Solid Waste and Recycling Regulations

Senate Bill 1383: California's Short-Lived Climate Pollutant Reduction Strategy

  • In September 2016, Governor Edmund Brown Jr. set methane emissions reduction targets for California in a statewide effort to reduce emissions of short-lived climate pollutants. This regulation, formally known as California Senate Bill 1383 (SB 1383), went into effect in 2022 and requires every jurisdiction to provide organic waste collection services to all commercial businesses and residences. SB 1383 establishes two main targets:
    • Reduce organic waste disposal 75% by 2025.
    • Recover at least 20% of currently disposed surplus food for human consumption by 2025.
  • Information on the City's complacent organics recycling program can be found here.

Why Reduce Organic Waste?

  • Organic waste, which is any material that is biodegradable and comes from a plant or an animal, produces large amounts of methane when disposed of in a landfill. This significantly contributes to greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions and climate change. Climate change has many widespread impacts. This includes increased risk of extreme weather events such as stronger hurricanes, droughts, and heatwaves. Climate change can also increase levels of smog, exacerbating asthma and respiratory diseases.
  • In California, organics like food scraps, yard trimmings, paper and cardboard make up half of what Californians dump in landfills and is the third largest source of methane in the state. Reducing the disposal of these items in landfills will have the fastest impact on the climate crisis. Additionally, organic waste diverted from landfill can be made into nutrient-rich compost, a process that creates jobs and supplies residents with fresh, healthy soil.


Assembly Bill 939: California Integrated Waste Management Act of 1989

  • California Assembly Bill 939 (AB 939) requires each jurisdiction in California to divert at least 50% of its waste away from landfills by 2000, whether through waste reduction, recycling or other means. AB 939 also established an integrated framework for program implementation, solid waste planning, and solid waste facility and landfill compliance.
  • Information on the City's complacent recycling program can be found here.


Assembly Bill 341: Mandatory Commercial & Multi-Family Recycling

  • Effective July 1, 2012, California Assembly Bill 341 (AB 341) requires all commercial businesses and multi-family properties of five (5) units or more to arrange for recycling services. The purpose of the law is to reduce greenhouse gas emissions by diverting commercial solid waste to recycling efforts and to expand the opportunity for additional recycling services and recycling manufacturing facilities in California.
  • Information on the City's complacent recycling program can be found here.


Assembly Bill 1826: Mandatory Commercial Organics Recycling

Implementation Timeline

  • On and after April 1, 2016, a business or multi-family location that generates eight cubic yards or more of organic waste per week shall arrange for collection and recycling of organic waste.
  • On and after January 1, 2017, a business or multi-family location that generates four cubic yards or more of organic waste per week shall arrange for collection and recycling of organic waste.
  • On and after January 1, 2019, a business or multi-family location that generates four cubic yards or more of solid waste, per week, shall arrange for collection and recycling of organic waste.
  • On September 15, 2020, CalRecycle issued a directive that a business that generates two cubic yards or more of solid waste, per week, shall arrange for collection and recycling of organic waste.


Assembly Bill 827: Mandatory Commercial and Organic Waste Recycling Bins

  • Effective July 1, 2020, California Assembly Bill 827 (AB 827) requires businesses to implement recycling and organic waste collection bins or containers for customer use. AB 827 is intended to help achieve the state’s recycling goals of reducing organic waste disposal by 75% by 2025.
  • Businesses, that are not full-service restaurants, must provide customers access to recycling and organic waste containers for the collection of products consumed onsite. These containers must be visible, easily accessible, clearly labeled with which materials are appropriate for each bin, and adjacent to pre-existing trash containers. Full service restaurants are exempt from the above requirements, but must provide properly labeled organic waste and recycling waste collection bins for employees, in the back of house to separate recyclables and organic waste for customers. No minimum number of bins are required.