Bill Text: CA AB1526 | 2023-2024 | Regular Session | Introduced

NOTE: There are more recent revisions of this legislation. Read Latest Draft
Bill Title: Public resources.

Spectrum: Committee Bill

Status: (Passed) 2023-10-13 - Chaptered by Secretary of State - Chapter 848, Statutes of 2023. [AB1526 Detail]

Download: California-2023-AB1526-Introduced.html


CALIFORNIA LEGISLATURE— 2023–2024 REGULAR SESSION

Assembly Bill
No. 1526


Introduced by Committee on Natural Resources (Assembly Members Luz Rivas (Chair), Addis, Friedman, Mathis, Muratsuchi, Pellerin, Ward, Wood, and Zbur)

February 17, 2023


An act to amend Sections 42040, 42041, 42053, 48701, 48703, and 48705 of, and to add Section 48707 to, the Public Resources Code, relating to solid waste.


LEGISLATIVE COUNSEL'S DIGEST


AB 1526, as introduced, Committee on Natural Resources. Solid waste: plastic pollution: architectural paint.
(1) The Plastic Pollution Prevention and Packaging Producer Responsibility Act covers certain single-use packaging and plastic single-use food service ware, as provided. As part of its comprehensive statutory scheme, the act requires producers of those covered materials to reduce and recycle the covered plastic material and to ensure that covered materials that are offered for sale, distributed, or imported in or into the state on or after January 1, 2032, are recyclable or compostable, as provided. The act prohibits a producer from selling, offering for sale, importing, or distributing covered materials in the state unless the producer is approved to participate in the producer responsibility plan of a producer responsibility organization (PRO), as prescribed, for the source reduction, collection, processing, and recycling of covered material, except as provided.
This bill would make technical amendments and other revisions to certain components of the act, including the act’s definitions and a PRO’s producer fee schedule.
 (2) The California Integrated Waste Management Act of 1989 establishes the architectural paint recovery program, under which a manufacturer of architectural paint is required, individually or through a stewardship organization, to submit an architectural paint stewardship plan to the Department of Resources Recycling and Recovery to develop and implement a recovery program to reduce the generation of postconsumer architectural paint, promote the reuse of postconsumer architectural paint, and manage the end of life of postconsumer architectural paint. Existing law excludes from the program aerosol spray paint. Existing law requires a manufacturer of architectural paint or a stewardship organization to submit to the department on or before November 1 of each year a report describing its architectural paint recovery efforts.
This bill would, among other things, eliminate the exemption from the program of aerosol spray paint and would provide that architectural paint includes aerosol coating products, as defined. The bill would specify that aerosol coating products shall not be regulated under the program until the implementation date of a plan or plan amendment concerning aerosol coating products approved by the department or January 1, 2027, whichever occurs sooner, and would authorize the department to extend that implementation date. The bill would require, on or before July 1, 2026, a manufacturer or stewardship organization to submit an architectural paint stewardship plan or amendment to an approved architectural paint stewardship plan to the department. The bill would change the due date for the annual report to on or before May 15 of each year, would require certain information included in the annual report to be reported based on calendar year, and, commencing with the 2028 report, would require the annual report to include certain information on aerosol coating products. The bill would authorize the department, in coordination with the Department of Toxic Substances Control, to adopt regulations to clarify and implement the architectural paint recovery program.
Vote: MAJORITY   Appropriation: NO   Fiscal Committee: YES   Local Program: NO  

The people of the State of California do enact as follows:


SECTION 1.

 Section 42040 of the Public Resources Code is amended to read:

