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SPONSOR: Sen. Hoffner & Rep. Romer
Rep. Berry
DELAWARE STATE SENATE
153rd GENERAL ASSEMBLY
SENATE BILL NO. 287
AN ACT TO AMEND TITLE 7 OF THE DELAWARE CODE RELATING TO SOLID WASTE RECYCLING.
BE IT ENACTED BY THE GENERAL ASSEMBLY OF THE STATE OF DELAWARE:
1 Section 1. Amend § 6053, Title 7 of the Delaware Code by making deletions as shown by strike through and
2 insertions as shown by underline as follows:
3 § 6053. Universal recycling.
4 The goal of universal recycling is to create an economy of scale wherein a dramatic increase in Delaware’s
5 diversion of recyclables occurs in the most cost effective manner achievable while simultaneously creating job
6 opportunities and significantly reducing Delaware’s rate of waste disposal. Universal recycling shall be implemented in
7 accordance with the following provisions:
8 (1) Effective no later than September 15, 2011, the Authority shall cease providing curbside recycling
9 services, including yard waste collection, and all persons providing solid waste collection services in the State
10 shall also provide:
11 a. Single-stream curbside recycling collection services to all of their Delaware single-family
12 residential customers, including delivery of a container for the purpose of storage and collection of
13 recyclables that is adequately sized for the customers use such that recycling is encouraged and disposal
14 of recyclables is discouraged; and the recyclables collection service shall be provided at a frequency of
15 not less than once every other week.
16 b. Source-separated recycling collection services to dealers who provide on-premise sales,
17 including delivery of a recyclables container that is adequately sized for the premise being served and a
18 frequency of recyclables collection that shall preclude the recycling containers from overflowing and
19 otherwise causing a nuisance.
20 c. All single-family residential and on-premise sales customers with a single charge for the
21 collection of waste and recyclables on their “waste services” bill that is inclusive of the combined waste
22 and recycling collection service costs. Local governments that do not presently bill separately for the
23 costs of waste collection are exempt from this requirement
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24 d. Notification to all customers that the single-stream recycling service will be provided and
25 instructions on participation prior to September 15, 2011.
26 e. Annual notification to single family residential customers with instructions on participating in
27 the recycling program, including educational content about recyclable material.
28 (2) Effective no later than January 1, 2013, all persons providing solid waste collection services in the
29 State shall provide:
30 a. Single-stream recycling collection services to all of their Delaware multi-family residential
31 customers, including providing the multi-family complex with an appropriately sized and centrally
32 located recyclables collection container or containers for the complex being served and ideally in the
33 same proximity as the complex’s waste disposal containers. Local governments may require multifamily
34 complex owners to provide their own recyclable collection containers consistent with local requirements.
35 b. Notification Annual notification to the multi-family complex management that the single-
36 stream recycling service, including instructions on participation, will be provided. with instructions on
37 participating in the recycling program, including educational content about recyclable material.
38 c. A frequency of recyclables collection that shall preclude the recycling containers from
39 overflowing and otherwise causing a nuisance.
40 d. Written justification to the Department for not providing multi-family recycling collection
41 services where the physical constraints of the site prevent the placement of both trash and recycling
42 containers. Exclusion from multi-family recycling is subject to Department review and approval.
43 (3) Owners or operators of multi-family complexes must, at least once per calendar year, provide
44 residents with instructions on participating in the complex’s recycling program, including educational content
45 about recyclable material.
46 (4) The Recycling Public Advisory Council shall issue a report to the Governor and the General
47 Assembly no later than November 1, 2012, with recommendations regarding the implementation of universal
48 recycling in the commercial sector. It is the express requirement of this legislation that universal recycling be
49 adopted by the commercial sector and that all commercial businesses actively participate in a comprehensive
50 recycling program no later than January 1, 2014.
51 a. A comprehensive recycling program for the commercial sector must, at a minimum, include
52 recyclable wastes that are collected in the Authority’s single-stream recycling program.
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53 b. Persons who provide waste collection services to commercial customers shall include delivery
54 of a container for the purpose of storage and collection of recyclables that is adequately sized for the
55 customers’ use such that recycling is encouraged and disposal of recyclables is discouraged; the
56 recyclables collection service must be provided at a frequency of not less than once every other week.
57 c. Commercial businesses shall assess all generated wastes, other than those that are able to be
58 accepted in the Authority’s recycling program, and identify those wastes that have commercially
59 available means of recycling. Commercial businesses shall recycle those wastes unless the commercial
60 business determines that the cost of recycling those wastes exceeds the cost of disposal. The commercial
61 business must maintain records documenting this evaluation for Department review.
