Sponsors (10)
Introduced June 24, 2025 by Joseph Neguse · Last progress June 24, 2025
The bill uses federal standards, data, and limited authorized funding to expand and better target recycling and composting—potentially improving diversion, markets, and federal accountability—but it raises compliance, reporting, and administrative costs, may exclude lower‑quality waste streams, and depends on future appropriations and regulatory detail to realize its benefits.
State, local, and Tribal governments (and program designers) gain standardized data, mapping, and technical assistance from EPA that make it easier to plan, expand, and target recycling and composting programs.
Households, consumers, and communities could see higher recycling and composting access and reduced waste as program improvements and reporting lead to increased diversion rates.
Recyclers, manufacturers, and compost producers gain clearer standards tying 'recyclable' and 'processing' to specification‑grade commodities, which can improve product quality, marketability of feedstocks, and demand for recovered materials.
Small composters, recyclers, local governments, states, Tribes, federal agencies, and taxpayers will face increased administrative and compliance costs to meet new definitions, reporting requirements, and specification‑grade/process standards.
Recurring reporting deadlines, multi‑year inventories, and new metric requirements could create ongoing data-collection burdens and divert staff time from other priorities for federal, state, and local agencies.
Tightening 'recycling' to materials that meet specification‑grade markets could exclude lower‑quality waste streams, reducing recycling options and services for some communities (particularly rural or smaller jurisdictions).
Based on analysis of 7 sections of legislative text.
Directs EPA and GAO to study and report on U.S. recycling and composting infrastructure, contamination, and diversion from circular markets; authorizes $4M/year (2025–2029).
Requires the EPA and the Government Accountability Office to study and report on U.S. recycling and composting systems, measure how much recyclable material is being lost to non‑circular uses, and produce inventories and recommendations to expand composting and reduce contamination. Authorizes $4 million per year for five fiscal years to carry out the work, protects certain collected information from public disclosure, and prohibits imposing unfunded mandates on states, local governments, or tribes under the Act.