Chapter 22 - Waste Diversion and Greenhouse Gas Reduction Financial Assistance

California Public Resources Code — §§ 42995-42999.7

Sections (7)

Added by Stats. 2014, Ch. 36, Sec. 19. (SB 862) Effective June 20, 2014.

For purposes of this chapter, the following terms have the following meanings:

(a)“Loan fund” means the CalRecycle Greenhouse Gas Reduction Revolving Loan Fund established pursuant to Section 42996.

(b)“Revolving loan program” means the CalRecycle Greenhouse Gas Reduction Revolving Loan Program established pursuant to Section 42997.

§ 42996

Added by Stats. 2014, Ch. 36, Sec. 19. (SB 862) Effective June 20, 2014.

(a)The CalRecycle Greenhouse Gas Reduction Revolving Loan Fund is hereby created in the State Treasury.

(b)Notwithstanding Section 13340 of the Government Code and Section 39718 of the Health and Safety Code, the funds deposited in the loan fund are hereby continuously appropriated, without regard to fiscal year, to the department for expenditure without regard to fiscal year.

(c)The sum of five million dollars ($5,000,000) is hereby transferred from the Greenhouse Gas Reduction Fund, established pursuant to Section 16428.8 of the Government Code, to the loan fund for the 2014–15 fiscal year and an additional five million dollars

($5,000,000) for the 2015–16 fiscal year to be used by the department for any of the following:

(1)To make loans pursuant to the revolving loan program.

(2)To pay costs necessary to protect the state’s position as a lender and creditor. These costs shall include, but are not limited to, foreclosure expenses, auction fees, title searches, appraisals, real estate brokerage fees, attorney’s fees, mortgage payments, insurance payments, utility costs, repair costs, removal and storage costs for repossessed equipment and inventory, and additional expenditures to purchase a senior lien in foreclosure or bankruptcy proceedings.

(3)To pay costs to administer the revolving loan program, upon appropriation by the Legislature.

(d)The Controller shall disburse

moneys in the loan fund for the purposes of this chapter, as authorized by the department.

§ 42997

Amended by Stats. 2016, Ch. 368, Sec. 12. (SB 859) Effective September 14, 2016.

(a)The CalRecycle Greenhouse Gas Reduction Revolving Loan Program is hereby established and shall be administered by the department.

(b)(1) The department shall expend the moneys transferred pursuant to subdivision (c) of Section 42996, and any additional moneys appropriated by the Legislature for the purposes of this subdivision, to provide loans to reduce the emissions of greenhouse gases by promoting in-state development of infrastructure or other projects to reduce organic waste or process organic and other recyclable materials into new value-added products. The moneys shall be expended consistent with the requirements of Article 9.7 (commencing with Section 16428.8) of Chapter 2 of Part 2 of

Division 4 of Title 2 of the Government Code and Chapter 4.1 (commencing with Section 39710) of Part 2 of Division 26 of the Health and Safety Code.

(2)For a loan made pursuant to this subdivision, the department shall expend the moneys in the loan fund to provide loans to public and private entities for in-state infrastructure projects or other projects that reduce the emissions of greenhouse gases by any of the following:

(A)Organics composting.

(B)Organics in-vessel digestion.

(C)Recyclable material manufacturing.

(D)Activities that expand and improve waste diversion and recycling, including, but not limited to, food waste prevention.

(3)For purposes of this subdivision, eligible infrastructure projects that reduce greenhouse gas emissions include, but are not limited to, any of the following:

(A)Capital investments in new facilities and increased throughput at existing facilities for activities, such as converting windrow composting to aerated-static-pile composting to use food waste as feedstock.

(B)Designing and constructing organics in-vessel digestion facilities to produce products, such as biofuels, bioenergy, and soil amendments.

(C)Designing and constructing facilities for processing recyclable materials.

