SB 343 (California's "Truth in Recycling Law"): New Developments

February has been a busy month for updates surrounding California's novel “Truth In Recycling” law, SB 343! (If you're unfamiliar with SB 343, check out our initial blog post on the law, and our follow up blog post with some previous developments).

Revised Material Characterization Study

First, earlier this month, CalRecycle (the department charged with conducting and publishing a "material characterization study" describing the material types and forms that are collected, sorted, sold, or transferred by solid waste facilities in order for marketers to determine what is considered “recyclable” in the state), published a revised version of their material characterization study (after the preliminary findings were published in December 2023). The revised findings can be found here, but here are some of the highlights:

• Clarifies that the material characterization study only addresses certain information necessary for marketers to make determinations regarding what material types and forms are considered recyclable in the state under SB 343. Specifically, it highlights that the study only includes information regarding what materials (1) are accepted for collection by jurisdiction recycling programs, and (2) are sorted into defined streams by large volume transfer/processing facilities. The revised findings emphasize that they do not provide information regarding what materials are sent to reclaimers and reclaimed consistent with the requirements of the Basel Convention, or information about specific composition and design requirements (and given that both of the foregoing are considerations raised by SB 343 in determining whether something is considered “recyclable” in the state - the revised findings note that additional information would be necessary to make determinations under SB 343). 
• Explains the revised process CalRecycle undertook for determining whether materials are accepted for collection by jurisdiction recycling programs.
• Provides updated findings on the recyclability of material types and forms, including as a result of surveying additional large volume transfer/processing facilities.

What's next for the material characterization study and SB 343 enforcement? CalRecycle expects to publish their final findings by April 4, 2025. Then, marketers will have 18 months to bring their products and packaging into compliance with SB 343. So, if CalRecycle meets that deadline, October 4, 2026 will be the key date for compliance. Then, CalRecycle has to update the study in 2027 and every 5 years thereafter.

New Amendment Introduced

Earlier this month, Assembly Member Lori Wilson introduced a bill that, if enacted, would amend SB 343. The bill, AB 473, would substitute out an exception under the current law. Currently, SB 343 provides that notwithstanding some of the law's other provisions, a product or packaging is considered recyclable in the state “if the product or packaging is part of, and in compliance with, a program established pursuant to state or federal law on or after January 1, 2022, governing the recyclability or disposal of that product or packaging…”

AB 473's amendments to the bill would replace that exception with a new one that would instead permit a product or packaging to be considered recyclable in the state if it is a “covered material” (as defined under California's Plastic Pollution Prevention and Packaging Producer Responsibility Act), and (after January 2027*) if the producer of that product or packaging is a participant in a producer responsibility organization, is in compliance with all requirements of the Plastic Pollution Prevention and Packaging Producer Responsibility Act, and doesn't sell, distribute, or import the product or packaging unlawfully pursuant to that Act.

*Before January 2027, the producer would just need to be approved by a producer responsibility organization to participate in the organization.

Certain environmental organizations have opposed the amendment, arguing that it overrides SB 343 by creating a mechanism whereby certain single use plastics that are not actually recycled in the state can still be labeled as “recyclable.”