[Senate Report 118-41]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]


                                                       Calendar No. 104
                                                       
118th Congress  }                                             {   Report
                                 SENATE
 1st Session    }                                             {    118-41

======================================================================



 
       THE RECYCLING INFRASTRUCTURE AND ACCESSIBILITY ACT OF 2023

                                _______
                                

                 June 22, 2023.--Ordered to be printed

                                _______
                                

       Mr. Carper, from the Committee on Environment and Public 
                     Works, submitted the following

                              R E P O R T

                         [To accompany S. 1189]

      [Including cost estimate of the Congressional Budget Office]

    The Committee on Environment and Public Works, to which was 
referred the bill (S. 1189) to establish a pilot program to 
improve recycling accessibility, and for other purposes, having 
considered the same, reports favorably thereon without 
amendment and recommends that the bill do pass.

                           GENERAL STATEMENT

    Communities in the United States face several barriers to 
accessing recycling and composting programs, with location 
being a primary barrier. Rural communities have different 
location-based recycling and composting program challenges than 
urban or suburban communities, such as limited access to 
curbside recycling and composting programs or convenient drop-
off programs. The price of services also plays a major role in 
precluding access to recycling and composting programs. For 
example, some services require that communities or households 
pay a fee in order to participate.

                               OBJECTIVES

    The goal of this bill is to establish a new program to fund 
eligible projects that will significantly improve underserved 
communities' accessibility to recycling systems. Accordingly, 
the bill supports investments in infrastructure in underserved 
communities using a hub-and-spoke model for recycling 
infrastructure development. This model consists of centralized 
processing centers (hubs) that receive recyclables from 
surrounding rural communities (spokes). This hub-and-spoke 
model reduces the cost for communities to transport recyclables 
and aims to ensure sufficient material is processed at each hub 
to make recycling financially viable.

                          SUMMARY OF THE BILL

    This bill establishes a pilot program, known as the 
Recycling Infrastructure and Accessibility Program, at the 
Environmental Protection Agency. This pilot program will 
provide grants to improve recycling accessibility in a 
community or communities within the same geographic area. The 
grants are awarded, on a competitive basis, to eligible 
entities, which include: States; local governments; Indian 
Tribes; and public-private partnerships.
    In selecting eligible entities to receive a grant under the 
pilot grant program, the bill requires the Administrator to 
consider: whether the community to be served has curbside 
recycling; whether the proposed project will improve 
accessibility to recycling services in an underserved 
community; and if the eligible entity is a public-private 
partnership, the financial health of the private entity seeking 
to enter into that public-private partnership.
    Priority for these grants will be given to eligible 
entities seeking to carry out a proposed project in a community 
in which there is not more than 1 materials recovery facility 
within a 75-mile radius of that community.
    An eligible entity awarded a grant under the pilot grant 
program may use the grant funds for projects to improve 
recycling accessibility in communities, including in 
underserved communities, by: increasing the number of transfer 
stations; expanding curbside recycling collection programs 
where appropriate; and leveraging public-private partnerships 
to reduce the costs associated with collecting and transporting 
recyclable materials in underserved communities.
    Finally, the legislation makes clear that grants awarded 
under this pilot program may not be used to fund recycling 
education programs. The bill authorizes $30 million per year to 
be appropriated for this program for fiscal years 2023 through 
2027.