(4)For a loan made pursuant to this subdivision, both of the following apply:

(A)The terms and conditions of an approved loan shall be specified in a loan agreement and related documents between the borrower and the department. These terms and conditions shall include reporting requirements that include, but are not limited to, reporting the information specified in Section 16428.9 of the Government Code.

(B)The department shall approve only those loan applications that demonstrate the applicant’s ability to repay the loan.

(5)The department may establish additional requirements that it determines to be necessary or useful to achieve the revolving loan program’s objectives, including, but not limited to, ensuring repayment ability.

§ 42998

Added by Stats. 2014, Ch. 36, Sec. 19. (SB 862) Effective June 20, 2014.

(a)The department may establish and collect fees to fund the costs of administering the revolving loan program, including, but not limited to, an application fee and loan closing points.

(b)Moneys collected by the department from loan repayments and fees shall be deposited in the loan fund. Loan repayments and fees include, but are not limited to, any of the following:

(1)Principal and interest repayments.

(2)Fees and loan closing points.

(3)Recovery of collection costs.

(4)Income earned on an asset recovered pursuant to a loan default.

(5)Moneys collected through foreclosure and other collection actions.

§ 42999

Amended by Stats. 2025, Ch. 67, Sec. 176. (AB 1170) Effective January 1, 2026.

(a)The department shall, upon appropriation by the Legislature, administer a grant program to provide financial assistance to promote in-state development of infrastructure, food waste prevention, or other projects to reduce organic waste, sort and aggregate or process organic and other recyclable materials into new, value-added products, or divert items from disposal through enhanced reuse opportunities. Moneys appropriated by the Legislature from the Greenhouse Gas Reduction Fund, created pursuant to Section 16428.8 of the Government Code, to the department shall be expended consistent with the requirements of Article 9.7 (commencing with Section 16428.8) of Chapter 2 of Part 2 of Division 4 of Title 2 of the Government Code and Chapter 4.1 (commencing with Section 39710) of Part 2 of Division 26 of the Health and Safety

Code.

(b)Eligible financial assistance shall be provided for any of the following:

(1)Organics composting.

(2)Organics in-vessel digestion.

(3)Recyclable material manufacturing.

(4)Activities that expand and improve organic waste diversion and recycling, including, but not limited to, the recovery of food for human consumption and food waste prevention.

(5)Preprocessing organic materials for composting or organics in-vessel digestion.

(6)Codigestion at existing wastewater treatment plants.

(7)Increasing opportunities for reuse of materials diverted from landfill disposal.

(8)Recyclable material recovery, sorting, or baling equipment for use at publicly owned facilities. Eligibility for funding under this paragraph is limited to local jurisdictions.

(c)For purposes of this section, eligible infrastructure projects include, but are not limited to, any of the following:

(1)Capital investments in new facilities and increased throughput at existing facilities for activities, such as converting windrow composting to aerated-static-pile composting to use food waste as feedstock.

(2)Designing and constructing organics in-vessel digestion facilities to produce products, such as biofuels to be used or distributed onsite,

bioenergy, and soil amendments.

(3)Designing and constructing or expanding facilities for processing recyclable materials.

(4)Projects to improve the quality of recycled materials.

(5)Projects undertaken by a local government at publicly owned facilities to improve the recovery, sorting, or baling of recyclable materials to get those materials into the marketplace, including related equipment purchasing and installation costs.

(6)Purchase of equipment and construction of facilities to help develop, implement, or expand edible food waste recovery operations.

(7)Establishment of reuse programs to divert items from landfill disposal for reuse by members of the public.

(8)Deployment of bear bins to minimize adverse human-and-bear interactions related to the collection and management of solid and organic waste. Any funding provided pursuant to this paragraph shall be limited to those areas where there are significant public safety issues associated with food waste collection as a result of local bear populations, as corroborated by information from local, state, or federal public safety or wildlife officials, and shall be limited to the primary residence for those residents earning below the area median household income limit established by the Department of Housing and Community Development pursuant to Section 50093 of the Health and Safety Code.

