Existing law requires the Department of Toxic Substances Control to adopt regulations for the identification and management of hazardous wastes. Existing law authorizes the department to adopt regulations designating end-of-life photovoltaic modules that are identified as hazardous waste as a universal waste and subject to regulations applicable to universal waste management. Federal regulations identify solid wastes which are subject to regulation as hazardous wastes. Federal regulations exclude from the definition of solid waste for that purpose hazardous secondary material that is generated and then transferred to another person for the purpose of reclamation under specified circumstances. This bill would require the department, on or before July 1, 2028, to convene one or more public workshops for interested parties to comment on the applicability of the above-described federal regulations to hazardous waste streams, including, but not limited to, solar photovoltaic modules, generated in California. The bill would require the department, on or before July 1, 2029, to consider the feedback received and evaluate the applicability of those federal regulations to end-of-life solar photovoltaic modules as an alternative to one or more of the state standards governing hazardous waste and universal waste management. The bill would authorize the department, based on findings of the evaluation, to adopt, by regulation, the federal regulations, subject to revision as necessary, and apply them to end-of-life solar photovoltaic modules that are identified as hazardous waste under existing state law.
(1) The California Integrated Waste Management Act of 1989, administered by the Department of Resources Recycling and Recovery, generally regulates the disposal, management, and recycling of solid waste. The act establishes stewardship programs for various products, including, among others, carpet. The act includes a product stewardship for carpet program and a successor carpet producer responsibility program, and requires the product stewardship for carpet program to become inoperative upon the completion of certain conditions related to the implementation of the successor carpet producer responsibility program. Existing law, the product stewardship for carpet program, requires a manufacturer of carpets sold in this state, individually or through a carpet stewardship organization, to submit a carpet stewardship plan to the department, which is required to include specified elements, including achieving specified carpet recycling rates and a funding mechanism that provides sufficient funding to carry out the plan. Existing law authorizes the department to administratively impose a civil penalty of $10,000 per day on any person in violation of the program or $25,000 per day if the violation is intentional, knowing, or negligent, as specified. This bill would instead authorize the department to impose administrative, rather than civil, penalties in those amounts, and to impose an administrative penalty of $25,000 per day if the violation is intentional or knowing. Existing law requires a carpet stewardship organization to include nonvoting board members with representation from, among others, a retailer that sells carpet. This bill would instead require the stewardship organization to create a governing board for the stewardship program, as specified. Existing law requires a manufacturer of carpets sold in this state, individually or through a carpet stewardship organization, to submit to the department an annual report describing its activities to achieve the purposes of the program, as provided. Existing law authorizes a carpet stewardship organization to award grants and subsidies to incentivize the recycling of carpet materials that have the highest recyclability. This bill would require a carpet stewardship organization to include in its annual report specified information related to the grants and subsidies provided pursuant to the program, as specified. (2) Existing law, the successor carpet producer responsibility program, requires producers of covered products to form and join a single producer responsibility organization (PRO) for the collection and recycling of a covered product. Existing law defines a "covered product" as carpet, as defined, and requires the PRO to develop a producer responsibility plan for the collection, transportation, recycling, and the safe and proper management of covered products in the state. Existing law requires, no later than January 1, 2029, a person who removes a covered product as part of the installation of a covered product to transport, or contract to transport, all of the removed covered product to an approved collection site, as provided. Under existing law, an approved collection site is a solid waste facility that has agreed to be a collection site for the PRO. This bill would exempt a covered product from this transport requirement if certain conditions are met, including that it is returned to the producer. The bill would expand approved collection sites to include certain carpet recycling centers, municipal facilities, and retailers. Existing law requires the governing board of a PRO to include 4 nonvoting members, including, but not limited