BILL ANALYSIS Ó AB 1019 Page 1 Date of Hearing: April 26, 2011 ASSEMBLY COMMITTEE ON BUSINESS, PROFESSIONS AND CONSUMER PROTECTION Mary Hayashi, Chair AB 1019 (John A. Pérez) - As Amended: April 14, 2011 SUBJECT : Solid waste: carpet stewardship. SUMMARY : Establishes January 1, 2014, as the date by which the Department of General Services (DGS) must take steps to recycle postconsumer carpet removed from buildings owned or leased by the state. EXISTING LAW : 1)Requires, on or before January 1, 2014, the Department of Resources Recycling and Recovery (DRRR) and DGS to complete a study that examines the standard for carpet purchases by the state and recommend to the Governor and the Legislature any appropriate changes to that standard. 2)Requires DGS, to the extent feasible and within existing resources, to take appropriate steps, including revising relevant procurement rules, to ensure that postconsumer carpet that is removed from state buildings be recycled whenever possible. FISCAL EFFECT : Unknown COMMENTS : Purpose of this bill . According to the author's office, "Discarded carpets are a major heavy contributor to landfill mass. They are heavy, bulky, and costly to manage as waste. These costs are often borne by local governments. Postconsumer carpet also can be used to make a variety of secondary products, including carpet pads, carpet backing, carpet fiber, plastics, and engineered material. The state is a major generator of discarded carpet. This bill will ensure that by January 1, 2014, DGS will manage discarded carpet from state buildings consistent with AB 2398 (John A. Perez), Chapter 681, Statutes of 2010." Background . AB 2398 established a statewide product stewardship AB 1019 Page 2 program that required California carpet manufacturers to prepare a carpet stewardship plan that maximizes the diversion of postconsumer carpet, or carpet no longer used for its manufactured purpose, from landfills and encourages the recycling of waste carpet into secondary products. When consumers install new carpets, the carpet installers will remove, and recycle or dispose of, the old carpet. AB 2398 required DGS to take appropriate steps to ensure that carpets removed from state buildings are managed consistently with statutes relating to carpet recycling, but did not set a date by which DGS should meet that requirement. This bill requires DGS to take appropriate action by January 1, 2014. According to DRRR's 2008 Statewide Waste Characterization Study, an estimated 1.3 million tons of carpet are annually disposed in California landfills, comprising 3.2% of all solid waste. According to the United States Environmental Protection Agency, barriers to effective recycling include the lack of an established infrastructure to collect and process waste carpet, especially from residential sources. Support . According to the City and County of San Francisco (S.F.), "Last year, the Legislature approved AB 2398 to reduce the amount of carpet that ends up in landfills by emphasizing the recycling of waste carpeting into new products. This will result in the creation of new jobs and will also lessen the need to create costly additional landfill space. ÝThis bill] directs DGS to apply these principles to carpet that is removed from state buildings. S.F. has adopted goals of 75% landfill diversion by 2010 and zero waste by 2020. Since there are large state buildings in S.F., Ýthis bill] will provide assistance to S.F. in meeting its long-term diversion goals. This bill will also bring down solid waste disposal costs for all cities and counties." Previous Legislation . AB 2398 (John A. Pérez), Chapter 681, Statutes of 2010, established a statewide product stewardship program that required state carpet manufacturers to prepare a carpet stewardship plan that maximizes the diversion of postconsumer carpet from landfills and encourages the recycling of waste carpet into secondary products. Double-Referred . This bill is double-referred to Assembly Natural Resources Committee. AB 1019 Page 3 REGISTERED SUPPORT / OPPOSITION : Support City and County of San Francisco Opposition None on file. Analysis Prepared by : Joanna Gin / B.,P. & C.P. / (916) 319-3301