Brentwood, CA Trash & Recycling: Mandatory Organics Recycling (2026)

200(E) of the Municipal Code implements California's SB 1383 mandatory commercial organics recycling law at the local level. Every commercial customer, meaning any nonresidential account, plus multifamily premises with five or more units, must subscribe to and participate in the city's three-container system: black for trash, blue for recyclables, and green for organic waste. The director of public works can additionally require a business to source-separate food scraps from other organic waste for collection. Businesses, other than multifamily, must supply labeled green and blue containers in every indoor and outdoor area where they provide disposal containers for customers, though restrooms are exempt, and must periodically inspect those containers for contamination and tell employees when contaminants are found.

Once a year, businesses must give employees, contractors, tenants and customers information about organic waste recovery requirements and proper sorting, and any new tenant must receive that same education within fourteen days of moving in. 384 layers a separate, food-specific mandate on top: tier one commercial edible food generators had to comply starting January 1, 2022, and tier two generators followed on January 1, 2024. 4, and must keep contracts and monthly-pound records for every food recovery service or organization they use. Nothing in either section overrides the California Good Samaritan Food Donation Act's liability protections for businesses that donate in good faith.