BILL ANALYSIS                                                                                                                                                                                                    Ó



                                                                  AB 2675
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          Date of Hearing:   April 9, 2014

           ASSEMBLY COMMITTEE ON ACCOUNTABILITY AND ADMINISTRATIVE REVIEW
                                 Jim Frazier, Chair
               AB 2675 (Lowenthal) - As Introduced:  February 21, 2014
           
          SUBJECT  :   State agency: public contracts

           SUMMARY  :  Requires state agencies that purchase products  
          specified in the State Agency Buy Recycled Campaign (SABRC) to  
          increase the threshold of recycled purchases from 50% to 75% by  
          2020.

           EXISTING LAW  requires state agencies to do the following: 

          1)Purchase products that contain specified minimum amounts of  
            postconsumer recycled-content material in 11 reportable  
            product categories defined in statute.

          2)Ensure that at least 50% of the purchases in the 11 categories  
            are for recycled products. 

          3)Report annually to the California Department of Resources  
            Recycling and Recovery (CalRecycle) dollars spent on recycled  
            and non-recycled products purchased in the 11 categories. 

           FISCAL EFFECT  :   Unknown

           COMMENTS  :   AB 4 (Eastin), Chapter 1094, Statutes of 1989,  
          established SABRC, which requires agencies to buy recycled items  
          for at least 50% of their purchases in 11 reportable product  
          categories.
            
          Agencies are required to purchase recycled products whenever  
          available, if fitness and quality are equal and the products  
          cost the same or less than non-recycled products.  Agencies  
          annually report information about their purchases in these  
          categories to CalRecycle.  CalRecycle then compiles this  
          information and produces reports about SABRC compliance by  
          product category and department.  

          The 11 reportable categories are: 

          1)Paper products; 









                                                                  AB 2675
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          2)Printing and writing papers; 

          3)Mulch, compost, co-compost; 

          4)Glass products; 

          5)Lubricating oils; 

          6)Plastic products; 

          7)Paint; 

          8)Antifreeze; 

          9)Tires; 

          10)Tire-derived products; and, 

          11)Metal products.

          This bill would increase the requirement for recycled purchases  
          in these categories to 75% by January 1, 2020.  In the most  
          recent SABRC report for Fiscal Year 2011-12, agencies spent  
          about $130 million on recycled products.  This accounted for 70%  
          of purchase amounts for the 11 categories.  Additionally,  
          purchases in the three product categories of mulch, compost,  
          co-compost; metal products; and tire-derived products exceeded  
          the 75% mark.  However, some product categories fell short of  
          the current 50% mandate.

          According to the author, increasing the threshold aligns with  
          the state-wide goal set by AB 341 (Chesbro), Chapter 476,  
          Statutes of 2011, which aims to divert at least 75% of solid  
          waste through reduction, recycling, and composting by 2020.     

           REGISTERED SUPPORT / OPPOSITION  :   

           Support 
           
          None on file

           Opposition 
           
          None on file
           








                                                                 AB 2675
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          Analysis Prepared by  :    Scott Herbstman / A. & A.R. / (916)  
          319-3600