Mayor Adams and city Sanitation Commissioner Jessica Tisch announced Monday that landlords who own buildings with nine units or less will have to ensure their trash is set out in rigid bins with tight-fitting lids starting Nov. 12.
The new time frame for that initiative is part of a broader policy aimed at reducing rat infestations in the city by replacing plastic trash bags with receptacles that are more difficult for rats to get into.
“These are durable. They are attractive and New York affordable,” Adams said at a news conference outside Gracie Mansion, gesturing to one of the new bins. “We are really excited about this initiative. It is a game changer for our city.”
Adams has made reducing the city’s rat population a signature policy since coming to City Hall in 2022. During his time in office, he’s named a rat czar, changed trash set-out times and rolled out initiatives to cut down on the number of rat-friendly trash bags that remain on city streets.
The new receptacles — which are made of plastic and feature wheels and a rubber latch — will cost less than $50 apiece and are being sold through the city.
Tisch said landlords whose buildings fall within the requirements can order the bins now from a city website and that they should buy them by Oct. 1 to ensure that they receive them by the time the new rule goes into effect.
In addition, she noted that if landlords are using bins that already fulfill the requirements, they can continue to do so until June 2026, when the new rule dictates bins must be bought from an authorized vender
“If you are one of the hundreds of thousands of property owners in that group who already has a bin of 55 gallons or less with a secure lid, you are welcome to continue to use that bin until June of 2026 when the use of the official NYC bin will become mandatory,” she said. “If you don’t already have a new bin, get the new NYC bin for far, far less than you would otherwise be paying.”
Tisch added that the bins currently required sell for two to three times more than the price offered through the city’s website.
