Notice of Funds Available: Tire Incentive Program (FY 2023–24)

The application period for fiscal year (FY) 2023-24 is now closed.

Awards | Criteria | Eligibility | Funding | Timeline and Cycle Details | Grant Administration Documents

The Department of Resources Recycling and Recovery (CalRecycle) administers a program to provide opportunities for the diversion of waste tires from landfill disposal, prevent illegal tire dumping, and promote markets for recycled-content tire products.  The Tire Incentive Program (TIP) provides a reimbursement (as an incentive payment program) to eligible businesses that use (recycled) crumb rubber in eligible products or substitute crumb rubber for virgin rubber, plastic, or other raw materials in products. The program’s goal is to increase demand for crumb rubber and promote higher value products.

Awards

Note: “TIP” Followed by a number is the cycle code for the Tire Incentive Program.
Cycle 11: TIP11 Awards | Approval of Awards, October 10, 2023

Criteria

Approval of Criteria, May 2, 2022

Eligibility

Applicants

  • Manufacturers that produce (or will produce) an eligible product.
  • Waste tire processors that also manufacture an eligible product.
  • Manufacturers of devulcanized crumb rubber.
  • Rubber compounders.
  • Manufacturers of calendered rubber sheeting products.
  • Manufacturers that produce products on a contract basis for other companies provided they have that other company’s written permission to produce an eligible product and receive the incentive.

Projects

  • A new or existing product that has not benefited from the Tire-Derived Product Grant Program.
  • An existing or new/improved product currently manufactured with virgin rubber, plastic or other material which will be produced with a minimum of five percent crumb rubber and may be co-extruded, injected, calendered or otherwise combined (also known as “feedstock conversion”). This includes compounded rubber and calendered sheet rubber as intermediate products.
  • An existing or new/improved product currently manufactured with virgin rubber, plastic or other material which will be produced with a minimum of five percent devulcanized crumb rubber and may be co-extruded, injected, calendered or otherwise combined. This includes devulcanized crumb rubber as an intermediate product.
  • An existing or new/improved product that will use fine (≤50) mesh crumb rubber. Particle size and particle size distribution are determined in accordance with American Society for Testing and Materials (ASTM) D5644 and D5603 and will be verified by CalRecycle or a CalRecycle contractor.

Applicants are reimbursed at the incentive rates below per pound according to category.

Incentive Categories and Amounts

Incentive CategoryIncentive per pound
1. New or Existing TDP (TIP product)10 cents for total crumb rubber or EOL material used in sold (net of returns) eligible products.
2. Feedstock Conversion or Devulcanized Rubber (TIP product)40 cents for total crumb rubber or devulcanized crumb rubber used in sold (net of returns) eligible products or for eligible intermediate products.
3. Fine (<50) Mesh (TIP product)50 cents for total crumb rubber used in eligible products sold (net of returns).

Examples of possible eligible products include, but are not limited to: devulcanized crumb rubber; flooring underlayment; rubberized flooring; industrial products; conveyer belts; calendered or compounded rubber; agricultural harvesting devices; various landscaping and garden products; various building products; various traffic devices (i.e., traffic cones, delineators, spacers, tire stops and barricades);fencing; asphalt products that are not eligible under other CalRecycle programs; asphalt products (i.e., crack seal, roofing products, etc.) must contain a minimum of five percent crumb rubber in the binder or flux, not necessarily the finished product; rubberized sidewalks, pathways, and tree wells (if specifically designed for storm water management); paints, sealants and coatings; end-of-life (EOL) material (crumb rubber, nuggets/mulch) being recycled or reused in a variety of eligible products; Source of EOL material must be located in California; and Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) leveling and accessibility ramps, etc.

  • Specifically excluded from this program are: crumb rubber used by itself as an intermediate product (i.e., used as infill for a synthetic turf field) except as noted above; tire-derived aggregate; rubberized pavement or rubberized paving products (i.e., chip seal, slurry seal, etc.); rubber nuggets/mulch/bark except as noted above; rubberized sidewalks and tree wells (except as noted above); loose-fill or poured-in-place playgrounds; poured-in-place playgrounds which use ground, shredded or chunk rubber from California-generated passenger tires (not truck tires or buffings) for the cushion layer; or crumb rubber to replace ethylene propylene diene monomer (EPDM) and thermoplastic vulcanizates (TPV) in the wear layer; playground tiles; synthetic turf underlayment (not loose infill); sports/running tracks; all weather sports field infill; and similar type products which have enjoyed significant benefit from the Tire-Derived Product Grant Program and its predecessors

Funding

  • $3,200,000 available for fiscal year (FY) 2023–24
  • The minimum is $25,000 and the maximum is $500,000 per grant award

Timeline and Cycle Details

DatesActivity and Details
June 23, 2023Question and Answer Period and Due Date

  • Questions may be submitted from application release date to this date.
  • Questions regarding the application and its requirements must be submitted in writing via email: tiregrants@calrecycle.ca.gov.
  • Questions and answers (Q&A) will be posted periodically during the Q&A period.
  • It is the applicant's responsibility to check the Q&A web page regularly to ensure that they are aware of all program details.
August 15, 2023Application Due Date Revised

If you are unable to access GMS or need assistance, please send an email to grantassistance@calrecycle.ca.gov.

October, 2023Grants Awarded
CalRecycle considers funding recommendations, and if approved, conditionally awards grants in this month (tentative).
April 1, 2026Deadline for Final Report and final Payment Request

Grant Administration Documents

Terms and Conditions

Notice: Submission of an application constitutes an acknowledgment that you have read these Terms and Conditions and understood and agreed that they will be part of the Grant Agreement upon an award of any grant funds.

The text of these Terms and Conditions may not be altered, changed or revised in any way, except in writing by mutual agreement of the parties pursuant to the Amendment provision herein.  In the event of any dispute regarding the content of these Terms and Conditions, the original document contained in the grant cycle file located at the Department of Resources Recycling and Recovery, 1001 I Street, Sacramento, CA 95814 will control.  These Terms and Conditions are applicable only to the specified cycle and/or Fiscal Year of the particular grant program specified.

If you require assistance in obtaining access to this document, please use the contact information at the bottom of this page.

Procedures and Requirements

Notice: These Procedures and Requirements are in draft form.  Upon issuance of Grant Agreement, these Procedures and Requirements shall become final.

The Department of Resources Recycling and Recovery reserves the right to make any necessary changes to the Procedures and Requirements prior to issuance of the Grant Agreement.  Any such changes will be non-negotiable.  In the event that any changes are made to the Procedures and Requirements, all Grantees will be notified as to what specific changes have been made.

Once the Grant Agreement has been issued and the Procedures and Requirements have become final, the text of the incorporated Procedures and Requirements may not be altered, changed or revised in any way, except in writing by mutual agreement of the parties pursuant to the Amendment provision contained in the Terms and Conditions.  In the event of any dispute regarding the content of the incorporated Procedures and Requirements, the original document contained in the grant cycle file located at the Department of Resources Recycling and Recovery, 1001 I Street, Sacramento, CA 95814 will control.  These Procedures and Requirements are applicable only to the specific cycle and/or Fiscal Year of the particular grant program specified.

If you require assistance in obtaining access to this document, please use the contact information at the bottom of this page.

Tire Incentive Homepage

For more information, contact grants@calrecycle.ca.gov.