(d)In awarding a grant for organics composting or organics in-vessel digestion pursuant to this section, the department shall consider all of the following:

(1)The amount of reductions of emissions of greenhouse gases that may result from the project.

(2)The amount of organic material that may be diverted from landfills as a result of the project.

(3)If and how the project may benefit disadvantaged or low-income communities, as defined in Section 39713 of the Health and Safety Code.

(4)For a grant awarded for an organics in-vessel digestion project, if and how the project maximizes resource recovery, including the production of clean energy or low-carbon or carbon negative transportation fuels.

(5)Project readiness and permitting that the project may require.

(6)Air and water

quality benefits that the project may provide.

(e)To the degree that funds are available, the department may provide larger grant awards for large-scale regional integrated projects that provide cost-effective organic waste diversion and maximize environmental benefits.

§ 42999.5

Added by Stats. 2022, Ch. 342, Sec. 8. (AB 1857) Effective January 1, 2023.

(a)The department shall, upon appropriation by the Legislature, establish and administer the Zero-Waste Equity Grant Program as a competitive grant program to support targeted strategies and investments in communities transitioning to a zero-waste circular economy.

(b)Within a year of the appropriation, the department shall conduct at least two public workshops. After

conducting the two public workshops, the department shall prepare and adopt guidelines and procedures for evaluating competitive grant applications. The department shall provide an online virtual option for participation in the public workshops. The department shall provide a 30-day notice for each public workshop and consult with interested parties, including affected residents, cities, counties, solid waste haulers, and nonprofit organizations in developing guidelines and procedures.

(c)Entities eligible for grants include any combination of the following:

(1)Local public agencies.

(2)Cities or counties.

(3)Nonprofit organizations.

(4)Qualifying tribal entities.

(d)In evaluating a grant application, the department shall prioritize communities most impacted by transformation or that contribute to significant amounts of transformation. In doing so, the department shall consider the following:

(1)A community’s proximity to a transformation facility that was in operation on January 1, 2018.

(2)The potential amount of solid waste that is expected to be diverted from transformation facilities through the proposed project.

(3)A community’s proximity to an EMSW facility.

(e)The funding appropriated for the Zero-Waste Equity Grant Program shall be used to fund programs that result in the reuse, repair, and sharing of goods and materials, including, but not limited to, the following:

(1)Projects that promote the recovery and exchange of household goods, food, clothing, and building materials, such as resource recovery parks.

(2)Projects that repair and extend the life of products, such as electronics, textiles, and furniture.

(3)Projects that facilitate the use and sharing of infrequently used items, such as tools, equipment, books, and other household items.

(4)Projects that promote reusable containers and package-free products and stores.

(f)Grants shall not be provided pursuant to this section for a project that will result in combustion,

incineration, energy generation, and fuel production, or any other form of disposal, as defined in subdivision (b) of Section 40192.

(g)(1) No later than six months after the conclusion of the funding cycle, the department shall post on its internet website and submit to the Legislature a report on all eligible zero-waste projects funded, including the amount awarded to each project and estimated amount of waste diverted from transformation facilities and landfills by each project, and opportunities for further investments in local zero-waste strategies in communities seeking to reduce their reliance on transformation facilities and landfills.

(2)A report submitted to the Legislature pursuant to paragraph (1) shall be submitted in

compliance with Section 9795 of the Government Code.

(h)The department shall not expend more than 5 percent for administrative costs annually related to the Zero-Waste Equity Grant Program.

§ 42999.7

Added by Stats. 2022, Ch. 342, Sec. 9. (AB 1857) Effective January 1, 2023.

Within two years of the appropriation by the Legislature for the Zero-Waste Equity Grant Program, the department, in consultation with the California Workforce Development Board and the Department of Industrial Relations shall submit policy recommendations to the Legislature

on how to increase job opportunities and improve labor standards and worker pay related to the zero-waste job sector, including apprenticeship and job training programs that promote industry-recognized skills and credentials, and career technical education, and identify occupational hazards.