                               BACKGROUND

    The modern United States recycling system, which has been 
in place for more than 30 years, has many challenges and 
opportunities. The concept of reduce, reuse, and recycle has 
allowed millions of Americans the opportunity to participate in 
recovering materials as a way of reducing the volumes of waste 
headed for disposal and protecting the environment. However, 
the broader public is often unaware of the many challenges that 
constrain our nation's recycling system.
    In the United States, state and local law--not federal 
law--governs recycling programs. Towns, cities, and counties 
manage recycling programs, typically through partnerships with 
private sector entities. Recycling programs can involve 
curbside collection, which takes place along with weekly trash 
collection, as well as drop-off recycling, which takes place at 
one or more principal locations within a community. Local 
governments typically fund recycling programs through the sale 
of recyclable materials and user fees, also known as tipping 
fees. A user fee is typically paid by trash collection 
companies or other entities for disposing of materials at a 
landfill. In some cases, the revenue generated by 
municipalities through the collection of user fees is used to 
offset the cost of recycling programs.
    The collection of curbside recyclables from millions of 
individual homes across America can have an enormous economic 
benefit. Even with its current challenges, the United States 
recycling system has a significant impact on our nation's 
economy because it provides a consistent source of commodity 
feedstocks to manufacturers worldwide.
    Currently, two key challenges are preventing the United 
States recycling system from realizing its full potential: lack 
of demand for recycled material; and contamination of collected 
items destined for recycling. For decades, much of the United 
States recycling system sent its recyclable materials to 
entities that exported these materials to China. Cargo ships, 
which would otherwise return empty to China, offered rates that 
often made it less expensive to ship recyclable materials to 
China than to ship these materials for processing domestically. 
Due to several factors, in 2018 China began prohibiting imports 
of mixed paper, mixed plastic, and other waste. While India and 
several countries in Southeast Asia have taken some of this 
waste, these countries recently imposed their own restrictions 
on imported waste from the United States, due to high levels of 
contamination.
    Prior to 2018, China's willingness to import mixed paper 
and mixed plastic enabled local recycling programs in the 
United States to adopt ``single stream'' recycling--something 
only practiced in a few other places in the world. Single 
stream recycling allows consumers to put all recyclable 
materials into a single bin which, in turn, helps boost 
consumers' recycling participation rates.
    Rules concerning which materials can and cannot be recycled 
in curbside recycling programs vary widely within the United 
States. As a result, consumers often comingle recyclable 
materials (e.g., aluminum cans) with materials that cannot be 
recycled (e.g., materials with food contamination) or cannot be 
recycled locally (e.g., electronics). Contamination can add 
substantial cost for local recycling programs because the value 
of recyclable materials depends upon the value of virgin 
materials and the purity of the recyclable materials. State and 
local governments generally indicate that reducing 
contamination rates in a cost-effective manner would allow them 
to find or develop new markets for their recyclable materials.
    Most municipal recycling occurs at specialized locations 
known as materials recovery facilities (MRFs). Recyclable 
materials sourced from municipal curbside collection programs 
are transported to MRFs to be processed. These facilities have 
become highly sophisticated in order to be able to handle the 
increasing variability in materials sent to a MRF. Modern MRFs 
often utilize advanced technology such as optical sorters and 
robots to reduce contamination and separate materials. As such, 
owning and operating a MRF has become increasingly expensive.
    Most MRFs are now run by private sector companies, operate 
on thin margins and are highly sensitive to changes in demand, 
and the recycling market is very volatile. Given their 
expensive equipment and thin margins, most MRFs also need to 
process a large quantity of recyclable materials to stay in 
operation. As a result, MRFs are largely located in densely 
populated areas, where they have easier access to large volumes 
of recyclable materials. This trend has made recycling in rural 
communities more challenging.
    Many rural communities are too geographically remote from 
the closest MRF to make recycling from a curbside pick-up 
program economical due to transportation costs. As a result, 
most rural communities do not have curbside recycling programs 
in place. Instead, rural residential recycling usually consists 
of smaller-scale drop-off programs. Residents of rural 
communities must collect their own recyclables and bring them 
to a specified location. This method of recycling can be 
inconvenient for rural residents, which is reflected in the 
fact that participation in rural drop-off recycling programs 
ranges from low to nonexistent. For example, rural states like 
West Virginia, Alaska, Louisiana, and Mississippi have among 
the lowest recycling rates in the country.

                      SECTION-BY-SECTION ANALYSIS

      S. 1189, THE RECYCLING INFRASTRUCTURE AND ACCESSIBILITY ACT

Section 1. Short title

    This Act may be cited as the ``Recycling Infrastructure and 
Accessibility Act of 2023''.

Section 2. Recycling Infrastructure and Accessibility Program

    Establishes a pilot program, known as the Recycling 
Infrastructure and Accessibility Program, at the Environmental 
Protection Agency. This pilot program would award grants, on a 
competitive basis, to eligible entities to improve recycling 
accessibility in a community or communities within the same 
geographic area. The goal of the program is to fund eligible 
projects that will significantly improve accessibility to 
recycling systems through investments in infrastructure in 
underserved communities through the use of a hub-and-spoke 
model for recycling infrastructure development.
    In selecting eligible entities to receive a grant under the 
pilot grant program, the Administrator must consider: whether 
the community that would receive a proposed project has 
curbside recycling; whether the proposed project will improve 
accessibility to recycling services in one or more underserved 
communities; and if the eligible entity is a public-private 
partnership, the financial health of the private entity seeking 
to enter into that public-private partnership.
    Priority for these grants will be given to eligible 
entities seeking to carry out a proposed project in a community 
in which there is not more than 1 materials recovery facility 
within a 75-mile radius of that community.
    An eligible entity awarded a grant under the pilot grant 
program may use the grant funds for projects to improve 
recycling accessibility in communities, including in 
underserved communities, by: increasing the number of transfer 
stations; expanding curbside recycling collection programs 
where appropriate; and leveraging public-private partnerships 
to reduce the costs associated with collecting and transporting 
recyclable materials in underserved communities. Grants awarded 
under this pilot program may not be used to fund recycling 
education programs.
    Each grant must be for an amount between $500,000 and 
$15,000,000, and the federal share of the total funding for a 
project must not exceed 90%, unless EPA finds that applying 
this requirement would cause the grant recipient significant 
financial hardship. At least 70% of the overall funding for 
grants each year must go to projects in one or more underserved 
communities.
    The bill authorizes to be appropriated to the Administrator 
$30 million per year for fiscal years 2023 through 2027 to 
implement the pilot program.

