San Jose adopted its Bring Your Own Bag (BYOB) Ordinance effective January 1, 2012, banning single-use plastic carryout bags at all retailers (one of the earliest large-city bans). Paper bags carry a minimum 10-cent fee with 40% recycled content. SB 1053 ends the thicker reusable plastic exemption January 1, 2026.
San Jose passed the Bring Your Own Bag Ordinance (SJMC Chapter 9.10) in December 2010, with full enforcement January 1, 2012. The ordinance bans single-use plastic carryout bags at all retail establishments and requires retailers to charge at least 10 cents per recycled-content paper bag or true reusable bag. The city documented an 89% reduction in plastic-bag litter in storm drains and 60% in streets within two years — frequently cited as the leading U.S. case study on ordinance effectiveness. California SB 270 (2016) ratified citywide bans statewide; SB 1053 (effective January 1, 2026) closes the thicker plastic-film "reusable" exemption. Restaurants serving hot prepared food remain exempt. Hospitals, prescriptions, and bulk-bin bags are also exempt.
San Jose Code Enforcement issues administrative penalties: $100 first violation, $200 second, $500 each subsequent violation within one year. Each day of continued non-compliance is a separate offense. Report at sanjoseca.gov or (408) 535-7770.
Other ordinances people look up for this city. Green dot = verified primary-source excerpt.
San Jose, CA
San Jose Municipal Code Title 7 (Animal Care and Control) requires dogs in public places, city parks, and trails to be on a leash no longer than six feet, re...
San Jose, CA
San Jose imposes no general restriction on year-round lawn ornaments, statuary, or religious displays on private residential property. The sign code (SJMC Ch...
San Jose, CA
San Jose has no city ordinance specifically regulating residential inflatable holiday displays. Size, height, and motor noise are not restricted by the munic...
San Jose, CA
San Jose has no ordinance limiting the duration, brightness, or hours of residential holiday lighting. The general nuisance provisions in SJMC Title 6 and th...
San Jose, CA
A built-in outdoor kitchen in San Jose typically requires multiple permits: a building permit for any structural roof or counter exceeding the patio cover ex...
San Jose, CA
San Jose does not have a dedicated ordinance for backyard smokers, pellet grills, or wood-fired ovens. Use is governed by the multifamily balcony restriction...
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