BILL NUMBER: AB 2670	AMENDED
	BILL TEXT

	AMENDED IN SENATE  AUGUST 21, 2012
	AMENDED IN SENATE  JUNE 20, 2012
	AMENDED IN ASSEMBLY  APRIL 10, 2012
	AMENDED IN ASSEMBLY  MARCH 28, 2012

INTRODUCED BY    Committee on Natural Resources 
 (   Assembly Members Chesbro (Chair),
Brownley, Dickinson, Halderman, Huffman, Monning, and Skinner
  )   Assembly   Members 
 Chesbro   and Williams 

                        MARCH 5, 2012

   An act to amend Sections  41781.3,  42301, 42649.1,
 and   42649.2, and  42649.3of  , and
to add Sections 41781.4 and 43020.5 to,  the Public Resources
Code, relating to solid waste.


	LEGISLATIVE COUNSEL'S DIGEST


   AB 2670, as amended,  Committee on Natural Resources
  Chesbro  . Solid  waste recycling:
facilities.   waste: recycling:   diversion:
green materials.  
   (1) The existing California Integrated Waste Management Act of
1989, which is administered by the Department of Resources Recycling
and Recovery, establishes an integrated waste management program.
Existing law requires each city, county, and regional agency, if any,
to develop a source reduction and recycling element of an integrated
waste management plan. The act requires the source reduction and
recycling element to divert from disposal 50% of all solid waste
subject to the element through source reduction, recycling, and
composting activities, with specified exceptions. Under the act, the
use of solid waste for beneficial reuse in the construction and
operation of a solid waste landfill, including the use of alternative
daily cover, constitutes diversion through recycling and is not
considered disposal.  
   This bill would require the department to adopt regulations to
provide that, on and after January 1, 2020, the use of green material
as alternative daily cover or alternative intermediate cover does
not constitute diversion through recycling and would be considered
disposal for purposes of the act. The bill would authorize the
department to delay the effective date of this requirement, as
specified. The bill would impose a state-mandated local program by
imposing new duties upon local agencies with regard to the diversion
of solid waste.  
   This bill would require the department, by January 1, 2014, to
conduct an analysis of the use of residual fines from material
recovery facilities and materials left over from the composting
process for use as alternative daily cover and other forms of
beneficial use in the design and operation of a solid waste landfill.
The bill would require the department to adopt regulations, by July
1, 2014, based on this analysis, if the department makes a specified
determination that residual fines from material recovery facilities
and materials left over from the composting process would serve as
adequate daily cover.  
   (1) The California Integrated Waste Management Act of 1989

    (2)    The act  requires rigid plastic
packaging containers that are sold or offered for sale in this state
to meet, on average, one of specified criteria and defines terms for
purposes of those requirements. One of those criteria that a rigid
plastic packaging container may meet to satisfy this requirement is
that the container be source reduced. The act provides for the
enforcement of these requirements by the Department of Resources
Recycling and Recovery and provides that an entity making a false
certification pursuant to those requirements is subject to a
violation for fraud.
   This bill would revise the definitions of the various terms used
in the those requirements, including revising the definition of the
term "source reduced" to impose new requirements, thereby imposing a
state-mandated local program by changing the definition of a crime.

   (2) 
    (3)  The act requires a business, which is defined as a
commercial or public entity, that generates more than 4 cubic yards
of commercial solid waste per week or is a multifamily residential
dwelling of 5 units or more, to arrange for recycling services.
Existing law also requires jurisdictions to implement a commercial
solid waste recycling program meeting specified elements. Existing
law defines the term "commercial solid waste" by reference to a
specified regulation.
   This bill would instead define commercial solid waste in statute
to include all types of solid waste generated by a store, office, or
other commercial or public entity source, including a business or a
multifamily dwelling of 5 or more units, thereby imposing a
state-mandated local program by imposing new requirements upon local
jurisdictions  . The bill would define   the term
"large-quantity commercial organics generator" as a business that
generates significant amounts of organic waste, including food waste
and green material, that is traditionally disposed of in a solid
waste landfill, as determined by the department  . 
   The bill would require the department to adopt, by January 1,
2017, regulations to require a large-quantity commercial organics
generator to arrange for separate organics collection and recycling
services, except as specified.  
   The bill would impose a state-mandated local program by imposing
new duties upon local agencies with regard to the commercial solid
waste program required to be implemented by local agencies. 

