I 
118TH CONGRESS 
1ST SESSION H. R. 4040 
To require the Administrator of the Environmental Protection Agency to 
carry out certain activities to improve recycling and composting programs 
in the United States, and for other purposes. 
IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES 
JUNE 12, 2023 
Mr. NEGUSE (for himself, Mr. BURCHETT, and Mr. FOSTER) introduced the 
following bill; which was referred to the Committee on Energy and Commerce 
A BILL 
To require the Administrator of the Environmental Protec-
tion Agency to carry out certain activities to improve 
recycling and composting programs in the United States, 
and for other purposes. 
Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representa-
tives of the United States of America in Congress assembled, 
SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE. 
This Act may be cited as the ‘‘Recycling and 
Composting Accountability Act’’. 
SEC. 2. DEFINITIONS. 
(a) IN GENERAL.—In this Act: 
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(1) ADMINISTRATOR.—The term ‘‘Adminis-
trator’’ means the Administrator of the Environ-
mental Protection Agency. 
(2) CIRCULAR
MARKET.—The term ‘‘circular 
market’’ means a market that utilizes industrial 
processes and economic activities to enable post-in-
dustrial and post-consumer materials used in those 
processes and activities to maintain their highest 
values for as long as possible. 
(3) COMPOST.—The term ‘‘compost’’ means a 
product that— 
(A) is manufactured through the controlled 
aerobic, biological decomposition of biodegrad-
able materials; 
(B) has been subjected to medium and 
high temperature organisms, which— 
(i) significantly reduce the viability of 
pathogens and weed seeds; and 
(ii) stabilize carbon in the product 
such that the product is beneficial to plant 
growth; and 
(C) is typically used as a soil amendment, 
but may also contribute plant nutrients. 
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(4) 
COMPOSTABLE
MATERIAL.—The 
term 
‘‘compostable material’’ means material that is a 
feedstock for creating compost, including— 
(A) wood; 
(B) agricultural crops; 
(C) paper; 
(D) certified compostable products associ-
ated with organic waste; 
(E) other organic plant material; 
(F) marine products; 
(G) organic waste, including food waste 
and yard waste; and 
(H) such other material that is composed 
of biomass that can be continually replenished 
or renewed, as determined by the Adminis-
trator. 
(5) 
COMPOSTING
FACILITY.—The 
term 
‘‘composting facility’’ means a location, structure, or 
device that transforms compostable materials into 
compost. 
(6) INDIAN TRIBE.—The term ‘‘Indian Tribe’’ 
has the meaning given the term in section 4 of the 
Indian Self-Determination and Education Assistance 
Act (25 U.S.C. 5304). 
(7) MATERIALS RECOVERY FACILITY.— 
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(A) IN
GENERAL.—The term ‘‘materials 
recovery facility’’ means a dedicated facility 
where primarily residential recyclable materials, 
which are diverted from disposal by the gener-
ator and collected separately from municipal 
solid waste, are mechanically or manually sort-
ed into commodities for further processing into 
specification-grade commodities for sale to end 
users. 
(B) EXCLUSION.—The term ‘‘materials re-
covery facility’’ does not include a solid waste 
management facility that may process munic-
ipal solid waste to remove recyclable materials. 
(8) RECYCLABLE MATERIAL.—The term ‘‘recy-
clable material’’ means a material that is obsolete, 
previously used, off-specification, surplus, or inciden-
tally produced for processing into a specification- 
grade commodity for which a circular market cur-
rently exists or is being developed. 
(9) RECYCLING.—The term ‘‘recycling’’ means 
the series of activities— 
(A) during which recyclable materials are 
processed into specification-grade commodities, 
and consumed as raw-material feedstock, in lieu 
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of virgin materials, in the manufacturing of new 
products; 
(B) that may include sorting, collection, 
processing, and brokering; and 
(C) that result in subsequent consumption 
by a materials manufacturer, including for the 
manufacturing of new products. 
(10) STATE.—The term ‘‘State’’ has the mean-
ing given the term in section 1004 of the Solid 
Waste Disposal Act (42 U.S.C. 6903). 
(b) DEFINITION
OF PROCESSING.—In paragraphs 
(7), (8), and (9) of subsection (a), the term ‘‘processing’’ 
means any mechanical, manual, or other method that— 
(1) transforms a recyclable material into a spec-
ification-grade commodity; and 
(2) may occur in multiple steps, with different 
steps, including sorting, occurring at different loca-
tions. 
SEC. 3. SENSE OF CONGRESS. 