42040.
 (a) This chapter shall be known, and may be cited, as the Plastic Pollution Prevention and Packaging Producer Responsibility Act.
(b) The Legislature finds and declares all of the following:
(1) Disadvantaged and low-income communities are disproportionately impacted by the human health and environmental impacts of plastic pollution and fossil fuel extraction.
(2) (A) Local jurisdictions are the backbone of the solid waste management and recycling efforts in California. The new statewide comprehensive circular economy framework established by this chapter is intended to shift the burden of costs to collect, process, and recycle materials from the local jurisdictions to the producers of plastic products. covered material.
(B) It is the intent of the Legislature in enacting this chapter to ensure that local jurisdictions will be made financially whole for any new costs incurred associated with the implementation of this chapter and its implementing regulations.
(3) (A) In 2021, only 5 percent of postconsumer plastic waste in the United States was recycled, down from a high of 9.5 percent in 2014, when the United State exported millions of tons of plastic waste to China. Even then, much of this material was incinerated or dumped into the environment and not recycled.
(B) It is the intent of the Legislature to establish a producer responsibility program designed to ensure that producers of single-use packaging and food service ware covered by this program take responsibility for the costs associated with the end-of-life management of that material and ensure that the material is recyclable or compostable. This standardization will reduce consumer confusion regarding recycling and composting, reduce costs to ratepayers, and increase system efficiency.
(C) It is also the intent of the Legislature that these improvements will allow California, going forward, to better harmonize curbside collection programs as local jurisdictions will collect material identified as either recyclable or compostable if that material is found to be suitable for curbside collection.
(4) Recycling can be an effective way to reclaim some natural resources, such as metals, glass, paper, and some plastic resins. However, in some circumstances, recycling is cost-prohibitive and an ineffective means to handle the end-of-life management of a covered material. In these circumstances, the Legislature acknowledges that some material types cannot effectively meet the requirements of this chapter and producers will be required to eliminate, redesign, or shift packaging or food service ware to a covered material category that can more efficiently meet the requirements of this chapter.

SEC. 2.

 Section 42041 of the Public Resources Code is amended to read:

