Existing law, the California Beverage Container Recycling and Litter Reduction Act, requires every beverage container sold or offered for sale in this state to have a minimum refund value. Under existing law, a beverage distributor is required to pay a redemption payment to the Department of Resources Recycling and Recovery for every beverage container sold or offered for sale in the state to a dealer, and the department is required to deposit those amounts in the continuously appropriated California Beverage Container Recycling Fund.

Existing law requires each glass container manufacturer to use a minimum percentage of 35% of postfilled glass in the manufacturing of its glass food, drink, or beverage containers.

Existing law provides that a violation of the act or a regulation adopted pursuant to the act is a crime.

This bill would require, commencing January 1, 2020, a beverage container that is a PET plastic container to have a minimum content be constructed with a minimum of 20% postconsumer recycled plastic. The bill would require the department, on or before January 1, 2021, to establish minimum postconsumer recycled content standards for beverage containers that are constructed of plastic, material other than metal, glass, or plastic, or any combination of plastic and material other than metal, glass, or plastic. The bill would authorize the department to adjust the minimum content standards, as specified, but not more frequently than annually. The bill would require a beverage manufacturer to certify with the department, under penalty of perjury, that it is in compliance with the minimum content standards and would provide that failure of a beverage manufacturer to meet the minimum content standards constitutes a separate violation per day. The bill would require a beverage manufacturer to report to the department for each month the amount of beverage containers subject to the minimum content standards sold in California by the beverage manufacturer and the amount of postconsumer recycled content used in the manufacturing of those containers. By expanding the crime of perjury and creating new crimes relating to the regulation of beverage containers, the bill would impose a state-mandated local program.

The bill would require the department, on or before January 1, 2020, to evaluate other beverage container redemption programs and to provide to the Legislature a report on aspects of those programs that may be incorporated into California’s beverage container redemption program, as specified.

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 a specified reason.