62 (5) Persons who choose to transport and deliver the solid waste and recyclables they generated on their
63 own property for proper disposal or to a recycling facility of their choice respectively shall not be are not affected
64 by this subchapter and may continue in this practice.
65 (6) Nothing shall impair the ownership of recyclable materials by the generator unless and until such
66 materials are placed at curbside or similar location for collection and recycling, and nothing in this chapter shall be
67 construed to prevent any person from collecting, transporting, processing, and marketing recyclable materials in
68 competition with other persons in the same business, including the Authority, provided that the requirements of
69 this subchapter are satisfied.
70 (7) Persons engaging in the collection, transportation, processing, or marketing of source separated
71 recyclable materials shall conduct such activities in a manner that the source separated recyclable materials enter
72 the marketplace and are otherwise not disposed via a landfill or by incineration.
73 (8) Persons who collect single-stream recycling may not comingle the contents of waste and recyclable
74 containers for disposal.
75 Section 2. Amend § 6054, Title 7 of the Delaware Code by making deletions as shown by strike through and
76 insertions as shown by underline as follows:
77 § 6054. Delaware Recycling Fund.
78 (c) The Fund shall be used by the Secretary for the exclusive purpose of funding specific activities designed to
79 enhance the State’s recycling rate and the diversion of recyclables that would otherwise be land disposed. The Fund may be
80 expended only:
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81 (1) To fund the Recycling Grants and Low Interest Loan Program referenced in § 6055 of this title.
82 Annual funding for the Recycling Grants and Low Interest Loan Program shall be dependent on revenue generated
83 by the Fund;
84 (2) To pay the limited and reasonable cost of the Department and the Recycling Public Advisory Council
85 to study, evaluate and report on the status and potential for recycling various components of the solid waste
86 stream, with emphasis on those aspects of municipal solid waste and commercial waste necessary to achieve the
87 diversion goals established in § 6056 of this title;
88 (3) To pay the Department’s limited and reasonable costs for administering this subchapter. No greater
89 than 10% of the revenue deposited into the Fund shall be used by the Department for administering this subchapter
90 without approval of the Joint Finance Committee and shall include but not be limited to: promoting the Recycling
91 Grants and Low Interest Loan Program, universal recycling, zero waste principles, development of reporting
92 requirements and related recycling initiatives; and
93 (4) To pay the Division of Revenue for the costs of administering § 2912 of Title 30.
94 (d) The Department shall commence the Recycling Grants and Low Interest Loan Program in calendar year 2011
95 and offer the Program at least annually thereafter until 2014.
96 (e) The revenue from the Fund and its disbursement via the Recycling Grants and Low Interest Loan Program
97 shall be subject to audit and the recipient of any such funding shall agree to the audit and cooperate with the auditor as a
98 condition of receiving funding.
99 (f) No expenditures shall be made from the Fund for any grants or loans pursuant to § 6055 of this title without the
100 approval by the Controller General and Director of the Office of Management and Budget of a plan for revenues and
101 expenditures for the period between December 1, 2010, and September 15, 2011.
102 Section 3. Amend § 6055, Title 7 of the Delaware Code by making deletions as shown by strike through and
103 insertions as shown by underline as follows:
104 § 6055. Recycling Grants and Low Interest Loan Program.
105 (a) There is hereby established a competitive Recycling Grants and Low Interest Loan Program (the “Program”) to
106 assist persons engaged in the business of collecting, transporting, processing, or marketing recyclable materials with the
107 implementation of:
108 (1) Source-separated recyclables collection and processing programs with emphasis on start-up costs for
109 residential single-stream recyclables collection; and
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110 (2) Start-up costs for initiatives which result in the recycling of solid waste materials which would
111 otherwise be land disposed, with emphasis on commercial waste.
112 The Program shall be administered by the Department, and moneys from the Program shall be paid based on
113 approved grant and loan moneys. The Department shall be entitled to disburse grant and loan monies for the documented
114 costs of implementing the collection or processing of recyclable materials. The Department shall be entitled to adopt
115 guidelines and procedures for administering the Program and determining eligibility for receipt of funding pursuant to §
116 6054 of this title. Such procedures shall include provisions for repayment of loans to the Department and may include a
117 rebate program for costs based on, including but not limited to, a prorated share of household customers in a recycling
118 program that may have been in existence prior to creation of this law. The Department shall solicit the commentary of the
119 grant eligible stakeholders during development of the grant guidelines and procedures. The Program shall be funded by
120 monies made available under the provisions of § 6054 of this title.