42041.
 For purposes of this chapter, the following definitions apply:
(a) “Advisory board” means the producer responsibility advisory board established pursuant to Section 42070.
(b) “Bulk or large format packaging” means packaging for a large amount of a product in a large packaging, thereby offsetting the need for multiple smaller packaging units for the same amount of product.
(c) “California circular economy administrative fee” means the fee imposed by the department pursuant to Section 42053.5.
(d) “Concentrate” or “concentration” means reducing the amount of packaging needed for a product by reformulating the product to allow for smaller quantities of the product to be used for the same purpose as the previous, larger quantity.
(e) (1) “Covered material” means both of the following:
(A) Single-use packaging that is routinely recycled, disposed of, or discarded after its contents have been used or unpackaged, and typically not refilled or otherwise reused by the producer.
(B) Plastic single-use food service ware, including, but not limited to, plastic-coated paper or plastic-coated paperboard, paper or paperboard with plastic intentionally added during the manufacturing process, and multilayer flexible material. For purposes of this subparagraph, “single-use food service ware” includes both of the following:
(i) Trays, plates, bowls, clamshells, lids, cups, utensils, stirrers, hinged or lidded containers, and straws.
(ii) Wraps or wrappers and bags sold to food service establishments.
(2) Notwithstanding paragraph (1), “covered material” does not include any of the following:
(A) Packaging used for any of the following products:
(i) Medical products and products defined as devices or prescription drugs, as specified in the Federal Food, Drug, and Cosmetic Act (21 U.S.C. Secs. 321(g), 321(h), and 353(b)(1)).
(ii) Drugs that are used for animal medicines, including, but not limited to, parasiticide products for animals.
(iii) Products intended for animals that are regulated as animal drugs, biologics, parasiticides, medical devices, or diagnostics used to treat, or administered to, animals under the Federal Food, Drug, and Cosmetic Act (21 U.S.C. Sec. 301 et seq.), the federal Virus-Serum-Toxin Act (21 U.S.C. Sec. 151 et seq.), or the Federal Insecticide, Fungicide, and Rodenticide Act (7 U.S.C. Sec. 136 et seq.).
(iv) Infant formula, as defined in Section 321(z) of Title 21 of the United States Code.
(v) Medical food, as defined in Section 360ee(b)(3) of Title 21 of the United States Code.
(vi) Fortified oral nutritional supplements used for persons who require supplemental or sole source nutrition to meet nutritional needs due to special dietary needs directly related to cancer, chronic kidney disease, diabetes, malnutrition, or failure to thrive, as those terms are defined as by the International Classification of Diseases, Tenth Revision, or other medical conditions as determined by the department.
(B) Packaging used to contain products regulated by the Federal Insecticide, Fungicide, and Rodenticide Act (7 U.S.C. Sec. 136 et seq.).
(C) Plastic packaging containers that are used to contain and ship products that are classified for transportation as dangerous goods or hazardous materials under Part 178 (commencing with Section 178.0) of Subchapter C of Chapter I of Subtitle B of Title 49 of the Code of Federal Regulations.
(D) Packaging used to contain hazardous or flammable products regulated by the 2012 federal Occupational Safety and Health Administration Hazard Communications Standard (29 C.F.R. 1910.1200).
(E) Beverage containers subject to the California Beverage Container Recycling and Litter Reduction Act (Division 12.1 (commencing with Section 14500)).
(F) Packaging used for the long-term protection or storage of a product that has a lifespan of not less than five years, as determined by the department.
(G) Packaging associated with products covered under the architectural paint recovery program established pursuant to Chapter 5 (commencing with Section 48700) of Part 7.
(H) (i) Covered material for which the producer demonstrates to the department that the covered material meets all of the following criteria:
(I) The covered material is not collected through a residential recycling collection service.
(II) The covered material does not undergo separation from other materials at a commingled recycling processing facility.
(III) The covered material is recycled at a responsible end market.
(IV) The material has demonstrated a recycling rate of 65 percent for three consecutive years prior to January 1, 2027, and on and after that date demonstrates a recycling rate at or over 70 percent annually, as demonstrated to the department every two years.
(ii) If only a portion of the covered material sold in or into the state by a producer meets the criteria of clause (i), only the portion of the covered material that meets the criteria of clause (i) is exempt from this chapter and any portion that does not meet the criteria is a covered material for purposes of this chapter.
(f) “Covered material category” means a category that includes covered material of a similar type and form, as determined by the department.
(g) “Curbside collection” means a program that includes the collection of material, including, but not limited to, covered materials, by a local jurisdiction or recycling or composting service provider under contract with a local jurisdiction.
(h) “Department” means the Department of Resources Recycling and Recovery.
(i) “Disadvantaged community” means an area identified by the California Environmental Protection Agency pursuant to Section 39711 of the Health and Safety Code or an area identified as a disadvantaged unincorporated community pursuant to Section 65302.10 of the Government Code.
(j) “Eliminate” or “elimination,” with respect to source reduction, means the removal of a plastic component from a covered material without replacing that component with a nonplastic component.
(k) “Expanded polystyrene” means blown polystyrene and expanded or extruded foams that are thermoplastic petrochemical materials utilizing a styrene monomer and processed by any technique or techniques, including, but not limited to, fusion of polymer spheres (expandable bead polystyrene), injection molding, foam molding, and extrusion-blow molding (extruded foam polystyrene).
(l) “Local jurisdiction” means a city, county, city and county, regional agency formed pursuant to Chapter 5 (commencing with Section 6500) of Division 7 of Title 1 of the Government Code or Article 3 (commencing with Section 40970) of Chapter 1 of Part 2, or special district that provides solid waste collection services.
(m) “Lightweighting” means reducing the weight or amount of material used in a specific packaging or food service ware without functionally changing the packaging or food service ware. “Lightweighting” does not include changes that result in a recyclable or compostable covered material becoming nonrecyclable or noncompostable or less likely to be recycled or composted.