   (4) The act requires the department to adopt regulations setting
forth standards for solid waste handling. A violation of the
provisions regulating solid waste facilities is a crime.  
   This bill would require a solid waste facility that accepts solid
waste from the public or self-haulers to establish a separate
collection area for segregated green material and nonhazardous woody
material. The bill would prohibit the disposal of this material, but
would allow its use for beneficial reuse in the construction and
operation of a solid waste landfill, including as alternative daily
cover. Since a violation of this requirement would be a crime, the
bill would impose a state-mandated local program.  
   (3) 
    (5)  The California Constitution requires the state to
reimburse local agencies and school districts for certain costs
mandated by the state. Statutory provisions establish procedures for
making that reimbursement.
   This bill would provide that no reimbursement is required by this
act for specified reasons.
   Vote: majority. Appropriation: no. Fiscal committee: yes.
State-mandated local program: yes.


THE PEOPLE OF THE STATE OF CALIFORNIA DO ENACT AS FOLLOWS:

   SECTION 1.    The Legislature finds and declares all
of the following:  
   (a) With the enactment of the California Integrated Waste
Management Act of 1989 (Division 30 (commencing with Section 40000)
of the Public Resources Code), the Legislature declared that the
Department of Resources Recycling and Recovery (Cal Recycle) and
local agencies shall promote recycling, anaerobic digestion, and
composting over land disposal and transformation.  
   (b) Since the enactment of the act, local governments and private
industries have worked jointly to create an extensive material
collection infrastructure and have implemented effective programs to
achieve a statewide diversion rate greater than 50 percent. 

   (c) Although California now leads the nation in waste reduction
and recycling, the state continues to dispose of more than 15 million
tons of compostable organics each year in solid waste landfills.
 
   (d) Composting or anaerobically digesting organic materials
results in substantial environmental and agricultural benefits,
including the reduction of naturally occurring volatile organic
compounds and ammonia.  
   (e) The Economic and Technology Advancement Advisory Committee,
formed pursuant to the California Global Warming Solutions Act of
2006 (Division 25.5 (commencing with Section 38500) of the Health and
Safety Code), has identified composting and anaerobic digestion as a
cost-effective technology for reducing greenhouse gas emissions.
 
   (f) The application of compost in agriculture and landscaping has
been shown to offer significant water quality benefits, provide
erosion control, reduce the need for synthetic fertilizers and
pesticides, and conserve water and irrigation-associated energy.
 
   (g) In 2007, the former state agency that preceded CalRecycle
adopted a Strategic Directive 6.1 to reduce the amount of organics in
the waste stream by 50 percent by the year 2020.  
   (h) To reduce the landfilling of organics, increase composting and
anaerobic digestion, and meet the organics disposal reduction target
adopted by CalRecycle, the state should reduce barriers to, and
provide incentives for, increasing processing capacity and end-use
markets for compostable organics. 
   SEC. 2.    Section 41781.3 of the   Public
Resources Code   is amended to read: 
   41781.3.  (a)  (1)    The use of solid waste for
beneficial reuse in the construction and operation of a solid waste
landfill, including use of alternative daily cover, which reduces or
eliminates the amount of solid waste being disposed pursuant to
Section 40124, shall constitute diversion through recycling and shall
not be considered disposal for the purposes of this division. 
   (2) The department shall adopt regulations to provide that, no
later than January 1, 2020, the use of green material, as defined in
regulations by the department, as alternative daily cover or
alternative intermediate cover, does not constitute diversion through
recycling and shall be considered disposal for purposes of this
division.  
   (3) When adopting regulations pursuant to paragraph (2), the
department may establish requirements for different regions of the
state to be in effect on or before January 1, 2020, but not later
than January 1, 2020.  
   (4) The department shall provide notice to all operators of
disposal facilities of the requirements in the regulations adopted
pursuant to paragraph (2) one year prior to the effective date of the
requirements.  
   (5) The department may, at its sole discretion, delay the
effective date of the regulations required to be adopted pursuant to
paragraph (2) for up to two years if the department determines that
sufficient regional green material processing infrastructure will not
exist to handle this material. 
   (b) Prior to December 31, 1997, pursuant to the  board's
  department's  authority to adopt rules and
regulations pursuant to Section 40502, the  board 
 department  shall, by regulation, establish conditions for
the use of alternative daily cover that are consistent with this
division. In adopting the regulations, the  board 
 department  shall consider, but is not limited to, all of
the following criteria:
   (1) Those conditions established in past policies adopted by the
 board   department  affecting the use of
alternative daily cover.
   (2) Those conditions necessary to provide for the continued
economic development, economic viability, and employment
opportunities provided by the composting industry in the state.
   (3) Those performance standards and limitations on maximum
functional thickness necessary to ensure protection of public health
and safety consistent with state minimum standards.
   (c)  Until   Except as provided in paragraph
(2) of subdivision (a), until  the adoption of additional
regulations, the use of alternative daily cover shall be governed by
the conditions established by the  board   dep
  artment  in its  existing  
former  regulations set forth in paragraph (3) of subdivision
(b) of, and paragraph (3) of subdivision (c) of, Section 18813 of
Title 14 of the California Code of Regulations, as those sections
read on  the effective date of this section  
January 1, 1997  , and by the conditions established in the
board's policy adopted on January 25, 1995.
   (d) In adopting rules and regulations pursuant to this section,
Section 40124, and this division, including, but not limited to, Part
2 (commencing with Section 40900), the  board  
department  shall provide guidance to local enforcement
agencies on any conditions and restrictions on the utilization of
alternative daily cover so as to ensure proper enforcement of those
rules and regulations.
   SEC. 3.    Section 41781.4 is added to the  
Public Resources Code   , to read:  
   41781.4.  (a) On or before January 1, 2014, the department shall
conduct an analysis of the effect on public health and safety,
consistent with state minimum standards, of the use of residual fines
from material recovery facilities and materials left over from the
composting process for alternative daily cover and other forms of
beneficial use in the design and operation of a solid waste landfill.

   (b) On or before July 1, 2014, based on the analysis conducted
pursuant to subdivision (a), if the department determines that fines
from material recovery facilities or materials left over from the
composting process would serve as an adequate daily cover, the
department shall adopt regulations for residual fines from material
recovery facilities or materials left over from the composting
process as an authorized material for use as alternative daily cover
and beneficial reuse at solid waste facility landfills in the state,
which regulations shall include performance standards and limitations
on the maximum functional thickness necessary to ensure protection
of public health and safety, consistent with state minimum standards.

   (c) The regulations adopted pursuant to paragraph (b) shall
include performance standards and may include standards for
screening, processing, and testing material recovery facility fines
to insure all of the following:
   (1) The material does not contain hazardous materials above
approved thresholds.
   (2) The material performs adequately in its ability to control
odors, vectors, litter, and scavenging.
   (3) The use of the material does not negatively affect the
conditions necessary to provide for the continued economic
development, economic viability, and employment opportunities
provided by the composting and recycling industries in the state.
   (d) The regulations adopted pursuant to this section for the use
of residual fines from materials recovery facilities for use as
alternative daily cover or for beneficial reuse in the design and
operation of a solid waste landfill, shall meet both of the following
requirements:
   (1) The regulations shall not allow the use of residual fines from
mixed waste processing.
   (2) The regulations shall require that any materials left over
from the composting process used as alternative daily cover or
beneficial reuse in the design and operation of a solid waste
landfill not exceed 5 percent of the incoming material at the source
compost facility, by weight. 
   SECTION 1.   SEC. 4.   Section 42301 of
the Public Resources Code is amended to read:
   42301.  For purposes of this chapter, the following definitions
apply:
   (a) "Container manufacturer" means a company or a successor
company that manufactures and sells any rigid plastic packaging
container subject to this chapter to a manufacturer that sells or
offers for sale in this state any product packaged in that container.

   (b) "Curbside collection program" means a recycling program that
collects materials set out by households for collection at the curb
at intervals not less than every two weeks. "Curbside collection
program" does not include redemption centers, buyback locations,
dropoff programs, material recovery facilities, or plastic recovery
facilities.
   (c) "Refillable package" means a rigid plastic packaging container
that is routinely returned to and refilled by the product
manufacturer or its agent at least five times with the original
product contained by the rigid plastic packaging containers.
   (d) "Reusable package" means a rigid plastic packaging container
that is routinely reused by consumers at least five times to store
the original product contained by the package.
   (e) "Manufacturer" means the producer or generator of a product
that is sold or offered for sale in the state and that is stored
inside of a rigid plastic packaging container.
   (f) "Rigid plastic packaging container" means a plastic packaging
container having a relatively inflexible finite shape or form, with a
minimum capacity of eight fluid ounces or its equivalent volume and
a maximum capacity of five fluid gallons or its equivalent volume,
that is capable of maintaining its shape while holding other
products, including, but not limited to, bottles, cartons, and other
receptacles, for sale or distribution in the state.
   (g) (1) "Postconsumer material" means a material that would
otherwise be destined for solid waste disposal, having completed its
intended end use and product lifecycle.
   (2) Except as provided in paragraphs (3) and (4), postconsumer
material does not include materials and byproducts generated from,
and commonly reused within, an original manufacturing and fabrication
process.
   (3) "Postconsumer material" includes finished plastic packaging
that has been rejected by a container or product manufacturer, and
that would be commonly disposed of, if the department determines the
material is later used in a process that is other than an original
manufacturing and fabrication process.
   (4) "Postconsumer material" includes a rigid plastic packaging
container holding an obsolete or unsold product that is commonly
disposed of, and not commonly reused, within an original
manufacturing process, if the rigid plastic packaging container is
used as feedstock for new rigid plastic packaging containers or under
the alternative compliance method established by Section 42310.3.
   (h) "Recycled" means a product or material that has been reused in
the production of another product and has been diverted from
disposal in a landfill.
   (i) "Recycling rate" means the proportion, as measured by weight,
volume, or number, of a rigid plastic packaging container sold or
offered for sale in the state that is being recycled in a given
calendar year, that is one of the following:
   (1) A particular type of rigid plastic packaging container, such
as a milk jug, soft drink container, or detergent bottle.
   (2) A product-associated rigid plastic packaging container.
   (3) A single resin type, as specified in Section 18015, of rigid
plastic packaging container, notwithstanding the exemption of that
container from this chapter pursuant to subdivision (b), (c), or (d)
of Section 42340.
   (j) (1) "Source reduced container" means a rigid plastic container
for which the container weight per unit or number of product uses
has been reduced by 10 percent when compared with one of the
following:
    (A) The rigid plastic packaging container used for the product by
the manufacturer on January 1, 1995.
    (B) The rigid plastic packaging container used for that product
by the product manufacturer over the course of the first full year of
commerce in this state.
    (C) A rigid plastic packaging container used in commerce in this
state during the same year for similar products in similar rigid
plastic packaging containers by the product manufacturer whose
containers have not been considered source reduced, or a particular
type of rigid plastic packaging container that is used to hold a
similar product by other product manufacturers, as determined by the
department, whose containers have not been considered source reduced.

   (2) A rigid plastic packaging container is not a source reduced
container for the purposes of this chapter if the reduction was
achieved by any of the following:
   (A) Substituting a different material type for a material that
previously constituted the principal material of the container.
   (B) Increasing a container's weight per unit or number of product
uses after January 1, 1991.
   (C) Packaging changes that adversely affect the potential for the
rigid plastic packaging container to be recycled or to be made of
postconsumer material.
   (k) "Product-associated rigid plastic packaging container" means a
brand-specific, rigid plastic packaging container line that may have
one or more sizes, shapes, or designs and that is used in
conjunction with a particular generic product line.
   (  l  ) "PETE" means polyethylene terephthalate as
specified in subdivision (a) of Section 18015.
   (m) "HDPE" means high-density polyethylene. 
  SEC. 2.    Section 42649.1 of the Public Resources
Code is amended to read:
   42649.1.  For purposes of this chapter, the following shall apply:

   (a) "Business" means a commercial or public entity, including, but
not limited to, a firm, partnership, proprietorship, joint stock
company, corporation, or association that is organized as a
for-profit or nonprofit entity, or a multifamily residential
dwelling.
   (b) "Commercial solid waste" includes all types of solid waste
generated by a store, office, or other commercial or public entity
source, including a business or a multifamily dwelling of five or
more units.
   (c) "Commercial waste generator" means a business subject to
subdivision (a) of Section 42649.2.
   (d) "Self-hauler" means a business that hauls its own waste rather
than contracting for that service. 
   SEC. 5.    Section 42649.1 of the  Public
Resources Code   is amended to read: 
   42649.1.  For purposes of this chapter, the following 
terms mean the following   shall apply  :
   (a) "Business" means a commercial or public entity, including, but
not limited to, a firm, partnership, proprietorship, joint stock
company, corporation, or association that is organized as a
for-profit or nonprofit entity, or a multifamily residential
dwelling.
   (b) "Commercial solid waste"  has the same meaning as
defined in Section 17225.12 of Title 14 of the California Code of
Regulations   includes all types of solid waste
generated by a store, office, or other commercial or public entity
source, including a business or multifamily dwelling of five or more
units  .
   (c) "Commercial waste generator" means a business subject to
subdivision (a) of Section 42649.2. 
   (d) "Large-quantity commercial organics generator" means a
business that generates significant amounts of organic waste,
including, but not limited to, food waste and green materials, that
is traditionally disposed of in a solid waste landfill, as determined
by the department.  
   (d) 
    (e)  "Self-hauler" means a business that hauls its own
waste rather than contracting for that service.
   SEC. 6.    Section 42649.2 of the   Public
Resources Code   is amended to read: 
   42649.2.  (a) On and after July 1, 2012, a business that generates
four cubic yards or more of commercial solid waste per week or is a
multifamily residential dwelling of five units or more shall arrange
for recycling services, consistent with state or local laws or
requirements, including a local ordinance or agreement, applicable to
the collection, handling, or recycling of solid waste, to the extent
that these services are offered and reasonably available from a
local service provider.
   (b) A commercial waste generator shall take at least one of the
following actions:
   (1) Source separate recyclable materials from solid waste and
subscribe to a basic level of recycling service that includes
collection, self-hauling, or other arrangements for the pickup of the
recyclable materials.
   (2) Subscribe to a recycling service that may include mixed waste
processing that yields diversion results comparable to source
separation.
   (c) A property owner of a multifamily residential dwelling may
require tenants to source separate their recyclable materials to aid
in compliance with this section. 
   (d) (1) (A) On or before January 1, 2017, the department shall
adopt regulations to require a large-quantity commercial organics
generator to arrange for separate organics collection and recycling
services which may include, but are not limited to, self-hauling.
 
   (B) This paragraph does not apply to green material collected by a
city, county, or other local agency.  
   (2) When adopting the regulations pursuant to paragraph (1), the
department may establish different timelines for different types of
organic materials, different types of large quantity generators, and
different regions of the state, but the regulations shall require
these requirements to be in effect no later than January 1, 2017.

   SEC. 3.   SEC. 7.   Section 42649.3 of
the Public Resources Code is amended to read:
   42649.3.  (a) On and after July 1, 2012, each jurisdiction shall
implement a commercial solid waste recycling program appropriate for
that jurisdiction designed to divert commercial solid waste from
businesses subject to Section 42649.2, whether or not the
jurisdiction has met the requirements of Section 41780.
   (b) If a jurisdiction already has a commercial solid waste
recycling program as one of its diversion elements that meets the
requirements of this section, it shall not be required to implement a
new or expanded commercial solid waste recycling program.
   (c) The commercial solid waste recycling program shall be directed
at a commercial waste generator, as defined in subdivision (c) of
Section 42649.1, and may include, but is not limited to, any of the
following:
   (1) Implementing a mandatory commercial solid waste recycling
policy or ordinance.
   (2) Requiring a mandatory commercial solid waste recycling program
through a franchise contract or agreement.
   (3) Requiring all commercial solid waste to go through either a
source separated or mixed processing system that diverts material
from disposal.
   (d) The commercial solid waste recycling program shall include
education, outreach to, and monitoring of, businesses. A jurisdiction
shall notify a business if the business is not in compliance with
Section 42649.2.
   (e) The commercial solid waste recycling program may include
enforcement provisions that are consistent with a jurisdiction's
authority, including a structure for fines and penalties.
   (f) The commercial solid waste recycling program may include
certification requirements for self-haulers.
   (g) The department shall review a jurisdiction's compliance with
this section as part of the department's review required by Section
41825. Each jurisdiction shall report the progress achieved in
implementing its commercial recycling program, including education,
outreach, identification, and monitoring, and if applicable,
enforcement efforts, by providing updates in the annual report
required by Section 41821.
   (h) The department may also review whether a jurisdiction is in
compliance with this section at any time that the department receives
information that a jurisdiction has not implemented, or is not
making a good faith effort to implement, a commercial recycling
program.
   (i) During its review pursuant to subdivision (g) or (h), the
department shall determine whether each jurisdiction has made a good
faith effort to implement its selected commercial recycling program.
For purposes of this section, "good faith effort" means all
reasonable and feasible efforts by a jurisdiction to implement its
commercial recycling program. During its review, the department may
include, but is not limited to, the following factors in its
evaluation of a jurisdiction's good faith effort:
   (1) The extent to which businesses have complied with Section
42649.2, including information on the amount of disposal that is
being diverted from the businesses, if available, and on the number
of businesses that are subscribing to service.
   (2) The recovery rate of the commercial waste from the material
recovery facilities that are utilized by the businesses, all
information, methods, and calculations, and any additional
performance data, as requested by the department from the material
recovery facilities pursuant to Section 18809.4 of Title 14 of the
California Code of Regulations.
   (3) The extent to which the jurisdiction is conducting education
and outreach to businesses.
   (4) The extent to which the jurisdiction is monitoring businesses,
and notifying those businesses that are out of compliance.
   (5) The availability of markets for collected recyclables.
   (6) Budgetary constraints.
   (7) In the case of a rural jurisdiction, the effects of small
geographic size, low population density, or distance to markets.
   SEC. 8.    Section 43020.5 is added to the  
Public Resources Code   , to read:  
   43020.5.  (a) A solid waste facility that accepts solid waste from
the public or self-haulers shall establish a separate collection
area for segregated green material and nonhazardous woody material.
   (b) The material collected pursuant to subdivision (a) shall not
be disposed, as defined in subdivision (b) of Section 40192, but may
be used for beneficial reuse in the construction and operation of a
solid waste landfill, including as alternative daily cover. 
   SEC. 4.   SEC. 9.   No reimbursement is
required by this act pursuant to Section 6 of Article XIII B of the
California Constitution because a local agency or school district has
the authority to levy service charges, fees, or assessments
sufficient to pay for the program or level of service mandated by
this act or because costs that may be incurred by a local agency or
school district will be incurred because this act creates a new crime
or infraction, eliminates a crime or infraction, or changes the
penalty for a crime or infraction, within the meaning of Section
17556 of the Government Code, or changes the definition of a crime
within the meaning of Section 6 of Article XIII B of the California
Constitution.