Title: Recycling Infrastructure and Accessibility Act of 2022
Policy area: Environmental Protection

Summary:
Recycling Infrastructure and Accessibility Act of 2022
This bill requires the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) to establish a pilot grant program for improving recycling accessibility in communities. The EPA may award grants to states, local governments, Indian tribes, or public-private partnerships.

[Congressional Bills 117th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[S. 3742 Introduced in Senate (IS)]

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117th CONGRESS
  2d Session
                                S. 3742

To establish a pilot grant program to improve recycling accessibility, 
                        and for other purposes.


_______________________________________________________________________


                   IN THE SENATE OF THE UNITED STATES

                             March 3, 2022

 Mrs. Capito (for herself, Mr. Carper, and Mr. Boozman) introduced the 
 following bill; which was read twice and referred to the Committee on 
                      Environment and Public Works

_______________________________________________________________________

                                 A BILL


 
To establish a pilot grant program to improve recycling accessibility, 
                        and for other purposes.

    Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives of the 
United States of America in Congress assembled,

SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE.

    This Act may be cited as the ``Recycling Infrastructure and 
Accessibility Act of 2022''.

SEC. 2. RECYCLING INFRASTRUCTURE AND ACCESSIBILITY PROGRAM.

    (a) Definitions.--In this section:
            (1) Administrator.--The term ``Administrator'' means the 
        Administrator of the Environmental Protection Agency.
            (2) Curbside recycling.--The term ``curbside recycling'' 
        means the process by which residential recyclable materials are 
        picked up curbside.
            (3) Eligible entity.--The term ``eligible entity'' means--
                    (A) a State (as defined in section 1004 of the 
                Solid Waste Disposal Act (42 U.S.C. 6903));
                    (B) a unit of local government;
                    (C) an Indian Tribe; and
                    (D) a public-private partnership.
            (4) 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).
            (5) Materials recovery facility.--
                    (A) In general.--The term ``materials recovery 
                facility'' means a recycling facility where primarily 
                residential recyclables, which are diverted from 
                disposal by a generator and collected separately from 
                municipal solid waste, are mechanically or manually 
                sorted into commodities for further processing into 
                specification-grade commodities for sale to end users.
                    (B) Exclusion.--The term ``materials recovery 
                facility'' does not include a solid waste management 
                facility that may process municipal solid waste to 
                remove recyclable materials.
            (6) Pilot grant program.--The term ``pilot grant program'' 
        means the Recycling Infrastructure and Accessibility Program 
        established under subsection (b).
            (7) Recyclable material.--The term ``recyclable material'' 
        means obsolete, previously used, off-specification, surplus, or 
        incidentally produced material for processing into a 
        specification-grade commodity for which a market exists.
            (8) Transfer station.--The term ``transfer station'' means 
        a facility that--
                    (A) receives and consolidates recyclable material 
                from curbside recycling or drop-off facilities; and
                    (B) loads the recyclable material onto tractor 
                trailers, railcars, or barges for transport to a 
                distant materials recovery facility or another 
                recycling-related facility.
            (9) Underserved community.--The term ``underserved 
        community'' means a community, including an unincorporated 
        area, without access to full recycling services because--
                    (A) transportation, distance, or other reasons 
                render utilization of available processing capacity at 
                an existing materials recovery facility cost 
                prohibitive; or
                    (B) the processing capacity of an existing 
                materials recovery facility is insufficient to manage 
                the volume of recyclable materials produced by that 
                community.
    (b) Establishment.--Not later than 18 months after the date of 
enactment of this Act, the Administrator shall establish a pilot grant 
program, to be known as the ``Recycling Infrastructure and 
Accessibility Program'', to award grants, on a competitive basis, to 
eligible entities to improve recycling accessibility in a community or 
communities within the same geographic area.
    (c) Goal.--The goal of the pilot grant 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.
    (d) Applications.--To be eligible to receive a grant under the 
pilot grant program, an eligible entity shall submit to the 
Administrator an application at such time, in such manner, and 
containing such information as the Administrator may require.
    (e) Considerations.--In selecting eligible entities to receive a 
grant under the pilot grant program, the Administrator shall consider--
            (1) whether the community or communities in which the 
        eligible entity is seeking to carry out a proposed project has 
        curbside recycling;
            (2) whether the proposed project of the eligible entity 
        will improve accessibility to recycling services in a single 
        underserved community or multiple underserved communities; and
            (3) if the eligible entity is a public-private partnership, 
        the financial health of the private entity seeking to enter 
        into that public-private partnership.
    (f) Priority.--In selecting eligible entities to receive a grant 
under the pilot grant program, the Administrator shall give priority 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.
    (g) Use of Funds.--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--
            (1) increasing the number of transfer stations;
            (2) expanding curbside recycling collection programs where 
        appropriate; and
            (3) leveraging public-private partnerships to reduce the 
        costs associated with collecting and transporting recyclable 
        materials in underserved communities.
    (h) Prohibition on Use of Funds.--An eligible entity awarded a 
grant under the pilot grant program may not use the grant funds for 
projects relating to recycling education programs.
    (i) Minimum and Maximum Grant Amount.--A grant awarded to an 
eligible entity under the pilot grant program shall be in an amount--
            (1) not less than $500,000; and
            (2) not more than $15,000,000.
    (j) Set-Aside.--The Administrator shall set aside not less than 70 
percent of the amounts made available to carry out the pilot grant 
program for each fiscal year to award grants to eligible entities to 
carry out a proposed project or program in a single underserved 
community or multiple underserved communities.
    (k) Federal Share.--
            (1) In general.--Subject to paragraph (2), the Federal 
        share of the cost of a project or program carried out by an 
        eligible entity using grant funds shall be not more than 90 
        percent.
            (2) Waiver.--The Administrator may waive the Federal share 
        requirement under paragraph (1) if the Administrator determines 
        that an eligible entity would experience significant financial 
        hardship as a result of that requirement.
    (l) Report.--Not later than 2 years after the date on which the 
first grant is awarded under the pilot grant program, the Administrator 
shall submit to Congress a report describing the implementation of the 
pilot grant program, which shall include--
            (1) a list of eligible entities that have received a grant 
        under the pilot grant program;
            (2) the actions taken by each eligible entity that received 
        a grant under the pilot grant program to improve recycling 
        accessibility with grant funds; and
            (3) to the extent information is available, a description 
        of how grant funds received under the pilot grant program 
        improved recycling rates in each community in which a project 
        or program was carried out under the pilot grant program.
    (m) Authorization of Appropriations.--
            (1) In general.--There are authorized to be appropriated to 
        the Administrator to carry out the pilot grant program such 
        sums as may be necessary for each of fiscal years 2023 through 
        2027, to remain available until expended.
            (2) Administrative costs and technical assistance.--Of the 
        amounts made available under paragraph (1), the Administrator 
        may use up to 5 percent--
                    (A) for administrative costs relating to carrying 
                out the pilot grant program; and
                    (B) to provide technical assistance to eligible 
                entities applying for a grant under the pilot grant 
                program.
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