Clovis, CA Trash & Recycling: Recycling Rules (2026)
Key Facts
- Who may collect set-out recyclables
- Only the City's authorized agent
- Covered streams
- Curbside, centralized, commercial, greenwaste
- Governing sections
- §§ 6.3.23(c), 6.3.23.1(c), 6.3.24(e)
- Penalty classification
- Misdemeanor under § 6.3.18
Summary
Once recyclables are set out at a Clovis collection point, whether curbside, a multifamily centralized bin, a commercial recycling bin, or a greenwaste container, only the City's authorized agent and its own officers, agents, and employees may take them. Anyone else who picks up, collects, or removes those materials is violating the Municipal Code.
Anti-scavenging. Except for the authorized agent and its officers, agents and employees, it shall be unlawful for any other person to pick up, collect, take, appropriate or remove any recyclables/recyclable materials from any container after it has been placed at the collection point by the customer or resident for collection under these provisions of the Clovis Municipal Code and as provided by City Council resolution.
Full Breakdown
3, each tied to the specific collection stream it protects. 23(c) covers single-family and multifamily curbside and centralized recyclables, making it unlawful for anyone besides the City's authorized agent and its officers, agents, and employees to pick up, collect, take, appropriate, or remove recyclable material from a container after it's been placed at the collection point for pickup. 24(e) applies the same language to residential greenwaste containers. 66 a month; scavenging removes material the City's authorized agent is contracted and paid to collect, undermining the revenue and tonnage accounting behind those resolution-set rates.
The prohibition applies from the moment the container is placed at the collection point by the customer or resident, not from an earlier point such as when it's staged in a garage or side yard.
Violations & Fines
Chapter 6.3's general violations clause, § 6.3.18, makes any unlawful act under the chapter a misdemeanor, and scavenging recyclables or greenwaste from a placed container qualifies. Under the Code's general penalty, § 1.2.01, that's punishable by up to a $1,000 fine, up to six months in county or City jail, or both, or the City Attorney can instead prosecute it as an infraction with escalating $100/$200/$500 fines for repeat violations within a year, and each day the conduct continues counts as a separate offense.
Frequently Asked Questions
Can I take cans and bottles out of my neighbor's recycling bin in Clovis?
Does Clovis's anti-scavenging rule cover yard waste bins too?
Does the scavenging ban apply to apartment and commercial recycling bins?
Sources & Official References
Other rules in Clovis
California rules heatmap·Compare Clovis to another location·View the California trash & recycling overview
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