CalRecycle

The California Department of Resources Recycling and Recovery, based in Sacramento, oversees the state’s recycling and waste programs: the bottle and can deposit, e-waste, used oil, grants for household hazardous waste, and the paint and mattress take-back programs. Your pickup day comes from the city, county or special district that runs collection. Find that local program first; CalRecycle’s jurisdiction contact search names it.

What the agency does

CalRecycle oversees permits and inspections for landfills and other solid-waste facilities, registers waste tire haulers, and certifies and trains the local enforcement agencies that inspect those sites. It reviews whether each city and county runs its required diversion programs and can put a jurisdiction that makes no good-faith effort under a compliance order. It oversees the industry-run paint and mattress programs, runs the Beverage Container Recycling Program and handles disaster debris recovery.

What it does not do

It does not collect household trash, recycling or organics. Under SB 1383 each jurisdiction (a city, county, city and county, or special district that provides collection) must offer organics service and set its own sorting rules; some let residents self-haul instead. CalRecycle does not run recycling centers either. They are not state-owned, and each posts its own days and hours.

Programs a household can use

• Bottle and can deposit (CRV). You pay CRV at purchase and get it back at a recycling center or a participating retailer: 5 cents under 24 ounces, 10 cents for 24 ounces or more, 25 cents for wine and spirits in boxes, pouches and cartons. Milk, infant formula and medical food carry no CRV.
• Household hazardous waste. State law bars hazardous waste from the trash, storm drains and the ground. CalRecycle funds local collection programs with grants and runs the Used Oil Recycling Program; the drop-off itself is a local site.
• Electronics. The Covered Electronic Waste Recycling Program pays approved collectors, and CalRecycle points residents to the eRecycle directory to find one. Since January 1, 2026, SB 1215 adds covered battery-embedded products.
• Paint. PaintCare runs the program under CalRecycle oversight. Architectural paint in containers of five gallons or less goes to retail and other drop-off sites; aerosol paint and empty cans are not in the program yet. Latex paint is presumed hazardous in California, so do not dry it out for the trash.
• Mattresses. The Mattress Recycling Council runs the program for mattresses, box springs and futons, under CalRecycle oversight.
• Organics. Residents must use the local organics collection program and sort into the right containers. In buildings of five or more units, the owner or manager supplies the containers and yearly sorting instructions.

How to find your local program

Start with the city edition for your address, or search CalRecycle’s jurisdiction contacts by county and city for the local recycling contact. The CRV page has a recycling center finder by ZIP code. For paint and mattresses, use the PaintCare and Mattress Recycling Council locators.

Contacts

• Main line: 916-322-4027. Toll-free: 800-RECYCLE (800-732-9253).
• Beverage container recycling: 916-323-3836. E-waste program: 916-341-6269. Used oil program: 916-341-6457.
• Local assistance (jurisdiction contacts): 916-341-6199.
• Headquarters: 1001 I Street, Sacramento, CA 95814. Mail: P.O. Box 4025, Sacramento, CA 95812-4025.

On Trashbagging

California city editions: Los Angeles · San Francisco · California state hub.

Guides: household hazardous waste · paint · lithium-ion batteries · mattresses. Program records: PaintCare · Mattress Recycling Council.

Context photo: Recycling and waste sorting stations at Moscone Center in San Francisco. Intel Free Press, 2013-09-02. CC BY 2.0 · Source. Resized for web.