Proposed ballot measure would suspend San Diego’s solid-waste fee for two years amid ongoing rollout

A new challenge to the city’s first-ever residential trash fee

A proposed ballot measure is seeking to halt San Diego’s recently launched Solid Waste Management Fee for two years, reopening a debate that has reshaped how the city pays for residential trash, recycling and organic-waste collection.

The fee was approved by the San Diego City Council on June 9, 2025, following the passage of Measure B in 2022, which removed a longstanding municipal-code prohibition that had effectively kept trash pickup for many single-family homes funded through the city’s General Fund. The change moved San Diego toward a cost-recovery model in which eligible properties are billed directly for solid-waste services.

How the fee is billed and what it costs

The City Council later authorized collection of the fee through the County property-tax roll on June 24, 2025. For fiscal year 2026, the fee is billed at $523.20 per eligible property, due in two equal installments of $261.60, with payments tied to property-tax deadlines in December 2025 and April 2026. The city has also published a multi-year schedule that includes planned increases beginning July 1, 2026, July 1, 2027 and July 1, 2028, with additional increases after July 1, 2028 requiring further City Council action.

• Fee collection method: line item on annual county property-tax bills for eligible properties.
• Fiscal year 2026 amount: $523.20 total ($261.60 due by Dec. 10, 2025; $261.60 due by Apr. 10, 2026).
• Service changes tied to the program: container repair/replacement at no extra charge, a customer portal launched in mid-July 2025, and phased delivery of new containers beginning October 2025 and continuing into 2026.

What a two-year suspension could mean

While the ballot proposal’s full legal language and fiscal analysis would determine its operational impact, a two-year suspension would likely collide with an ongoing transition already underway: the city’s container replacement program and the planned service enhancements that are tied to the fee schedule, including weekly recycling collection and a curbside bulky-item pickup program that the city has described as beginning in 2027.

The city has stated that fee revenue is restricted for solid-waste services and placed into a dedicated solid-waste fund structure, rather than the General Fund. City documents connected to the fee adoption also describe the fee as reducing the General Fund obligation for waste-collection operations and supporting a financial assistance program for qualifying customers.

Legal disputes and continuing scrutiny

The fee has also been the subject of litigation. In October 2025, a San Diego Superior Court judge rejected a request to temporarily block collection while a lawsuit proceeds, citing limits on court authority to interfere with collection during preliminary stages. The underlying legal claims include allegations that the charge violates Proposition 218’s requirements governing property-related fees, including constraints that fees not exceed the cost of providing the service.

The proposed ballot measure would move the fight from the courtroom and City Hall to the electorate, while the city continues implementing new billing, container replacement and long-term service changes already scheduled through at least 2028.

What residents should watch next

Key developments ahead include whether the proposed measure qualifies for the ballot, what exact provisions it contains regarding fee collection and service obligations during a suspension period, and how any pause would be addressed in the city’s operating budgets and solid-waste program planning.