Simi Valley, CA Trash & Recycling: Bin Placement Rules (2026)
Key Facts
- 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
Summary
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.
(b)Time. No person shall place or cause to be placed any discards container, bin, or bundled discards on any sidewalk, road, street, or highway at any time other than on the day established for the collection of discards on the particular route or before 4:30 p.m. on the day immediately prior to such collection, or permit such container to remain thereon not later than 10:00 p.m. on the designated day of collection.(c)Storage. No person shall cause or permit containers or residential composting bins to be placed at any location whereby the containers or residential composting bins may be visible from private streets and public rights-of-way, unless located behind a side yard fence, gate, or wall except when placed out for collection as provided in Section 6-3.12(b).
Official source re-checked September 7, 2026: no newer edition of the code had been published (publisher’s edition: Code of Ordinances: Supplement 51).
Full Breakdown
12 sets both the clock and the sightlines for trash and recycling carts. on collection day. Subsection (c) requires storage screening the rest of the week: carts and residential composting bins cannot be visible from private streets or public rights-of-way unless kept behind a side yard fence, gate, or wall, except when set out for pickup under subsection (b). Subsection (a) gives the Public Works Director authority to regulate routes, intervals, delivery points, and collection times citywide to control traffic, noise, and wear on the roads.
Subsection (d) adds that any container placed along a street must sit at the curb without obstructing the public right-of-way, and containers placed in an alley must sit as close to the property line as practical, with every business owner keeping an accessible, clean storage area for its bins.
Violations & Fines
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.
Frequently Asked Questions
How early can I put my trash cart out in Simi Valley?
Do I have to hide my trash cans between pickups?
Can the city change my collection day or route?
Sources & Official References
Other rules in Simi Valley
California rules heatmap·Compare Simi Valley to another location·View the California trash & recycling overview
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Bin Placement Rules in Nearby Cities
How other cities in Ventura County handle bin placement rules.