It is the sense of Congress that— 
(1) recycling and composting conserve re-
sources, protect the environment, and are important 
to the United States economy; 
(2) the United States recycling and composting 
infrastructure encompass each of the entities that 
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collect, process, broker, and consume recyclable ma-
terials and compostable materials sourced from com-
mercial, industrial, institutional, and residential 
sources; 
(3) the residential segment of the United States 
recycling and composting infrastructure is facing 
challenges from— 
(A) confusion over what materials are recy-
clable materials or compostable materials; 
(B) reduced export markets; 
(C) growing, but still limited, domestic end 
markets; and 
(D) an ever-changing and heterogeneous 
supply stream; 
(4) in some areas, recycling and composting in-
frastructure is in need of revitalization; and 
(5) in an effort to address those challenges, the 
United States must use a combination of tactics to 
improve recycling and composting in the United 
States. 
SEC. 4. REPORT ON COMPOSTING INFRASTRUCTURE CAPA-
BILITIES. 
The Administrator, in consultation with States, units 
of local government, and Indian Tribes, shall— 
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(1) prepare a report, or expand work under the 
National Recycling Strategy to include data, describ-
ing the capability of the United States to implement 
a national composting strategy for compostable ma-
terials for the purposes of reducing contamination 
rates for recycling, including— 
(A) an evaluation of existing Federal, 
State, and local laws that may present barriers 
to implementation of a national composting 
strategy; 
(B)(i) an evaluation of existing composting 
programs of States, units of local government, 
and Indian Tribes; and 
(ii) a description of best practices based on 
those programs; 
(C) an evaluation of existing composting 
infrastructure in States, units of local govern-
ment, and Indian Tribes for the purposes of es-
timating cost and approximate land needed to 
expand composting programs; and 
(D) a study of the practices of manufac-
turers and companies that are moving to using 
compostable packaging and food service ware 
for the purpose of making the composting proc-
ess the end-of-life use of those products; and 
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(2) not later than 2 years after the date of en-
actment of this Act, submit the report prepared 
under paragraph (1) to Congress. 
SEC. 5. REPORT ON FEDERAL AGENCY RECYCLING PRAC-
TICES. 
Not later than 2 years after the date of enactment 
of this Act, and every 2 years thereafter until 2033, the 
Comptroller General of the United States, in consultation 
with the Administrator, shall make publicly available a re-
port describing— 
(1) the total annual recycling and composting 
rates reported by all Federal agencies; 
(2) the total annual percentage of products con-
taining recyclable material, compostable material, or 
recovered materials purchased by all Federal agen-
cies, including— 
(A) the total quantity of procured products 
containing recyclable material or recovered ma-
terials listed in the comprehensive procurement 
guidelines published under section 6002(e) of 
the Solid Waste Disposal Act (42 U.S.C. 
6962(e)); and 
(B) the total quantity of compostable ma-
terial purchased; 
(3) recommendations for updating— 
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(A) the comprehensive procurement guide-
lines published under section 6002(e) of the 
Solid Waste Disposal Act (42 U.S.C. 6962(e)); 
and 
(B) the environmentally preferable pur-
chasing program established under section 
6604(b)(11) of the Pollution Prevention Act of 
1990 (42 U.S.C. 13103(b)(11)); and 
(4) the activities of each Federal agency that 
promote recycling or composting. 
SEC. 6. IMPROVING DATA AND REPORTING. 
(a) INVENTORY OF MATERIALS RECOVERY FACILI-
TIES.—Not later than 1 year after the date of enactment 
of this Act, and biannually thereafter, the Administrator, 
in consultation with States, units of local government, and 
Indian Tribes, shall— 
(1) prepare an inventory of public and private 
materials recovery facilities in the United States, in-
cluding— 
(A) the number of materials recovery fa-
cilities in each unit of local government in each 
State; and 
(B) a description of the materials that 
each materials recovery facility can process, in-
cluding— 
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(i) in the case of plastic, a description 
of— 
(I) the types of accepted resin, if 
applicable; and 
(II) the packaging or product 
format, such as a jug, a carton, or 
film; 
(ii) food packaging and service ware, 
such as a bottle, cutlery, or a cup; 
(iii) paper; 
(iv) aluminum, such as an aluminum 
beverage can, food can, aerosol can, or foil; 
(v) steel, such as a steel food or aer-
osol can; 
(vi) other scrap metal; 
(vii) glass; or 
(viii) any other material not described 
in any of clauses (i) through (vii) that a 
materials recovery facility can process; and 
(2) submit the inventory prepared under para-
graph (1) to Congress. 
(b) ESTABLISHMENT OF A COMPREHENSIVE BASE-
LINE OF DATA FOR THE UNITED STATES RECYCLING 
SYSTEM.—The Administrator, in consultation with States, 
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(c) STANDARDIZATION OF RECYCLING REPORTING 
RATES.— 
(1) COLLECTION OF RATES.— 
(A) IN GENERAL.—The Administrator may 
use amounts made available under section 9 to 
biannually collect from each State the nation-
ally standardized rate of recyclable materials in 
that State that have been successfully diverted 
from the waste stream and brought to a mate-
rials recovery facility or composting facility. 
