The City of San Diego will move forward with a plan to reduce waste management fees for customers receiving trash and recycling collection services from the City, following approval by the San Diego City Council today. The reduced fees will be effective in fiscal year 2028, which starts July 1, 2027.  

The fee reductions are the result of a settlement agreement approved by the City Council and will lower monthly charges for all residential service levels beginning in fiscal year 2028. The approved changes reduce customer costs but also eliminate funding for several planned service enhancements, including weekly recycling collection and bulky item pickup. 

Rates for trash fees in the current year and the next fiscal year, starting July 1, 2026, are not impacted by this action and will remain the same. 

Effective July 1, 2027, the new fees will be: 

• For customers with the 95-gallon trash bundle, the monthly fee will drop by about $16 to $38.75.  

  o Effective July 1, 2028, the previously adopted fee will be lowered to $39.91.  

•  Fees for 65-gallon and 35-gallon bundles are being reduced: 

        o 65-gallon bundle:  $34.37 on July 1, 2027; and  $35.43 on July 1, 2028. 

        o 35-gallon bundle:  $28.52 on July 1, 2027, and  $29.43 on July 1, 2028. 

• Additional bins will also cost less per month, with amounts ranging based on bin size.  

Today’s action by the City Council comes after a settlement agreement announced last month to reduce trash fees and eliminate parking fees in Balboa Park. 

While the City Council’s action does not reduce the City’s costs to provide trash and recycling services, it does reduce revenue for the program and the Environmental Services Department’s ability to cover the full costs of providing services. As a result, there will not be resources available to provide enhanced services that had originally been planned, including weekly recycling and bulky item pickup.  

The department will also no longer move forward with a planned electric vehicle pilot project, which was intended to support future state requirements to switch to all-electric or zero-emissions vehicles. 

With the reduced customer rates, Environmental Services will require subsidies from the City’s General Fund and increased subsidies from the Recycling Fund to cover the costs to provide existing services. 

“We remain committed to providing reliable, quality trash and recycling collection to every resident we serve,” said Environmental Services Assistant Director Jeremy Bauer. “We appreciate the community's patience and trust, as we work through these changes together." 

City trash and recycling customers are encouraged to review their service level online at WastePortal.sandiego.gov to ensure it aligns with their household needs. The full fee schedule is available on the City’s website at sandiego.gov/trash, and ESD is available to answer questions at 858-694-7000. 

As part of a program launched by the City in January, customers who need help paying the trash fee can apply for financial assistance, with qualifications based on limited income and other criteria. For fiscal year 2026, the City received nearly 4,000 applications. Applications for assistance toward next year’s fee are now being accepted, and guidance on the online application is available at in-person clinics. For more information, visit MAACproject.org/SDSWAssistance or call 619-946-4419.