(a) At least once every two years, the department shall review each jurisdiction‘s source reduction and recycling element and household hazardous waste element for compliance with Section 41780.

(b) In addition to the requirements of subdivision (a), the department may review whether a jurisdiction is in compliance with Section 41780 in accordance with the requirements of this section at any time that the department receives information that indicates the jurisdiction may not be making a good faith effort to implement its source reduction and recycling element and household hazardous waste element.

Ask a legal question, get an answer ASAP!
Click here to chat with a lawyer about your rights.

(c) (1) Before issuing a compliance order pursuant to subdivision (d), the department shall confer with the jurisdiction regarding conditions relating to the proposed order of compliance, with a first meeting occurring not less than 60 days before issuing a notice of intent to issue an order of compliance.

(2) The department shall issue a notice of intent to issue an order of compliance not less than 30 days before the department holds a hearing to issue the notice of compliance. The notice of intent shall specify all of the following:

(A) The proposed basis for issuing an order of compliance.

(B) The proposed actions the department recommends are necessary for the jurisdiction to complete the implementation of its source reduction and recycling element or household hazardous waste element.

(C) The proposed recommendations to the department.

(3) The department shall consider any information provided pursuant to subdivision (c) of Section 41821, if the proposed issuance of an order of compliance involves changes to a jurisdiction’s calculation of annual disposal.

(d) (1) If, after holding a public hearing, which, to the extent possible, shall be held in the local or regional agency’s jurisdiction, the department finds that a jurisdiction has failed to make a good faith effort to implement its source reduction and recycling element or its household hazardous waste element, the department shall issue an order of compliance with a specific schedule for achieving compliance.

(2) The compliance order shall include those conditions that the department determines to be necessary for the jurisdiction to implement its diversion programs.

(3) In addition to considering the good faith efforts of a jurisdiction, as specified in subdivision (e), to implement a diversion program, the department shall consider all of the following factors in determining whether or not to issue a compliance order:

(A) Whether an exceptional growth rate may have affected compliance.

(B) Other information that the jurisdiction may provide that indicates the effectiveness of the jurisdiction’s programs, such as disposal characterization studies or other jurisdiction specific information.

(e) For purposes of making a determination pursuant to this section as to whether a jurisdiction has failed to make a good faith effort to implement its source reduction and recycling element or its household hazardous waste element, the department shall consider all of the following criteria:

(1) For the purposes of this section, “good faith effort” means all reasonable and feasible efforts by a jurisdiction to implement those programs or activities identified in its source reduction and recycling element or household hazardous waste element, or alternative programs or activities that achieve the same or similar results.

(2) For purposes of this section, “good faith effort” may also include the evaluation by a jurisdiction of improved technology for the handling and management of solid waste that would reduce costs, improve efficiency in the collection, processing, or marketing of recyclable materials or yard waste, and enhance the ability of the jurisdiction to adequately address all sources of significant disposal, the submission by the jurisdiction of a compliance schedule, and the undertaking of all other reasonable and feasible efforts to implement the programs identified in the jurisdiction’s source reduction and recycling element or household hazardous waste element.

(3) In determining whether a jurisdiction has made a good faith effort, the department shall also consider the enforcement criteria included in its enforcement policy, as adopted on April 25, 1995, or as subsequently amended.

(4) The department shall consider all of the following when considering whether a jurisdiction has made a good faith effort to implement its source reduction and recycling element or its household hazardous waste element:

(A) Natural disasters.

(B) Budgetary conditions within a jurisdiction that could not be remedied by the imposition or adjustment of solid waste fees.

(C) Work stoppages that directly prevent a jurisdiction from implementing its source reduction and recycling element or household hazardous waste element.

(D) The impact of the failure of federal, state, and other local agencies located within the jurisdiction to implement source reduction and recycling programs in the jurisdiction.

(E) The extent to which the jurisdiction has implemented additional source reduction, recycling, and composting activities.

(F) The extent to which the jurisdiction has made program implementation choices driven by considerations related to other environmental issues, including climate change.

(G) Whether the jurisdiction has provided information to the department concerning whether construction and demolition waste material is at least a moderately significant portion of the waste stream, and, if so, whether the local jurisdiction has adopted an ordinance for diversion of construction and demolition waste materials from solid waste disposal facilities, has adopted a model ordinance pursuant to subdivision (a) of Section 42912 for diversion of construction and demolition waste materials from solid waste disposal facilities, or has implemented another program to encourage or require diversion of construction and demolition waste materials from solid waste disposal facilities.

(H) The extent to which the jurisdiction has implemented programs to comply with Section 41780 and to maintain its per capita disposal rate.

(I) Whether the jurisdiction has implemented a dual stream recycling program. For this purpose, “dual stream recycling program” means a program in which fiber materials to be collected for recycling must be separated from containers or from glass. A dual stream recycling program includes, but is not limited to, split cart collection, separate collection containers for fiber and containers, or alternating collection weeks for single collection containers containing only fiber or only containers.

(5) In making a determination whether a jurisdiction has made a good faith effort, pursuant to this section, the department may consider a jurisdiction’s per capita disposal rate as a factor in determining whether the jurisdiction adequately implemented its diversion programs. The department shall not consider a jurisdiction’s per capita disposal rate to be determinative as to whether the jurisdiction has made a good faith effort to implement its source reduction and recycling element or its household hazardous waste element.

(f) This section shall become operative on January 1, 2022.

(Amended (as amended by Stats. 2017, Ch. 155, Sec. 2) by Stats. 2019, Ch. 182, Sec. 3. (AB 815) Effective January 1, 2020. Section operative January 1, 2022, by its own provisions.)