121 (b) The Recycling Public Advisory Council, after the receipt of comments by grant and loan eligible stakeholders,
122 shall make recommendations annually to the Department regarding the programmatic priorities for awarding Program funds
123 under this subchapter. The Recycling Public Advisory Council shall provide recommendations regarding the categories and
124 priorities for grants and loans that reflect an informed and representative view of the most urgent and important areas where
125 grant funding will provide the most benefit to the State balancing current needs with those of future generations.
126 (c) The Department shall review all grant and loan applications and award grants and loans taking into consideration
127 the Recycling Public Advisory Council recommendations. In those cases where the Department’s funding decisions differ
128 significantly from the Recycling Public Advisory Council recommendations, the Department shall report to the Recycling
129 Public Advisory Council the justification for such differences.
130 (d) Any person providing solid waste collection services that is a recipient of a grant or low interest loan from the
131 Delaware Recycling Fund shall not, as a result of implementation of universal recycling, increase rates charged for solid
132 waste collection between such time as they make application for the grant until March 15, 2013.
133 Section 4. Amend § 6056, Title 7 of the Delaware Code by making deletions as shown by strike through and
134 insertions as shown by underline as follows:
135 § 6056. Adopting diversion goals and reporting requirements.
136 (1) In order to effectively measure the diversion rates being achieved, all persons, including persons who
137 collect, process process, or market recyclables, with the exception of those specified in § 6053(5) of this title, must
138 report to the Department on a calendar year basis, no later than February 15 of the following year, the type and
139 quantity of recyclables managed, the method of recycling collection used (single or multiple streams), and the
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140 location of the recycling facilities used pursuant to reporting guidance developed by the Department and the
141 Recycling Public Advisory Council Authority. Said reporting guidance shall must be developed pursuant to the
142 solicitation of stakeholders responsible for reporting, shall take into account the need for confidentiality of the
143 information reported reported, and shall be finalized no later than December 1, 2010. The first recycling report
144 shall cover calendar year 2011 and shall be due no later than February 15, 2012.
145 (2) In order to ensure that the waste diversion goals specified in Table 1 of this section above are
146 achieved by the dates specified, the Department, in cooperation with the Recycling Public Advisory Council
147 [RPAC], shall assess progress and recommend to the Governor and General Assembly any additional mechanisms
148 necessary including but not limited to necessary, including all of the following:
149 a. which Which waste streams must be diverted from disposal; disposal.
150 b. the The parties responsible for ensuring the identified waste streams are diverted from
151 disposal; disposal.
152 c. the The date by which the diverted waste streams must be diverted from disposal; disposal.
153 d. implementation Implementation of Pay As You Throw; Throw.
154 e. Extended Producer Responsibility; Responsibility.
155 f. incentive based recycling; Incentive-based recycling.
156 g. waste Waste bans and related requirements.
157 Such assessment shall be completed, inclusive of any draft legislation determined necessary, and submitted to the
158 General Assembly no later than November 1, 2014, as part of the RPAC annual report.
159 Section 5. Amend § 6058, Title 7 of the Delaware Code by making deletions as shown by strike through and
160 insertions as shown by underline as follows:
161 § 6058. Establishment, composition and responsibility of the Recycling Public Advisory Council. Stakeholder
162 Engagement.
163 (a) There is hereby established a Recycling Public Advisory Council (the “Council”). The Council shall be
164 composed of 16 members who shall be appointed by the Governor as follows: The Department shall coordinate with the
165 Authority in convening periodic meetings of stakeholders to discuss the status of recycling activities in Delaware.
166 (1) One member from the Department;
167 (2) One member from the Authority;
168 (3) One member representing county governments, with such member being recommended by the
169 Delaware Association of Counties;
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170 (4) One member representing municipal governments, with such member being recommended by the
171 Delaware League of Local Governments;
172 (5) One member representing the recycling industry;
173 (6) One member representing the waste hauling industry;
174 (7) Two members, 1 representing the soft drink industry and 1 representing the alcohol beverage industry;
175 (8) One member representing the Delaware State Chamber of Commerce;
176 (9) One member representing the Delaware restaurant industry;
177 (10) Five members representing community-based or public-interest groups; and
178 (11) One member representing the Delaware Food Industry Council.
