Sonoma, CA Trash & Recycling: Recycling Rules (2026)
Key Facts
- Ordinance name
- Anti-Scavenger Ordinance, Ch. 7.12
- Ownership of curbside recyclables
- Passes to contractor, § 7.12.031
- Unauthorized removal
- Unlawful, § 7.12.032
- Offense count
- Each location is a separate offense
- Penalty class
- Infraction or misdemeanor, § 7.12.037
- Civil remedy
- Contractor may sue separately, § 7.12.036
Summary
Once a City of Sonoma resident sets recyclables at the curb, they legally belong to the city's authorized recycling contractor, and Sonoma Municipal Code § 7.12.032 makes it unlawful for anyone else to take them. The Anti-Scavenger Ordinance, Chapter 7.12, also bars scattering, destroying or scavenging curbside recyclables without the resident's or contractor's consent.
No person other than an authorized recycling contractor shall remove recyclable material which has been placed at the curbside. Any and each violation hereof from one or more recycling collection locations shall constitute a separate and distinct offense punishable as provided in this chapter.
Official source re-checked September 8, 2026: no newer edition of the code had been published (publisher’s edition: current through Ordinance 13-2025, passed December 3, 2025).
Full Breakdown
12, the Anti-Scavenger Ordinance adopted in 1987 and amended in 1991 and 2000, protects the value of curbside recycling by locking down who may touch it once it is set out. 031 provides that recyclable materials placed at the curbside for collection become the property of the authorized recycling contractor, with narrow exceptions: the depositor may retrieve items from their own containers, and used motor oil remains the depositor's property until actually collected. 032 then makes it unlawful for anyone other than the authorized recycling contractor to remove recyclable material once it has been placed at the curbside, and treats each violation at each curbside location as a separate offense.
034 separately protects the approved recycling containers themselves from unauthorized removal from the curb, limiting removal to the resident or designee, the city, an authorized city agent, or the authorized recycling contractor. 036, independent of any criminal prosecution.
Violations & Fines
Violating any part of Chapter 7.12, including scavenging curbside recyclables or removing an approved recycling container without authorization, is an infraction or misdemeanor under § 7.12.037, enforced under the general penalty provisions of Chapter 1.12 SMC. Each recycling collection location taken from without authorization counts as a separate, distinct offense under § 7.12.032, and the authorized recycling contractor may additionally sue a violator civilly under § 7.12.036.
Frequently Asked Questions
Can someone else take my recycling bin's contents in the City of Sonoma?
Can I get my own recyclables back after putting them at the curb?
Is scavenging recycling bins a crime in the City of Sonoma?
Can the recycling contractor sue someone who steals recyclables?
Sources & Official References
Other rules in Sonoma
California rules heatmap·Compare Sonoma to another location·View the California trash & recycling overview
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Recycling Rules in Nearby Cities
How other cities in Sonoma County handle recycling rules.