Jan. 3: The most recent update to this tracker adds two bills New York Gov. Kathy Hochul signed into law in December. One is an EPR for carpet law, the second such law in the country. The other is a right-to-repair law requiring some electronics manufacturers to make repair manuals and tools available to the public.
Michigan Gov. Gretchen Whitmer also signed a package of waste and recycling bills into law. The bills set a 45% statewide recycling rate goal and classify chemical recycling as a manufacturing process, among many other updates.
State legislatures have kicked into high gear in recent years to introduce and pass numerous bills aimed at improving recycling, reducing plastic waste, promoting circular economy initiatives and more.
To date, states have been more nimble than Congress in enacting legislation, and this could change the way communities — and eventually the country — manage waste and recycling. Some of the most notable state-level actions in 2022 included new laws around extended producer responsibility, postconsumer recycled content, plastic item bans, organics and container deposit systems.
Bills are listed below based on the date they were signed into law. This list will expand in the future to cover additional types of bills. Have an update on a bill? Email waste.dive.editors@industrydive.com.