double-bill the company.

Key details: Restricted hours: No pickup 6 p.m.-6 a.m. near homes. Buffer distance: Within 500 feet of residential development. Response window: 8 working hours after City service call. Missed-response penalty: City bills contractor at double rate.

Removing commercial solid waste from a covered property within the 6:00 p.m. to 6:00 a.m. residential-buffer window violates Section 28-41(a) and is enforceable as any other Chapter 28 violation under Sections 28-11 through 28-13. A licensed contractor that fails to service an overflowing commercial or multifamily site within eight working hours of the City's call faces a double-rate charge under Section 28-41(b) on top of possible license consequences under Section 28-21(b) for repeat noncompliance.

Collection Schedule

Tempe runs a closed collection system: only the City or a contractor it has licensed may pick up solid waste anywhere in the city. Residential customers can't simply cancel service either, unless a narrow state-law exemption applies, so most households stay on the municipal or licensed-hauler roll.

Key details: Who may collect: Only City or City-licensed contractors. License term: Annual, July 1-June 30 fiscal year. Annual fee: Per-vehicle fee or 2% of gross receipts. Opt-out limit: No discontinuing service absent A.R.S. §49-746. Revoked license: 6-month reapplication bar.

Collecting solid waste in Tempe without a City license is itself unlawful under Section 28-21, and an operator's license can be suspended or revoked for three or more chapter violations in twelve months, submitting false license information, operating while suspended, or falling behind on City fees, with reapplication barred for six months after a revocation. A resident who is not exempt under A.R.S. Section 49-746 cannot simply stop paying to end City service.

Recycling Requirements

Tempe bans putting anything but recyclables into a recycling container and bans leaving material outside one. City Code Section 28-74 backs the City's definition of 'contamination,' the deposit of garbage or non-collectible items in a green organics or recycling bin, which can bring code enforcement.

Key details: Core rule: Only recyclables allowed in recycling containers. Contamination examples: Hazardous waste, garbage, non-collectibles. Nonparticipant defined: Customer opted out of recycling program. Enforcement: NOV, civil fines, possible impoundment. Repeat offense: 3 violations/year becomes a misdemeanor.

Placing garbage, hazardous waste or other non-collectible material in a recycling container, or dumping trash beside one, violates Section 28-74 and can draw a notice of violation under Section 28-12, civil penalties set by City Council resolution, and abatement costs billed to the responsible party. Three violations within twelve months become a misdemeanor under Section 28-13, prosecuted in Tempe Municipal Court, and a repeatedly contaminated container can be impounded under Section 28-15.

Bulk Item Disposal

Bulky items and brush that won't fit in a City cart go curbside as 'uncontained items,' capped at ten cubic yards and no earlier than ten days before the scheduled pickup week. Tree trimmings must be cut to 48 inches and stacked; leaving a pile out too early draws a Public Works notice.

Key details: Volume cap: 10 cubic yards of uncontained items. Brush length limit: Cut to 48 inches, stacked. Early set-out limit: Not more than 10 days before pickup week. Cure period: 10 days to remove after notice. Off-schedule pickup: Request via Tempe 311, fee applies.

Setting bulk items or brush out more than ten days ahead of the scheduled collection week violates Section 28-51(d) and triggers a Section 28-16 notice giving the resident ten days to clear the curb. Ignoring that notice lets the Public Works Department abate the pile itself and bill the property owner for personnel, equipment and disposal, on top of the civil penalties in Section 28-12; an immediate health or safety hazard can be cleared without any notice at all.

The Bottom Line

Tempe'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 Tempe is broadly strict or permissive.

Keep in mind that Tempe 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.