Carpet recycling: carpet stewardship.

(1) Existing law requires a manufacturer of carpets sold in this state to submit, either individually or through a carpet stewardship organization, a carpet stewardship plan that meets specified requirements to the Department of Resources Recycling and Recovery, and requires the department to approve or disapprove the plan. Existing law imposes a carpet stewardship assessment per unit of carpet sold in the state that is remitted by carpet manufacturers to the carpet stewardship organization and may be expended to carry out the organization's carpet stewardship plan. This bill would, among other things, require a carpet stewardship organization to include in the carpet stewardship plan a contingency plan should the carpet stewardship plan expire without approval of a new carpet stewardship plan or should the carpet stewardship plan be revoked. The bill would require a carpet stewardship organization to set up a trust fund or an escrow account, into which the bill would require the organization to deposit all unexpended funds and ongoing consumer assessments, for use in the event that the carpet stewardship plan terminates or is revoked. The bill would require, if a carpet stewardship plan is revoked or terminated, the trustee or escrow agent to accept carpet stewardship assessment payments directly from manufacturers and to make payments from the trust fund or escrow account as the department directs, in writing, to implement the most recently approved carpet stewardship plan. The bill would authorize the department, if a new carpet stewardship plan has not been approved within one year after termination or revocation, to make modifications to the previously approved plan, as it deems necessary, and continue to direct payments from the trust fund or escrow account to implement the modified plan. This bill would repeal certain provisions relating to the carpet stewardship assessment and would replace the assessment with differential assessments that take into account the financial burden that a particular carpet material has on the stewardship program, and the amount of postconsumer recycled content contained in a particular carpet, as prescribed. (2) Existing law requires a carpet stewardship organization submitting a carpet stewardship plan to pay to the department a quarterly administrative fee, as specified. Existing law prohibits the total amount of the administrative fees paid for a calendar year from exceeding 5% of the aggregate assessments collected for the preceding calendar year. This bill would repeal that prohibition. (3) Existing law authorizes the department to administratively impose civil penalties on any person who is in violation of any provision of the carpet stewardship laws, of up to $1,000 per day or $10,000 per day if the violation is intentional, knowing, or negligent. This bill would increase the former penalty amount to $5,000 per day. (4) This bill would also make conforming changes and repeal obsolete provisions.