to, a nonvoting member representing a nonprofit organization established to promote a circular economy and to address environmental issues. Existing law requires the PRO to submit an annual report to the department on or before July 1 of each year, as provided. Existing law requires a producer to publish on its internet website, for each of its covered products, an environmental product declaration that identifies a covered product's components, as provided. This bill would instead require one voting and 5 nonvoting members, as specified. The bill would require the annual report to be submitted on or before September 1 of each year, instead of July 1 of each year. The bill would instead require a producer to publish on its internet website, for each of its covered products, the components that constitute more than 1% of the product's weight and any component that is a hazardous chemical, as specified. Existing law requires the PRO to submit to the department an annual report, as specified, and to make the report publicly available on the PRO's internet website. Existing law requires the PRO to provide annual grants to apprenticeship programs for training carpet installers in proper carpet recycling techniques, as provided. This bill would require the PRO to include in its annual report specified information related to the grants and incentive payments provided pursuant to the program, as specified. Existing law requires a producer responsibility plan, among other things, to explain how producers will use standardized stamping or some other means to provide a visual mark on the back of a covered product that is a synthetic material to allow expeditious sorting of the carpet, as provided. Existing law requires the department to adopt regulations to implement the program with an effective date no earlier than December 31, 2026. This bill would instead require a producer responsibility plan to explain how producers will use standardized stamping or some other means to provide a visual mark on the back of a covered product that provides the name of the producer, the date of manufacture, and a listing of the types of face fibers and backing materials contained in the product. The bill would instead require the department to adopt the regulations no later than December 31, 2026. Existing law requires a producer responsibility plan in effect as of January 1, 2025, to continue in effect, as provided, until it expires or is revoked, except that the PRO is required to submit an amendment to conform the producer responsibility plan to certain requirements. This bill would eliminate the requirement to submit an amendment to the producer responsibility plan.
Existing law requires the Department of Resources Recycling and Recovery to adopt and revise regulations setting forth minimum standards for composting, in accordance with law. Existing regulations require all compostable materials handling activities to obtain a permit prior to commencing operations and to comply with specified requirements. Existing regulations specify 4 regulatory tiers for composting operations, with different requirements for each tier. The 4 tiers are excluded, enforcement agency notification, registration permit, and full solid waste facility permit. In the excluded tier, existing regulations specify the "excluded activities" that do not constitute compostable material handing operations or facilities and, therefore, are not subject to permit requirements or other regulatory requirements. One of the excluded activities is the composting of green material, agricultural material, food material, and vegetative food material, alone or in combination, if the total amount of feedstock and compost onsite at any one time does not exceed 100 cubic yards and 750 square feet. This bill would expand this excluded activity exemption for composting activities by eliminating the maximum square-foot condition and authorizing a total amount of feedstock and compost onsite at any one time of up to 200 cubic yards, or 500 cubic yards for a composting activity owned by a public agency, as defined. The bill would also authorize the Department of Resources Recycling and Recovery to further increase those amounts by regulation. The bill would also make the composting of agricultural materials and residues that are from a large-scale biomass management event at an agricultural facility that does not otherwise operate as a solid waste facility an excluded activity, as specified. Existing regulations prohibit a composting operation from giving away or selling more than 1,000 cubic yards of compost product annually if it is in the excluded tier or if it is an agricultural material composting operation in the enforcement agency notification tier, its feedstock is both green material and agricultural material, and the operation is located on land zoned for agricultural uses. This bill would authorize composting activities to give away or sell up to 5,000 cubic yards of compost product annually. The bill would authorize the Department of Resources Recycling and Recovery to increase, by regulation, that amount when the composting is of agricultural materials and residues that are from a large-scale biomass management event at an agricultural facility.
