“If the new fees are approved, the City of San Diego will join every major jurisdiction in California in recovering costs for the waste collection services provided to residents,” said Kirby Brady, Interim Director, Environmental Services Department (ESD). “By repealing the century-old People’s Ordinance, San Diegans signaled that they want a more equitable system where everyone who receives waste management services – whether from the City or from a private company - pays for those services.” 
 

“Since last summer, we have connected with nearly 10,000 San Diegans who shared with us what kind of waste collection services they would like to receive,” said Jeremy Bauer, Assistant Director of ESD. “We now encourage folks to come back and join us during our third round of community engagement to better understand the new services proposed, how the fees would apply, the timing of next steps, and how to stay involved.” 

Proposed fees starting in the first year (FY2026) include increased service reliability, bin replacements and repairs at no additional charge and a missed collections crew to address service issues day-of. By year three (FY2028), curbside bulky item pickup and increased recycling pick-up frequency would kick in as the fee would increase.  

As part of the cost-of-service study, the City evaluated comparable jurisdictions in California. San Diego’s proposed fee for service at the 95-gallon service level (at $53 per month) is closely aligned with Sacramento at $57.79 and Long Beach, which recently proposed a fee of $67.63 per month. Oakland and San Jose have by far the highest fee, at $160.27 and $160.35 per month, respectively.  

While the City of San Diego is proposing a new fee, other cities within San Diego County have long charged their residents for collection services. If approved, the trash fees would be charged using a tax roll billing system administered by the County.  

During a series of open house events that kicked off last summer, City staff surveyed residents about the services they would like to see as the new waste collection fee was being evaluated. Key takeaways from the open houses include: 

• Two-thirds of respondents expressed interest in curbside bulky item pickup. 

• Half of the respondents were interested in increased recycling frequency.  

• 40% of survey respondents were interested in container repairs and replacements being built into the fee. 

• Other priorities included more consistent service and smaller trash container options. 

• Participants were also interested in additional options for the drop-off of household hazardous waste and electronics, a service ESD plans to continue to provide with other sources of funding. 

San Diegans are invited to attend a third series of open house meetings during February, March and April to learn details about the proposed fees and services. The first in-person meeting will take place at the Otay Mesa-Nestor Library on Monday, Feb. 24. A calendar of events and more information is available at cleangreensd.org. 

Residents are invited to any of the scheduled events: