[Archives] Recycling and Disposal Facility Reporting (AB 901)

This page was archived on 4/18/2019. CalRecycle maintains archived information on its website as a record of its activities for use by the public and CalRecycle staff.

Description

Governor Brown signed AB 901 (Gordon, Chapter 746, Statutes of 2015) into law to change how organics, recyclable material, and solid waste are reported to CalRecycle. The Recycling and Disposal Facility Reporting System (RDRS) law requires the following businesses to report directly to CalRecycle on a quarterly basis on types, quantities, and destinations of materials that are disposed of, sold, or transferred inside or outside of the state:

  • Recycling facilities
  • Composting facilities
  • Disposal facilities including landfills
  • Transformation facilities
  • Engineered municipal solid waste conversion facilities
  • Transfer/processor facilities
  • Contract haulers
  • Food waste self-haulers
  • Brokers
  • Transporters

CalRecycle also gains enforcement authority to collect this information. AB 901 was codified in Public Resources Code section 41821.5.

The data acquired by the new regulations will inform CalRecycle’s understanding of material flows within the State’s recycling infrastructure; allow CalRecycle to better estimate total recycling and composting; and assist CalRecycle to track progress towards several state goals and programs, including the 75 percent recycling goal, mandatory commercial recycling, and organics diversion programs. This information will allow CalRecycle to implement various improvements in areas such as increased responsiveness to changes in the recycling landscape, operational efficiencies, and the targeting of state resources to recycling infrastructure to foster a circular economy.

Affected Regulatory Code Sections

California Code of Regulations, Title 14, Division 7, Chapter 9, Article 9.2, commencing with section 18800.

Current Status and Documents

The Office of Administrative Law approved the RDRS regulations on March 5, 2019. The regulations have gone into immediate effect. A copy of the final regulatory text as submitted to the Secretary of State’s Office is available in the “Documents” section below.

Additional Information

Our current schedule for regulation and reporting system development is below. This is a tentative estimate based upon the latest version of the proposed regulatory text and is subject to change.

For disposal and recycling reporting:

  • Solid Waste Facility Reporting Continues in DRS through Q2 2019
  • Adoption of the Regulations: Late 2018
  • Development of the Electronic Reporting System: 2018-Early 2019
  • Outreach and Training: Early 2018-Mid 2019
  • Initial Online Facility Registration in the Recycling and Disposal Reporting System (RDRS): April 1-30, 2019
  • Reporting Entities Begin Recording Required Information for RDRS Reports on July 1, 2019
  • Reporting Entities Submit Online RDRS Reports for the Third Quarter of 2019
    • Haulers: October 31, 2019
    • Transfer/Processors, Recycler/Composters, Broker/Transporters: November 30, 2019
    • Disposal Facilities: December 31, 2019

Documents

Final RDRS Regulatory Text

Previous Drafts

(Note: To enhance accessibility of PDFs, switch to high-contrast colors, as needed, when viewing.)

Contact

You may contact CalRecycle staff at AB901.Reporting@calrecycle.ca.gov.

Also, subscribe to the Recycling and Disposal Facility Reporting Listserv for emails regarding rulemaking developments.

Historical Information

Rulemaking History

Four rounds of informal workshops took place in April, July, August and December in Northern and Southern California. See the “Stakeholder Input” section for more information.

The AB 901 Recycling and Disposal Reporting System (RDRS) regulations were submitted to the Office of Administrative Law for approval and publication in the California Code of Regulations on January 18, 2019. A Notice of Exemption has been filed with the Governor’s Office of Planning and Research relative to this rulemaking.

On December 31, 2018, CalRecycle Director Scott Smithline signed the Request for Approvalto conclude the rulemaking process. The Request for Approval was presented at the December 18, 2018 CalRecycle Monthly Public Meeting.

On December 28, 2018, the Department of Finance concurred in the Department’s assessment of the fiscal impact of the proposed regulations.

The eighth draftPDF download of the proposed regulatory text was released on October 31, 2018 for a 15-day formal comment period that will close on November 15, 2018 at 11:59 p.m. Please refer to the “Notice of Changes to Proposed AB 901 Reporting RegulationsPDF download” for information on how to comment.

The copy of the eighth draftPDF download of the proposed regulatory text includes a high-level summary of changes (on page one). A cleanPDF download (less marked-up) copy has also been provided for reference purposes only. All other associated documents are provided below under the “Documents” section.

Copies of comments received during the past several comment periods can be found below under the “Stakeholder Input” section.

To receive updates on the proposed regulations for recycling and disposal facility reporting, please register for the reporting rulemaking listserv.

Stakeholder Input

CalRecycle has received and evaluated comment letters from several stakeholders subsequent to the close of each comment period:

Other comments received on this rulemaking:

Stakeholders have had several opportunities to provide feedback on the creation of AB 901 disposal and recycling reporting regulations:

Stakeholders also had the opportunity to view the workshops in real time.

For more information contact: Legislative and External Affairs Office, lex.office@calrecycle.ca.gov

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