(n) “Low-income community” means an area with household incomes at or below 80 percent of the statewide median income or with household incomes at or below the threshold designated as low income by the Department of Housing and Community Development’s list of state income limits adopted pursuant to Section 50093 of the Health and Safety Code.
(o) “Malus fee” means a charge imposed by a PRO on a participant producer for a covered material due to the adverse environmental or public health impacts of the covered material.
(p) “Materials recovery facility” or “MRF” means a recycling facility that receives recyclable material, including, but not limited to, any covered material, for mechanical or manual sorting into specification-grade commodities for sale to a broker or end market.
(q) “Needs assessment” means a needs assessment prepared pursuant to Section 42067.
(r) “Optimize” or “optimization” means limiting the amount of covered material used in packaging by meeting product or packaging needs with minimal material. This includes, but is not limited to, eliminating unnecessary components, right-sizing, concentrating, and using bulk or large format packaging.
(s) “Packaging” means any separable and distinct material component used for the containment, protection, handling, delivery, or presentation of goods by the producer for the user or consumer, ranging from raw materials to processed goods. “Packaging” includes, but is not limited to, all of the following:
(1) Sales packaging or primary packaging intended to provide the user or consumer the individual serving or unit of the product and most closely containing the product, food, or beverage.
(2) Grouped packaging or secondary packaging intended to bundle, sell in bulk, brand, or display the product.
(3) Transport packaging or tertiary packaging intended to protect the product during transport.
(4) Packaging components and ancillary elements integrated into packaging, including ancillary elements directly hung onto or attached to a product and that perform a packaging function, except both of the following:
(A) An element of the packaging or food service ware with a de minimis weight or volume, which is not an independent plastic component, as determined by the department.
(B) A component or element that is an integral part of the product, if all components or elements of the product are intended to be consumed or disposed of together.
(t) “Plastic” means a synthetic or semisynthetic material chemically synthesized by the polymerization of organic substances that can be shaped into various rigid and flexible forms, and includes coatings and adhesives. “Plastic” includes, without limitation, polyethylene terephthalate (PET), high density polyethylene (HDPE), polyvinyl chloride (PVC), low density polyethylene (LDPE), polypropylene (PP), polystyrene (PS), polylactic acid (PLA), and aliphatic biopolyesters, such as polyhydroxyalkanoate (PHA) and polyhydroxybutyrate (PHB). “Plastic” does not include natural rubber or naturally occurring polymers such as proteins or starches.
(u) “Plastic component” means any single piece of covered material made partially or entirely of plastic. A plastic component may constitute the entirety of the covered material or a separate or separable piece of the covered material.
(v) “Processing” means to sort, segregate, break or flake, and clean material to prepare it to meet the specification for sale to a responsible end market.
(w) (1) “Producer” means a person who manufactures a product that uses covered material and who owns or is the licensee of the brand or trademark under which the product is used in a commercial enterprise, sold, offered for sale, or distributed in the state.
(2) If there is no person in the state who is the producer for purposes of paragraph (1), the producer of the covered material is the owner or, if the owner is not in the state, the exclusive licensee of a brand or trademark under which the covered product using the covered material is used in a commercial enterprise, sold, offered for sale, or distributed in the state. For purposes of this subdivision, a licensee is a person holding the exclusive right to use a trademark or brand in the state in connection with the manufacture, sale, or distribution of the product packaged in or made from the covered material.
(3) If there is no person in the state who is the producer for purposes of paragraph (1) or (2), the producer of the covered material is the person who sells, offers for sale, or distributes the product that uses the covered material in or into the state.
(4) “Producer” does not include a person who produces, harvests, and packages an agricultural commodity on the site where the agricultural commodity was grown or raised.
(5) For purposes of this chapter, the sale of covered materials shall be deemed to occur in the state if the covered materials are delivered to the purchaser in the state.
(x) “Producer responsibility organization” or “PRO” means an organization that is exempt from taxation under Section 501(c)(3) of the federal Internal Revenue Code of 1986 and is formed for the purpose of implementing a plan to meet the requirements of this chapter.
(y) “Producer responsibility plan” or “plan,” unless context requires otherwise, means the plan produced by a PRO, or by a producer that chooses to assume responsibility to comply with this chapter individually, and submitted to the advisory board and department pursuant to Section 42051.1.
(z) “Rate of inbound contamination” means the amount of nonrecyclable or noncompostable materials arriving at a materials recovery facility or other recycling or composting facility.
(aa) (1) “Recycle” or “recycling” means the process of collecting, sorting, cleansing, treating, and reconstituting materials that would otherwise ultimately be disposed of onto land or into water or the atmosphere, and returning them to, or maintaining them within, the economic mainstream in the form of recovered material for new, reused, or reconstituted products, including compost, that meet the quality standards necessary to be used in the marketplace.
(2) “Recycle” or “recycling” does not include any of the following:
(A) Combustion.
(B) Incineration.
(C) Energy generation.
(D) Fuel production, except for anaerobic digestion of source separated organic materials.
(E) Other forms of disposal. disposal, as defined in subdivision (b) of Section 40192.
(3) To be considered recycled, covered material shall be sent to a responsible end market.
(4) (A) The department may adopt regulations to define guidelines and verification requirements for covered material shipped out of state and exported to other countries for recycling, including processing requirements, and contamination standards, or to otherwise implement this paragraph.
(B) For any mixture of plastic waste exported to another country, the PRO or producer shall certify to the department that the processes and recycling technologies used meet both of the following requirements, as determined by the department:
(i) The plastic waste is a mixture of plastic types consisting only of one or more of polyethylene, polypropylene, or polyethylene terephthalate, and the export is destined for separate recycling of each material.