(B) 
CONFIDENTIAL
OR
PROPRIETARY 
BUSINESS
INFORMATION.—Information 
col-
lected under subparagraph (A) shall not include 
any confidential or proprietary business infor-
mation, as determined by the Administrator. 
(2) USE.—Using amounts made available under 
section 9, the Administrator may use the rates col-
lected under paragraph (1) to further assist States, 
units of local government, and Indian Tribes— 
(A) to reduce the overall waste produced 
by the States and units of local government; 
and 
(B) to increase recycling and composting 
rates. 
(d) REPORT ON END MARKETS.— 
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(1) IN GENERAL.—The Administrator, in con-
sultation with States, units of local government, and 
Indian Tribes, shall— 
(A) provide an update to the report sub-
mitted under section 306 of the Save Our Seas 
2.0 Act (Public Law 116–224; 134 Stat. 1096) 
to include an addendum on the end-market sale 
of all recyclable materials, in addition to recy-
cled plastics as described in that section, from 
materials recovery facilities that process recy-
clable materials collected from households and 
publicly available recyclable materials drop-off 
centers, including— 
(i) the total, in dollars per ton, domes-
tic sales of bales of recyclable materials; 
and 
(ii) the total, in dollars per ton, inter-
national sales of bales of recyclable mate-
rials; 
(B) prepare a report on the end-market 
sale of compost from all compostable materials 
collected from households and publicly available 
compost drop-off centers, including the total, in 
dollars 
per 
ton, 
of 
domestic 
sales 
of 
compostable materials; and 
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(C) not later than 2 years after the date 
of enactment of this Act, submit to Congress 
the update to the report prepared under sub-
paragraph (A) and the report prepared under 
subparagraph (B). 
(2) CONFIDENTIAL OR PROPRIETARY BUSINESS 
INFORMATION.—Information collected under sub-
paragraphs (A) and (B) of paragraph (1) shall not 
include any confidential or proprietary business in-
formation, as determined by the Administrator. 
SEC. 7. STUDY ON THE DIVERSION OF RECYCLABLE MATE-
RIALS FROM A CIRCULAR MARKET. 
(a) IN GENERAL.—Not later than 1 year after the 
date of enactment of this Act, the Administrator shall de-
velop a metric for determining the proportion of recyclable 
materials in commercial and municipal waste streams that 
are being diverted from a circular market. 
(b) STUDY; REPORT.—Not later than 1 year after the 
development of a metric under subsection (a), the Admin-
istrator shall conduct a study of, and submit to Congress 
a report on, the proportion of recyclable materials in com-
mercial and municipal waste streams that, during each of 
the 10 calendar years preceding the year of submission 
of the report, were diverted from a circular market. 
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(c) DATA.—The report under subsection (b) shall 
provide data on specific recyclable materials, including 
aluminum, plastics, paper and paperboard, textiles, and 
glass, that were prevented from remaining in a circular 
market through disposal or elimination, and to what use 
those specific recyclable materials were lost. 
(d) EVALUATION.—The report under subsection (b) 
shall include an evaluation of whether the establishment 
or improvement of recycling programs would— 
(1) improve recycling rates; or 
(2) reduce the quantity of recyclable materials 
being unutilized in a circular market. 
SEC. 8. VOLUNTARY GUIDELINES. 
The Administrator shall— 
(1) in consultation with States, units of local 
government, and Indian Tribes, develop, based on 
the results of the studies, reports, inventory, and 
data determined under sections 4 through 7, and 
provide to States, units of local government, and In-
dian Tribes, through the Model Recycling Program 
Toolkit or a similar resource, best practices that the 
States, units of local government, and Indian Tribes 
may use to enhance recycling and composting, in-
cluding— 
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(A) labeling techniques for containers of 
waste, compostable materials, and recycling, 
with the goal of creating consistent, readily 
available, and understandable labeling across 
jurisdictions; 
(B) pamphlets or other literature readily 
available to constituents; 
(C) primary and secondary school edu-
cational resources on recycling; 
(D) web and media-based campaigns; and 
(E) guidance for the labeling of recyclable 
materials and compostable materials that mini-
mizes contamination and diversion of those ma-
terials from waste streams toward recycling and 
composting systems; and 
(2) not later than 2 years after the date of en-
actment of this Act, submit to Congress a report de-
scribing the best practices developed under para-
graph (1). 
SEC. 9. AUTHORIZATION OF APPROPRIATIONS. 
There is authorized to be appropriated $10,000,000 
to carry out this Act, to remain available until expended. 
Æ 
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