BILL ANALYSIS
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|SENATE RULES COMMITTEE | SB 228|
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UNFINISHED BUSINESS
Bill No: SB 228
Author: DeSaulnier (D)
Amended: 8/18/10
Vote: 21
SENATE ENV. QUALITY COMMITTEE : 5-2, 5/4/09
AYES: Simitian, Corbett, Hancock, Lowenthal, Pavley
NOES: Runner, Ashburn
SENATE APPROPRIATIONS COMMITTEE : 6-3, 1/21/10
AYES: Kehoe, Corbett, Leno, Liu, Price, Yee
NOES: Cox, Denham, Walters
SENATE FLOOR : 24-10, 1/28/10
AYES: Calderon, Cedillo, Corbett, Correa, DeSaulnier,
Ducheny, Florez, Hancock, Kehoe, Leno, Liu, Lowenthal,
Negrete McLeod, Oropeza, Padilla, Pavley, Price, Romero,
Simitian, Steinberg, Wiggins, Wolk, Wright, Yee
NOES: Aanestad, Ashburn, Cogdill, Cox, Denham, Dutton,
Harman, Hollingsworth, Strickland, Wyland
NO VOTE RECORDED: Alquist, Huff, Maldonado, Runner,
Walters, Vacancy
ASSEMBLY FLOOR : 55-21, 8/23/10 - See last page for vote
SUBJECT : Plastic bags: compostable or plastic bags
SOURCE : Biodegradable Products Institute
DIGEST : This bill, beginning July 1, 2011, (1) requires
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manufacturers of compostable plastic bags that meets the
American Society for Testing and Materials D6400 standard
specification to ensure that the bag is readily
identifiable from other plastic bags, (2) prohibits a
compostable bag sold or distributed in this state from
displaying the chasing arrow identification code or any
other symbol, and (3) clarifies that these provisions do
not conflict with the Federal Trade Commission guidance for
enviro claims.
Assembly Amendments (1) delete a section requiring a
certification reporting requirement to be submitted to the
Department of Resources, Recovery, and Recycling, as
specified; and (2) clarify that the provisions of the bill
do not conflict with the Federal Trade Commission Guides
for the Use of Environmental Marketing Claims.
ANALYSIS : Under existing law, the California Integrated
Waste Management Act of 1989:
1. Defines American Society for Testing and Materials
(ASTM) "Standards for Compostable Plastics" and
"Standard Specification for Non-Floating Biodegradable
Plastics in the Marine Environment."
2. Prohibits a person from selling a plastic bag in this
state with the term "compostable" or "marine
biodegradable" unless the bag meets the above applicable
ASTM standard specification.
3. Sets procedures for the California Integrated Waste
Management Board which has been abolished and replaced
as the Department of Resources Recovery and Recycling
(DRRR) to review a new ASTM standard specification or
other standard developed by another entity.
This bill:
1. Beginning July 1, 2011, requires a manufacturer of a
compostable plastic bag that meets an existing American
Society for Testing and Materials (ASTM) standard to
ensure that the bag is readily and easily identifiable
from other plastic bags.
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2. Defines "readily and easily identifiable" as:
A. Labeled with a certification logo indicating
that the bag meets the ASTM D6400 standard
specification if the bag has been certified as
meeting the standard by a recognized third-party
independent verification.
B. A bag that is a uniform green color and labeled
with the word "compostable" on one side of the bag
(at least one inch in height); or, a bag that is
labeled with the word "compostable" on both sides
of the bag in green, as specified.
C. Specifies that a bag smaller than 14 inches by 14
inches, the lettering shall be in proportion to the
size of the bag.
3. Prohibits a compostable bag sold or distributed in the
state from displaying the chasing arrow resin
identification code or any other recycling symbol.
4. Clarifies that the provisions of the bill do not
conflict with the Federal Trade Commission Guides for
the Use of Environmental Marketing Claims.
Comments
According to the author's office, the use of compostable
bags is increasing, leading local governments to establish
organics separation and composting. Currently, there is no
way to visibly tell the difference between compostable,
marine degradable, and [conventional] plastic bags. The
author's office notes that conventional bags get into the
compost stream and contaminate the compost leading to
higher processing costs. This bill seeks to remedy this by
requiring bags that meet the compostable and marine
degradable standards as set in current law to be readily
and easily identifiable for the purposes of separating
these bags from [conventional] plastic bags in the
recycling and composting streams."
According to the author's office the use of compostable
bags is increasing, leading local governments to establish
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organics separation and composting. Currently, there is no
way to visibly tell the difference between compostable,
marine degradable, and [conventional] plastic bags? As a
result, [conventional] bags are getting into the compost
stream and contaminating the compost and leading to higher
processing costs. Likewise, can be contaminated if
compostable bags are included in the [conventional] plastic
recycling streams. This bill is intends to alleviate
contamination concerns by making compostable bags easily
identifiable for sorting.
According to DRRR, "many existing composting operations
reject compostable plastics because they have found that
most of them, even those certified by the Biodegradable
Products Institute [as meeting the ASTM D6400 standard], do
not undergo degradation at a rate consistent with other
compostable materials."
Federal standards for organics require that compost not
contain plastic of any kind. Including compostable plastics
as feedstock would make the finished compost ineligible for
use in organic farms.
This bill applies only to compostable plastic bags and does
not include biodegradable or marine degradable bags. While
this may be helpful to ensure that only compostable bags
are processed in composting operations, it does not address
contamination of the recycling stream by biodegradable or
marine degradable bags.
FISCAL EFFECT : Appropriation: No Fiscal Com.: Yes
Local: No
According to the Assembly Appropriations Committee this
bill has no state costs.
SUPPORT : (Verified 8/24/10)
Biodegradable Products Institute (source)
Californians Against Waste
California Film Extruders and Converters Association
Department of the Environment, City and County of San
Francisco
Heritage Bag Company
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Metabolix, Inc.
ASSEMBLY FLOOR :
AYES: Ammiano, Arambula, Bass, Beall, Bill Berryhill, Tom
Berryhill, Block, Blumenfield, Bradford, Brownley,
Buchanan, Caballero, Charles Calderon, Carter, Chesbro,
Coto, Davis, De La Torre, De Leon, Eng, Evans, Feuer,
Fletcher, Fong, Fuentes, Galgiani, Garrick, Gatto,
Gilmore, Hayashi, Hernandez, Hill, Huber, Huffman, Jones,
Lieu, Bonnie Lowenthal, Ma, Mendoza, Monning, Nava, V.
Manuel Perez, Portantino, Ruskin, Salas, Saldana,
Skinner, Solorio, Swanson, Torlakson, Torres, Torrico,
Villines, Yamada, John A. Perez
NOES: Adams, Anderson, Conway, Cook, DeVore, Fuller,
Gaines, Hagman, Harkey, Jeffries, Knight, Logue, Miller,
Nestande, Niello, Nielsen, Norby, Silva, Smyth, Audra
Strickland, Tran
NO VOTE RECORDED: Furutani, Hall, Vacancy, Vacancy
TSM:do 8/24/10 Senate Floor Analyses
SUPPORT/OPPOSITION: SEE ABOVE
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