(ii) The plastic waste export is not prohibited by an applicable law or treaty of the destination jurisdiction, and the import of the plastic waste into the destination jurisdiction will be conducted in accordance with all applicable laws and treaties of that destination jurisdiction.
(C) For any mixture of plastic waste exported to other states or countries, the PRO or producer shall certify to the department that the recycling technology used meets the requirements of this subdivision.
(D) In meeting the requirements of subparagraphs (B) and (C), the PRO or producer shall provide documentation necessary to verify this certification and shall make the certification under penalty of perjury.
(5) The department’s regulations shall encourage recycling that minimizes generation of hazardous waste, generation of greenhouse gases, environmental impacts, environmental justice impacts, and public health impacts. The regulations shall include criteria to exclude plastic recycling technologies that produce significant amounts of hazardous waste.
(ab) “Recycling rate” means the percentage, overall and by category, of covered material sold, offered for sale, distributed, or imported in the state that is ultimately recycled. The recycling rate shall be calculated as the amount of covered material that is recycled in a given year divided by the total amount of covered material disposed of, as defined in subdivision (b) of Section 40192, and the amount of covered material recycled, unless and until the department adopts a new methodology for calculating the recycling rate by regulation.
(ac) “Recycling service provider” means a solid waste enterprise that provides solid waste handling services on behalf of a local jurisdiction.
(ad) “Responsible end market” means a materials market in which the recycling and recovery of materials or the disposal of contaminants is conducted in a way that benefits the environment and minimizes risks to public health and worker health and safety. The department may adopt regulations to identify responsible end markets and to establish criteria regarding benefits to the environment and minimizes risks to public health and worker health and safety.
(ae) (1) “Retailer” or “wholesaler” means the person or entity who sells covered material in the state to purchasers or offers to purchasers the covered material in the state through any means, including, but not limited to, any of the following:
(A) Remote offering, including sales outlets or catalogs.
(B) Electronically through the internet.
(C) Telephone.
(D) Mail.
(E) Direct sales.
(2) A person who sells covered material as a third-party seller using an online marketplace as described in paragraph (3) shall be considered the retailer or wholesaler for purposes of such transactions. The owner or operator of the online marketplace shall not be considered the retailer or wholesaler for such sales.
(3) For purposes of this subdivision, “online marketplace” means a consumer-directed, electronically accessed platform in which all of the following are true:
(A) The platform includes features that enable third-party sellers to sell consumer products directly to consumers in the state without the owner or operator of the platform involved in the transaction other than by providing order processing, payment, storage, shipping, or delivery services.
(B) Third-party sellers use the features described in subparagraph (A) to sell directly to consumers in the state, with title to the consumer product passing from the third-party sellers directly to consumers and not being held by the owner or operator of the online marketplace at any point during the transaction, including upon receipt of the order and throughout the order fulfillment process.
(C) Except as provided by subparagraph (E), the owner or operator of the platform does not directly or indirectly control the covered material used in packaging and shipping of a consumer product in this state.
(D) The person or entity operating the platform has a contractual or similar relationship with consumers governing their use of the platform to purchase consumer products.
(E) Third-party sellers agree, pursuant to the platform’s terms and conditions or other enforceable agreement, that they will not use the platform to offer for sale, sell, or distribute into the state covered material that does not meet the requirements of this chapter.
(af) “Reusable” or “refillable” or “reuse” or “refill,” in regard to packaging or food service ware, means either of the following:
(1) For packaging or food service ware that is reused or refilled by a producer, it satisfies all of the following:
(A) Explicitly designed and marketed to be utilized multiple times for the same product, or for another purposeful packaging use in a supply chain.
(B) Designed for durability to function properly in its original condition for multiple uses.
(C) Supported by adequate infrastructure to ensure the packaging or food service ware can be conveniently and safely reused or refilled for multiple cycles.
(D) Repeatedly recovered, inspected, and repaired, if necessary, and reissued into the supply chain for reuse or refill for multiple cycles.
(2) For packaging or food service ware that is reused or refilled by a consumer, it satisfies all of the following:
(A) Explicitly designed and marketed to be utilized multiple times for the same product.
(B) Designed for durability to function properly in its original condition for multiple uses.
(C) Supported by adequate and convenient availability of and retail infrastructure for bulk or large format packaging that may be refilled to ensure the packaging or food service ware can be conveniently and safely reused or refilled by the consumer multiple times.
(ag) “Right-size” or “right-sizing” means reducing the amount of material used to package an item by reducing unnecessary space or eliminating unnecessary components of the packaging.
(ah) “Rural area” has the same meaning as defined in Section 50101 of the Health and Safety Code.
(ai) “Single use” means conventionally disposed of after a single use or not sufficiently durable or washable to be, or not intended to be, reusable or refillable.
(aj) “Source reduction” means the reduction in the amount of covered material created by a producer relative to a baseline established pursuant to subdivision (b) of Section 42057. Methods of source reduction include, but are not limited to, shifting covered material to reusable or refillable packaging or a reusable product or eliminating unnecessary packaging. “Source reduction” does not include either of the following:
(1) Replacing a recyclable or compostable covered material with a nonrecyclable or noncompostable covered material or a covered material that is less likely to be recycled or composted.
(2) Switching from virgin covered material to postconsumer recycled content.
(ak) “Source reduction plan” means the plan prepared as part of the PRO plan in accordance with Section 42057.
(al) “Unexpended funds” means moneys in a PRO’s accounts that the organization is not already obligated to pay pursuant to a contract, claim, or similar mechanism. “Unexpended funds” excludes the California circular economy administrative fees.

