Bill Text: CA SB279 | 2025-2026 | Regular Session | Introduced
Bill Title: Solid waste: compostable materials.
Spectrum: Partisan Bill (Democrat 1-0)
Status: (Introduced) 2025-02-14 - Referred to Com. on E.Q. [SB279 Detail]
Download: California-2025-SB279-Introduced.html
CALIFORNIA LEGISLATURE—
2025–2026 REGULAR SESSION
Senate Bill
No. 279
| Introduced by Senator McNerney |
February 05, 2025 |
An act to add Section 44019 to the Public Resources Code, relating to solid waste.
LEGISLATIVE COUNSEL'S DIGEST
SB 279, as introduced, McNerney.
Solid waste: compostable materials.
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 require that the total amount of feedstock and compost onsite at any one time not exceed 500 cubic yards instead of the 100 cubic yards and 750 square feet in the regulations. The bill would also require 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 to be an excluded activity, as specified.
Existing regulations require composting operations in the enforcement agency notification tier to comply with certain solid waste requirements, including, but not limited to, providing written notice to an enforcement agency before
commencing operations, as provided. Under existing regulations, the enforcement agency notification tier includes, but is not limited to, certain agricultural, green material, and biosolids composting operations.
This bill would require a composting operation to be included in the enforcement agency notification tier and authorize the operation to accept up to 10% food material by volume for a period not to exceed 5 years before applying for a full solid waste facility permit, if specified conditions are met, including, but not limited to, the operation having between 500 and 12,500 cubic yards of material onsite.
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 those composting operations to give away or sell up to 5,000 cubic yards of compost product annually.
Digest Key
Vote: MAJORITY Appropriation: NO Fiscal Committee: YES Local Program: NOBill Text
The people of the State of California do enact as follows:
SECTION 1.
Section 44019 is added to the Public Resources Code, immediately following Section 44018, to read:44019.
(a) Composting green material, agricultural material, food material, and vegetative food material activities, alone or in combination, is an excluded activity for purposes of Section 17855 of Title 14 of the California Code of Regulations if it meets either of the following:(1) The total amount of feedstock and compost onsite at any one time does not exceed 500 cubic yards.
(2) (A) The composting is 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, including, but not limited to, a crop rotation or the removal of a whole orchard or
vineyard.
(B) The excluded activity described in subparagraph (A) may include acquiring and using agricultural materials, agricultural byproduct materials, and agricultural manure to blend with the onsite agricultural materials and residues resulting from the removal of the whole orchard or vineyard.
(b) (1) A composting operation is included in the enforcement agency notification tier, as prescribed by Section 17854.1 of Title 14 of the California Code of Regulations, and may accept up to 10 percent food material by volume for a period not to exceed five years before applying for a full solid waste facility permit, if all of the following are met:
(A) The operation has between 500 and 12,500 cubic yards of material onsite.
(B) The
operation is in compliance with Title 14 of the California Code of Regulations.
(C) The operation notifies the applicable enforcement agency in writing before accepting food material.
(2) The department may adopt best management practices and training requirements for activities described in paragraph (1).
(c) A composting operation may give away or sell up to 5,000 cubic yards of compost product annually for purposes of both of the following:
(1) Paragraph (1) of subdivision (a) of Section 17855 of Title 14 of the California Code of Regulations.
(2) Subparagraph (A) of paragraph (1) of subdivision (d) of Section 17856 of Title 14 of the California Code of
Regulations.