                          LEGISLATIVE HISTORY

    On April 19, 2023, Senator Shelley Moore Capito, Ranking 
Member of the U.S. Senate Committee on Environment and Public 
Works introduced S. 1189, The Recycling Infrastructure and 
Accessibility Act of 2023. Senator Tom Carper (D-Del.), Chair 
of the Environment and Public Works Committee, and Senator John 
Boozman (R-Ark.) joined as original cosponsors of the 
legislation. The bill was referred to the Committee on 
Environment and Public Works.
    On April 26, 2023 the Committee on Environment and Public 
Works conducted a Business Meeting to consider S. 1189. The 
Committee ordered S. 1189 to be favorably reported without 
amendment by a voice vote.
    In the 117th Congress, on March 3, 2022, Ranking Member 
Capito introduced S. 3742, The Recycling Infrastructure and 
Accessibility Act of 2022. Chair Carper and Senator Boozman (R-
Ark.) joined as original cosponsors of the legislation. The 
bill was referred to the Committee on Environment and Public 
Works.
    On April 7, 2022, the Committee on Environment and Public 
Works conducted a Business Meeting to consider S. 3742. The 
Committee ordered S. 3742 to be favorably reported by a voice 
vote.
    On July 28, 2022, S. 3742 passed the Senate without 
amendment by Unanimous Consent.

                                HEARINGS

    In the 117th Congress, the Committee on Environment and 
Public Works held a legislative hearing on February 2, 2022, 
entitled ``Legislative Proposals to Improve Domestic Recycling 
and Composting Programs.'' The purpose of this hearing was to 
allow committee members to consider stakeholder testimony 
regarding draft versions of two pieces of legislation within 
the Committee's jurisdiction aimed at improving recycling, S. 
3743, The Recycling and Composting Accountability Act and S. 
3742, The Recycling Infrastructure and Accessibility Act.

                            ROLL CALL VOTES

    The Committee on Environment and Public Works met to 
consider S. 1189 on April 26, 2023. The bill was ordered to be 
favorably reported by voice vote, with a voting quorum of the 
Committee present.

                      REGULATORY IMPACT STATEMENT

    In compliance with section 11(b) of rule XXVI of the 
Standing Rules of the Senate, the committee has evaluated the 
regulatory impact of the reported bill. This bill will not 
directly regulate individuals or businesses or create any 
additional regulatory burdens, and will not have any adverse 
effect on the personal privacy of individuals.

                          MANDATES ASSESSMENT

    In compliance with the Unfunded Mandates Reform Act of 1995 
(Public Law 104-4), the Committee notes that the Congressional 
Budget Office found S. 1189 contains no intergovernmental or 
private-sector mandates as defined in the Unfunded Mandates 
Reform Act (UMRA).

                   CONGRESSIONALLY DIRECTED SPENDING

    In compliance with section 4(b) of rule XLIV of the 
Standing Rules of the Senate, the Committee finds that no 
provisions contained in S. 1189 meet the definition of 
congressionally directed spending items under the rule.

                          COST OF LEGISLATION

    Section 403 of the Congressional Budget and Impoundment 
Control Act requires that a statement of the cost of the 
reported bill, prepared by the Congressional Budget Office, be 
included in the report, if available. That statement follows:




    S. 1189 would authorize the appropriation of $30 million 
annually over the 2023-2027 period to the Environmental 
Protection Agency (EPA) for a grant program to expand access to 
residential recycling systems and to increase the number of 
transfer stations that aggregate recyclable materials for 
processing offsite.
    S. 1189 would require EPA to allocate 70 percent of the 
authorized amounts for grants to communities without access to 
recycling services or that have insufficient recycling 
capacity. Participating grant recipients, including states, 
localities, tribes, and public-private partnerships, would have 
to contribute at least 10 percent of a project's total cost. In 
cases of financial hardship, the bill would authorize EPA to 
waive the nonfederal cost share. The bill also would require 
EPA to report on the program two years after the first grant is 
awarded and would authorize the agency to use up to 5 percent 
of the appropriated funds to administer the program.
    Assuming appropriation of the specified amounts and based 
on spending patterns for similar programs, CBO estimates that 
implementing the bill would cost $102 million over the 2023-
2028 period and $48 million after 2028.
    The costs of the legislation, detailed in Table 1, fall 
within budget function 300 (natural resources and environment).

                TABLE 1.--ESTIMATED INCREASES IN SPENDING SUBJECT TO APPROPRIATION UNDER S. 1189
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
                                                              By fiscal year, millions of dollars--
                                                ----------------------------------------------------------------
                                                   2023     2024     2025     2026     2027     2028   2023-2028
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Authorization..................................       30       30       30       30       30        0       150
Estimated Outlays..............................        0        4       15       24       29       30       102
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

    The CBO staff contact for this estimate is Aurora Swanson. 
The estimate was reviewed by H. Samuel Papenfuss, Deputy 
Director of Budget Analysis.

                        CHANGES IN EXISTING LAW

    In compliance with section 12 of rule XXVI of the Standing 
Rules of the Senate, changes in existing law made by the bill 
are reported. Passage of this bill will make no changes to 
existing law.