SEC. 3.

 Section 42053 of the Public Resources Code is amended to read:

42053.
 (a) (1) As part of its producer responsibility plan pursuant to Section 42051.1, a PRO shall establish a fee for its participants sufficient to ensure the requirements of this chapter are met by the PRO and the plan is fully implemented. The fee shall be based on a fee schedule to be developed by the PRO pursuant to subdivision (c). Development of the fee schedule shall ensure that the PRO budget included in the plan is fully funded. The fee shall not be passed on to consumers as a separate item on a receipt or invoice.
(2) The PRO shall adjust any fee schedules at least every year or more frequently if needed in order to fully cover the expenses approved budget.
(3) A producer that is a participant of a PRO’s approved plan shall pay the fee required by this section and, upon request, provide the PRO with records or other information necessary for the PRO to meet the PRO’s requirements under this chapter.
(b) During the first two years of operation and during the preparation of the plan developed pursuant to Section 42051.1, the PRO shall determine the fee schedule for each producer based on estimated costs of implementing the plan, operating costs, the cost of completing the needs assessment, the costs to cover the environmental mitigation requirements of Section 42064, and the costs to reimburse the department. In the third year and each successive year of operation, each producer shall pay an annual fee as established in the PRO plan based on the factors described in subdivision (d).
(c) The fee schedule required pursuant to subdivision (a) shall include all of the following:
(1) Individual assessments imposed on a producer due to unique characteristics of their covered material, as described in subdivision (d).
(2) Any adjustments pursuant to subdivision (e).
(3) The California circular economy administrative fee.
(4) Reimbursing the department for costs to administer the advisory board.
(5) Any fees associated with environmental mitigation activities associated with Section 42064.
(6) The costs of the PRO, including, but not limited to, staff and the costs associated with the development and implementation of the producer responsibility plan.
(7) Any other costs described in subdivision (j) of Section 42051.1.
(d) A PRO shall structure the fee schedule required pursuant to subdivision (a), delineated by covered material category and based on the following factors:
(1) The costs to ensure each covered material category meets the requirements of this chapter. Covered material that is easier and less expensive to recycle or compost or that is designed to be recycled into a similar covered material or a material that is easier to be composted shall be subject to lower fees. The costs may include all of the following:
(A) Costs to develop and sustain viable responsible end markets for each covered material category.
(B) Costs to collect, sort, avoid or remove contamination, aggregate, and transport the covered material into defined streams to support the viable responsible end markets for the remanufacturing of the covered material either through curbside collection or other means.
(C) Costs incurred by local jurisdictions or recycling service providers to process and transport covered materials in a manner and quality sufficient for acceptance by viable responsible end markets. This includes costs incurred by local jurisdictions or recycling service providers to reduce or mitigate the rate of inbound contamination by noncertified compostable products at composting facilities. These costs may vary by local jurisdiction.
(D) Other costs necessary to implement the plan and achieve the source reduction, recyclability and compostability, recycling rate, and other requirements of this chapter, including, but not limited to, ensuring that plan implementation avoids and minimizes negative environmental or public health impacts on disadvantaged or low-income communities or rural areas.
(E) Costs incurred by local jurisdictions or recycling service providers for any waste stream sampling and reporting required by this chapter and for any costs incurred to educate ratepayers to improve the preparation and sorting, as needed, of covered material.
(2) If recycling or composting of the covered material is made more difficult by the incorporation of specific elements, including, but not limited to, inks, labels, and adhesives that may be detrimental to recycling or composting according to the Association of Plastic Recyclers design guide or other relevant industry association, or criteria established by the department, the fee for that covered material shall be sufficient to account for the increased cost to manage that covered material.
(3) The commodity value of the covered material based on an independent index or the reported commodity value of materials of equivalent quality of the covered material.
(4) Costs incurred by the PRO to assist producers to meet the source reduction requirements pursuant to Section 42057.
(e) The fee required pursuant to subdivision (a) shall be adjusted using malus fees or credits for participant producers, with those adjustments based on any of the following, as applicable:
(1) The percentage of postconsumer recycled content in the participant producer’s covered materials. The percentage of postconsumer recycled content shall be validated through an independent third party approved by the department to perform validation services to ensure that the percentage exceeds the minimum requirements for the covered material, as long as the recycled content does not disrupt the potential for future recycling.
(2) Source reduction related to right-sizing, optimization, and bulking of packaging, or concentrating the product packaged to reduce packaging.
(3) Standardization of packaging materials that simplifies the processing, marketing, sorting, and recycling or composting of covered materials.
(4) Presence of hazardous material as identified by the Office of Environmental Health Hazard Assessment, the Department of Toxic Substances Control, or the department.
(5) Actions taken by the producer, including clear and accurate disposal, recycling or composting, or reuse and refill labeling and instructions, that comply with Chapter 5.7 (commencing with Section 42335), including paragraph (6) of subdivision (d) of Section 42355.51, that improve consumer behavior related to sorting and proper disposal.
(6) Actions taken by the producer to accelerate source reduction and to invest in sustained and robust reuse and refill systems. The PRO may create a mechanism to allow producers to receive a credit for achieving source reduction beyond what producers of similar covered material are achieving. The revenue for that credit shall be paid for by charging producers not achieving source reduction for similar products a malus fee.
(7) Plastic covered materials derived from renewable materials shall be subject to a reduced fee relative to plastic covered material derived from a nonrenewable material.
(8) Certified compostable covered materials that do not contain toxic additives shall be subject to a reduced fee, as determined by the PRO.
(9) Covered material that contains toxic heavy metals, pathogens, or additives shall be subject to an increased fee.
(f) In addition to the annual schedule of fees approved in the plan, the PRO fee schedule may include a special assessment, charged to the participant producers of a particular covered material category, to be imposed on that particular category of covered material at the request of those producers if the nature of the covered material imposes unusual costs in collection or processing or requires special actions to address effective access to recycling, composting, or successful processing. The revenue from the special assessment shall be used to make system improvements for the specific covered materials or products on which the special assessment was applied.
(g) Fees paid to the PRO pursuant to subdivision (a) shall be used to implement the plan and fund the budget.