Existing law provides that the Office of Land Use and Climate Innovation serves the Governor and the Governor's Cabinet as staff for long-range planning and research, and constitute the comprehensive state planning agency. In that capacity, existing law requires the office to, among other things, assist local governments in land use planning. Existing law, the California Integrated Waste Management Act of 1989, establishes the Department of Resources Recycling and Recovery to administer an integrated waste management program. Existing law establishes a goal that statewide landfill disposal of organic waste be reduced from the 2014 level by 75% by 2025. This bill, on or before June 1, 2027, would require the Office of Land Use and Climate Innovation, in consultation with the Department of Resources Recycling and Recovery, to develop and post on the office's internet website, a technical advisory, as provided, reflecting best practices to facilitate the siting of composting facilities to meet the organic waste reduction goals. The bill would require the office to consult with specified entities throughout the development of the technical advisory. The Planning and Zoning Law requires each county and city to adopt a comprehensive, long-term general plan for its physical development, and the development of certain lands outside its boundaries, that includes, among other mandatory elements, a land use element that designates the proposed general distribution and general location and extent of the uses of the land for housing, business, solid and liquid waste disposal facilities, and other categories of public and private uses of land, as prescribed. This bill, upon a substantive revision of the land use element, as specified, on or after January 1, 2029, would require a city, county, or city and county to consider, among other things, the best practices, sample general plan, and model ordinance reflected in the technical advisory and to consider updating the land use element to identify areas where composting facilities may be appropriate as an allowable use. By increasing duties on a city, county, or city and county, the bill would impose a state-mandated local program. The California Constitution requires the state to reimburse local agencies and school districts for certain costs mandated by the state. Statutory provisions establish procedures for making that reimbursement. This bill would provide that no reimbursement is required by this act for a specified reason.
Existing law establishes methane emissions reduction goals that include a target to reduce landfill disposal of organics by 75% of the 2014 level of the statewide disposal of organic waste by 2025. Existing law requires the Department of Resources Recycling and Recovery, in consultation with the State Air Resources Board, to adopt regulations to achieve the organic waste reduction goals. Existing law authorizes a local jurisdiction to count specified recovered organic waste products towards up to 10% of its recovered organic waste procurement target. This bill would additionally authorize a local jurisdiction to count a beneficial agricultural amendment derived from organic waste that may include biosolids towards up to that 10% of its recovered organic waste procurement target if the material meets the requirements to be deemed to constitute a reduction in landfill disposal, the material is registered or approved for end use as a fertilizing material by the Department of Food and Agriculture, and the material is not derived from, or processed using, specified activities relating to the final deposition or management of solid waste, as provided. The bill would require the amount of the procured materials to be calculated using the dry weight of the materials. Existing law authorizes a local jurisdiction to count compost produced and procured from specified compost operations towards its recovered organic waste procurement target, including, under specified conditions, operations composting green material, agricultural material, food material, and vegetative food material if the total amount of feedstock and compost onsite at any one time does not exceed 100 cubic yards and 750 square feet. This bill would repeal that authorization, but would instead authorize a local jurisdiction to count towards its procurement target compost produced and procured from certain composting operations, including the composting of green material, agricultural material, food material, and vegetative food material if the total amount of feedstock and compost onsite at any one time does not exceed either 200 cubic yards or, for a composting activity owned by a public agency, as defined, 500 cubic yards, amounts that may be increased by regulation, as specified.
(1) The California Integrated Waste Management Act of 1989, administered by the Department of Resources Recycling and Recovery, creates a program for the recycling of rigid plastic packaging containers. The program defines "rigid plastic packaging container" to mean a plastic package having a relatively inflexible finite shape or form, with a capacity between 8 fluid ounces and 5 fluid gallons, that is capable of maintaining its shape while holding other products, including, but not limited to, bottles, cartons, and other receptacles, for sale or distribution in the state. The program generally requires a rigid plastic packaging container sold or offered for sale in this state to meet one of specified criteria, including, but not limited to, having been made from 25% postconsumer material or being a reusable package or a refillable package, unless a waiver or an exemption applies. Notwithstanding these provisions, the program deems a manufacturer in compliance with the program if the manufacturer demonstrates that it, or another company under the same corporate ownership, either consumed or arranged for the purchase and consumption of certain amounts of postconsumer material generated in the state for the manufacture of rigid plastic packaging containers or other plastic products or packaging not subject to the program, as provided. The program makes a violation of these provisions a public offense punishable by a fine of not more than $100,000. The program also subjects a violation of these provisions to a