RCRC is pleased to support Senate Bill 1175, authored by Senator Rosilicie Ochoa Bogh (R-Yucaipa). This measure seeks to provide CalRecycle and local governments with greater flexibility to tailor SB 1383 organic waste low population waivers to meet specific local situations.
Currently, CalRecycle may grant waivers from SB 1383’s collection requirements for low-population jurisdictions. For unincorporated areas, waivers are available for census tracts that have a population density of less than 75 persons per square mile. This approach results in many sparsely populated rural areas being ineligible for the exemption because a portion of the census tract is embedded in a densely populated city or census designated place.
SB 1175 provides more flexibility to CalRecycle and to local governments to allow for consideration of alternative boundaries and methodologies for determining eligibility. SB 1175 could be particularly useful for larger counties with remote, low population areas that are included in the same census tracts as more densely populated cities and census designated places.
SB 1175 is one of many different legislative proposals seeking to make changes to CalRecycle’s SB 1383 organic waste regulations. Other measures include AB 2902 (Wood), sponsored by RCRC to provide additional flexibility to smaller jurisdictions and extend the exemption for rural counties and AB 2346 (Lee) that seeks to provide additional flexibility for organic waste procurement requirements.
RCRC’s letter of support is available here. For more information, contact RCRC Senior Policy Advocate, John Kennedy.