SEC. 4.

 Section 48701 of the Public Resources Code is amended to read:

48701.
 For purposes of this chapter, the following terms have the following meanings:
(a) (1) “Aerosol coating product” means a pressurized coating product containing pigments or resins dispensed by means of a propellant and packaged and sold in a disposable aerosol container for handheld application, or for use in specialized equipment for ground traffic or marking applications.
(2) “Aerosol coating product” does not include paint thinner, paint remover, graffiti remover, or caulking compounds that contain no appreciable level of opaque fillers or pigments.
(3) Aerosol coating products shall not be regulated under this chapter until the implementation date of a plan or plan amendment concerning aerosol coating products approved by the department pursuant to Section 48704, or January 1, 2027, whichever occurs sooner. The department may authorize an extension of this implementation date if the department determines the extension is necessary to implement the requirements of this chapter.

(a)

(b) “Architectural paint” means interior includes both of the following:
(1) Interior and exterior architectural coatings, sold in containers of five gallons or less for commercial or homeowner use, but does not include aerosol spray paint or coatings purchased for industrial or original equipment manufacturer use.
(2) Aerosol coating products.

(b)

(c) “Consumer” means a purchaser or owner of architectural paint, including a person, business, corporation, limited partnership, nonprofit organization, or governmental entity.

(c)

(d) “Department” means the Department of Resources Recycling and Recovery.

(d)

(e) “Distributor” means a person that has a contractual relationship with one or more manufacturers to market and sell architectural paint to retailers.

(e)

(f) “Manufacturer” means a manufacturer of architectural paint.

(f)

(g) “Postconsumer paint” means architectural paint not used by the purchaser.

(g)

(h) “Retailer” means a person that sells architectural paint in the state to a consumer. A sale includes, but is not limited to, transactions conducted through sales outlets, catalogs, or the Internet internet or any other similar electronic means.

(h)

(i) “Stewardship organization” means a nonprofit organization created by the manufacturers to implement the architectural paint stewardship program described in Section 48703.

SEC. 5.