civil penalty of not more than $50,000, as provided. The program requires the department to deposit all penalties and fines into the Rigid Container Account in the Integrated Waste Management Fund in the State Treasury. The program requires the moneys in the account to be expended by the department, upon appropriation by the Legislature, to assist local governmental agencies to develop and implement collection and processing systems for the recycling of materials covered by the program, for the development of markets for these materials, and for the department's costs of implementing the program. The program requires the department to adopt regulations to implement the program, as provided. This bill would repeal the program and replace it with a new program for recycling plastic packaging and products. The bill would require, on or before July 1, 2026, and annually thereafter, a manufacturer of a covered product, as defined, to pay an annual registration charge and to register with the department, as specified. The bill would require a manufacturer to provide certain information during registration, including, but not limited to, the brand name of each of the manufacturer's covered products. The bill would subject a manufacturer that is not in compliance with the registration requirement to an administrative civil penalty of not more than $5,000 per day per violation, as specified. The bill would, on and after January 1, 2029, require a manufacturer to include, as part of its annual registration, proof of third-party certification of the postconsumer recycled content of each of its covered products. The bill would require the third-party certification to be provided under penalty of perjury. By expanding the scope of a crime, this bill would impose a state-mandated local program. This bill would require a manufacturer to meet certain annual minimum postconsumer recycled content percentages for covered products, as specified. The bill would authorize the department to grant a waiver for up to 2 years, upon application, from these requirements, as specified. The bill would require certain information to be included in a waiver application and would require a waiver application charge not to exceed $1,000. The bill would require the department to assess an administrative civil penalty for a violation on a per-pound basis for each pound of virgin material that was used by a manufacturer in its products instead of the minimum postconsumer recycled content, as specified. The bill would authorize the department to reduce this administrative civil penalty if the manufacturer submits, and the department approves, a corrective action plan, as specified. This bill would require the department to deposit all penalties and fines paid pursuant to the program into the Rigid Container Account, which this bill would continue in existence. The bill would require moneys deposited into the account to be expended by the department, upon appropriation by the Legislature, to assist local governmental agencies to develop and implement collection and processing systems for the recycling of materials that are subject to the program, for the development of markets for these materials, and for the department's actual and reasonable costs of implementing the program. This bill would require, on and after April 1, 2028, a manufacturer to provide to the department, in a format and manner prescribed by the department, an annual report that includes specified information regarding amounts and types of plastics used in covered products. The bill would exempt confidential and proprietary information, collected by the department from manufacturers for purpose of the program, from disclosure pursuant to the California Public Records Act. This bill would authorize a manufacturer to authorize an organization to act on its behalf in complying with certain requirements, including, but not limited to, registration and annual reporting requirements. The bill would exempt certain covered products from the program, as specified. This bill would require the department to adopt regulations to implement and enforce the program, as specified. The bill would require the department to establish an electronic registration process on its internet website. (2) The California Integrated Waste Management Act of 1989 requires a manufacturer of certain plastic trash bags to ensure that the recycled plastic postconsumer material in the bag is equal to at least 10% of the weight of the bag, or that at least 30% of the weight of the material used in all of the manufacturer's plastic products is recycled plastic postconsumer material, as provided. Existing law requires a manufacturer of a plastic trash bag to submit an annual report to the Department of Resources Recycling and Recovery certifying compliance with these postconsumer materials requirements, as specified. Existing law requires the department to survey manufacturers and report to the Legislature on, among others, the quantity of recycled plastic postconsumer material provided by suppliers within the state and the quantity of the material provided by suppliers outside the state. Existing law requires a wholesaler of plastic trash bags to annually certify to the department the name and physical location of each manufacturer from whom it purchased plastic trash bags, as provided. Existing law authorizes the department to adopt regulations to implement these provision, as specified. Existing law prohibits a supplier, manufacturer, or wholesaler, as provided, that is not in compliance with these provisions from being eligible for a state contract or subcontract, as provided. This bill would repeal these provisions. (3) Existing constitutional provisions require that a statute that limits the right of access to the meetings of public bodies or the writings of public officials and agencies be adopted with findings demonstrating the interest protected by the limitation and the need for protecting that interest. (4) The California Constitution requires the state to reimburse local agencies and school districts for certain costs mandated by the state. Statutory provisions establish procedures for making that reimbursement. This bill would provide that no reimbursement is required by this act for a specified reason.
(1) The California Integrated Waste Management Act of 1989, which is administered by the Department of Resources Recycling and Recovery, establishes an integrated waste management program. The act requires each state agency to divert at least 50% of all solid waste through source reduction, recycling, and composting activities. "State agency" is defined, for purposes of these requirements, to include the California Community Colleges. The act requires each state agency to develop and adopt an integrated waste management plan to reduce solid waste, reuse materials whenever possible, recycle recyclable materials, and procure products with recycled content in all state agency offices and facilities, including any leased locations, as provided. The act requires each state agency to submit an annual report to the department summarizing its progress in reducing solid waste by at least 50%, as provided. This bill would require a state agency to include in its integrated waste management plan descriptions of actions to be taken to source reduce certain materials, as specified. The bill would require, on or before July 15, 2027, each state agency to submit an adopted integrated waste management plan to the department for review and approval, and would, on or before January 1, 2028, require the department to complete its review of the plans, as specified. The bill would require a state agency's annual report to include summaries of the state agency's compliance with the requirement to reduce solid waste by 50% and the requirements relating to the adoption of an integrated waste management plan. By imposing new duties on community colleges, the bill would impose a state-mandated local program. This bill would require the department to provide advice to help state agencies and facilities reduce solid waste by at least 50%. The bill would, on or before January 1, 2027, require the department to publish on its internet website a list of products available for purchase by state agencies that would reduce the overall amount of plastic or paper waste generated. (2) Existing law requires plastic beverage containers sold by a beverage manufacturer, as specified, to contain a specified average percentage of postconsumer recycled plastic. Between January 1, 2025, and December 31, 2029, inclusive, existing law requires that percentage to be no less than 25% postconsumer recycled plastic per year, and on and after January 1, 2030, no less than 50% postconsumer recycled plastic per year. This bill would require, on and after January 1, 2026, reportable purchases by state agencies of plastic beverage containers to be of plastic beverage containers with no less than those above-referenced percentages of postconsumer recycled plastic per year. (3) The California Constitution requires the state to reimburse local agencies and school districts for certain costs mandated by the state. Statutory provisions establish procedures for making that reimbursement. This bill would provide that, if the Commission on State Mandates determines that the bill contains costs mandated by the state, reimbursement for those costs shall be made pursuant to the statutory provisions noted above.
Existing law requires the State Air Resources Board to implement a comprehensive short-lived climate pollutant strategy to achieve a reduction in statewide emissions of methane by 40% below 2013 levels by 2030. Existing law requires the methane emissions reduction goals to include a 75% reduction in the level of the statewide disposal of organic waste from the 2014 level by 2025. Existing law requires the Department of Resources Recycling and Recovery, in consultation with the state board, to adopt regulations to achieve these organic waste reduction goals that include, among other things, requirements intended to meet the goal that not less than 20% of edible food that is currently disposed of be recovered for human consumption by 2025 and that may include penalties to be imposed by the department for noncompliance, as provided. The regulations, among other things, require a commercial edible food generator, as defined, to have a contract or written agreement with a food recovery organization, as defined, to recover the maximum amount of edible food that would otherwise be disposed, as provided. The regulations also require a commercial edible food generator to keep certain records regarding the recovery of edible food. This bill would exempt from these requirements an agricultural crop preparation service, as defined, that demonstrates to the department that it has not disposed of organic waste in a landfill on or after January 1, 2016.
Existing law requires the California Environmental Protection Agency, in coordination with the department, the State Water Resources Control Board, the State Air Resources Board, the Department of Food and Agriculture, and the Department of Forestry and Fire Protection, to develop and implement policies to aid in diverting organic waste from landfills by promoting the use of agricultural, forestry, and urban organic waste as a feedstock for compost and by promoting the appropriate use of that compost throughout the state to improve the state's soil organic matter. This bill would express the intent of the Legislature to enact future legislation that would promote the recycling of organic byproducts by increasing the opportunities for organic byproducts to be recycled into livestock feed.