 Section 48703 of the Public Resources Code is amended to read:

48703.
 (a) (1) On or before April 1, 2012, a manufacturer or designated stewardship organization shall submit an architectural paint stewardship plan to the department.
(2) (A) On or before July 1, 2026, a manufacturer or stewardship organization shall submit an architectural paint stewardship plan or amendment to an approved architectural paint stewardship plan to the department.
(B) Failure to have a plan or plan amendment approved on or before January 1, 2027, as specified in paragraph (3) of subdivision (a) of Section 48701, shall result in a finding of noncompliance until a plan or plan amendment is approved.
(b) (1) The plan shall demonstrate sufficient funding for the architectural paint stewardship program as described in the plan, including a funding mechanism for securing and dispersing disbursing funds to cover administrative, operational, and capital costs, including the assessment of charges on architectural paint sold by manufacturers in this state.
(2) The funding mechanism shall provide for an architectural paint stewardship assessment for each container of architectural paint sold by manufacturers in this state and the assessment shall be remitted to the stewardship organization, if applicable.
(3) The architectural paint stewardship assessment shall be added to the cost of all architectural paint sold to California retailers and distributors, and each California retailer or distributor shall add the assessment to the purchase price of all architectural paint sold in the state.
(4) The architectural paint stewardship assessment shall be approved by the department as part of the plan, and shall be sufficient to recover, but not exceed, the cost of the architectural paint stewardship program. The plan shall require that any surplus funds be put back into the program to reduce the costs of the program, including the assessment amount.
(c) The plan shall address the coordination of the architectural paint stewardship program with existing local household hazardous waste collection programs as much as this is reasonably feasible and is mutually agreeable between those programs.
(d) The plan shall include goals established by the manufacturer or stewardship organization to reduce the generation of postconsumer paint, to promote the reuse of postconsumer paint, and for the proper end-of-life management of postconsumer paint, including recovery and recycling of postconsumer paint, as practical, based on current household hazardous waste program information. The goals may be revised by the manufacturer or stewardship organization based on the information collected for the annual report.
(e) The plan shall include consumer, contractor, and retailer education and outreach efforts to promote the source reduction and recycling of architectural paint. This information may include, but is not limited to, developing, and updating as necessary, educational and other outreach materials aimed at retailers of architectural paint. These materials shall be made available to the retailers. These materials may include, but are not limited to, one or more of the following:
(1) Signage that is prominently displayed and easily visible to the consumer.
(2) Written materials and templates of materials for reproduction by retailers to be provided to the consumer at the time of purchase or delivery, or both. Written materials shall include information on the prohibition of improper disposal of architectural paint.
(3) Advertising or other promotional materials, or both, that include references to architectural paint recycling opportunities.
(f) Any retailer may participate, on a voluntary basis, as a paint collection point pursuant to the paint stewardship program, if the retailer’s paint collection location meets all of the conditions in Sections 25217.2 and 25217.2.1 of the Health and Safety Code. Code for oil-based or recyclable latex paints, or Section 25201.16 of the Health and Safety Code for aerosol paint containers.

SEC. 6.

 Section 48705 of the Public Resources Code is amended to read:

48705.
 (a) On or before November 1, 2016, and each year thereafter, May 15 of each year, a manufacturer of architectural paint sold in this state shall, individually or through a representative stewardship organization, submit a report to the department describing its architectural paint recovery efforts. At a minimum, the report shall include all of the following:
(1) The total volume of architectural paint sold sold, excluding aerosol coating products, in this state during the preceding fiscal calendar year.
(2) The total volume of postconsumer architectural paint recovered recovered, excluding aerosol coating products, in this state during the preceding fiscal calendar year.
(3) A description of methods used to collect, transport, and process postconsumer architectural paint in this state. state, excluding aerosol coating products.
(4) Commencing with the 2028 report, the total volume of aerosol coating products sold in this state during the preceding calendar year.
(5) Commencing with the 2028 report, the total volume of aerosol coating products recovered, including amount, in this state during the preceding calendar year.
(6) Commencing with the 2028 report, a description of methods used to collect, transport, and process aerosol coating products in this state.

(4)

(7) The total cost of implementing the architectural paint stewardship program.

(5)

(8) An evaluation of how the architectural paint stewardship program’s funding mechanism operated.

(6)

(9) An independent financial audit funded from the paint stewardship assessment.

(7)

(10) Examples of educational materials that were provided to consumers the first year and any changes to those materials in subsequent years.
(b) The department shall review the annual report required pursuant to this section and within 90 days of receipt shall adopt a finding of compliance or noncompliance with this chapter.

SEC. 7.

 Section 48707 is added to the Public Resources Code, immediately following Section 48706, to read:

48707.
 The department, in coordination with the Department of Toxic Substances Control, may adopt regulations to clarify and implement this chapter.

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