179 (b) Members of the Council, except for those appointed pursuant to paragraphs (a)(1) and (2) of this section above,
180 shall serve for terms up to 3 years and may not serve more than 2 consecutive terms but may again serve after 1 year off of
181 the Council. Members shall be appointed for staggered terms so that no more than 5 appointments shall expire in any 1
182 calendar year. Members may be reimbursed for travel to and from meetings. The Governor shall appoint a Chairman from
183 among the 16 members. Actions of the Council shall be approved by a majority vote of the Council. At least 9 members of
184 the Council shall constitute a quorum. The Council may adopt bylaws as it deems appropriate to serve the purposes of this
185 subchapter.
186 (c) The Recycling Public Advisory Council shall:
187 (1) Advise the Department and the Authority on all aspects of recycling;
188 (2) Advise the Department in developing criteria for the Recycling Grants and Low Interest Loan
189 Program and selection of applications as well as provide an annual assessment of the revenue needed to satisfy the
190 grant requirements;
191 (3) Maintain, in conjunction with the Department and the Authority, a methodology for measuring
192 recycling rates;
193 (4) Provide advice and recommendations regarding the recycling outreach and education programs
194 conducted by the Authority and/ or the Department;
195 (5) Report to the Governor and the General Assembly annually by November 1 of each year on the status
196 of recycling activities in Delaware. Said report shall include, but not be limited to the following:
197 a. Status of attainment of the recycling goals specified in § 6056 of this title;
198 b. An accounting of the recycling grants and loan program and any recommendations for future
199 funding of the grants and loan program;
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200 c. An assessment of the activities of both the Department and the Authority in achieving the
201 recycling goals specified in § 6056 of this title;
202 d. An objective, auditable accounting of recycling rates for total solid waste, municipal solid
203 waste, and residential solid waste;
204 e. Such other recommendations as the Council shall deem appropriate; and
205 f. Use the definitions of “recycling” and “municipal solid waste” as stated by the United States
206 Environmental Protection Agency in its document EPA530-R-97-011 dated September 1997. The
207 Council shall be able to adopt changes to these definitions.
208 (d) The Department, in concert with the Authority and the Council, shall:
209 (1) Monitor the State’s recycling initiatives and measure Delaware’s achievements toward attainment of
210 the recycling goals specified in § 6056 of this title;
211 (2) Design and implement public educational efforts aimed at increasing public awareness of recycling
212 opportunities;
213 (3) Provide technical assistance to local entities to assist them in increasing their recycling rates; and
214 (4) Provide administrative support to the Council.
215 Section 6. Amend § 6059, Title 7 of the Delaware Code by making deletions as shown by strike through and
216 insertions as shown by underline as follows:
217 § 6059. Enforcement, civil and administrative penalties.
218 (a) Whoever violates this subchapter, or any rule or regulation promulgated there under, or any order of the
219 Secretary, shall:
220 (1) For the first conviction, be fined not less than $100 nor more than $500 for each day of violation;
221 (2) For each subsequent conviction for the same offense within a 10-year period, be fined not less than
222 $500 nor more than $1,500 for each day of violation;
223 (3) In the Secretary’s discretion, the Secretary may endeavor by conciliation to obtain compliance with all
224 requirements of this subchapter. Conciliation shall be giving written notice to the responsible party:
225 a. Specifying the complaint;
226 b. Proposing a reasonable time for its correction;
227 c. Advising that a hearing on the complaint may be had if requested by a date stated in the
228 notice; and
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229 d. Notifying that a proposed correction date will be ordered unless a hearing is requested. If no
230 hearing is requested on or before the date stated in the notice, the Secretary may order that the correction
231 be fully implemented by the proposed date or may, on the Secretary’s own initiative, convene a hearing,
232 in which the Secretary shall publicly hear and consider any relevant submission from the responsible
233 party as provided in § 6006 of this title.
234 (b) Any person whose interest is substantially affected by any action of the Secretary may appeal to the
235 Environmental Appeals Board, in accordance with § 6008 of this title.
236 Section 7. Amend Chapter 60, Title 7 by making deletions as shown by strike through and insertions as shown by
237 underline as follows:
238 § 6060. Reporting Responsibility of the Department and Authority.
239 (a) The Department and Authority are hereby required to provide to the Governor and the General Assembly, by
240 November 1 of each year, an annual report on the status of recycling activities in Delaware. Said report must, at a
241 minimum, include the following:
242 (1) Status of attainment of the recycling goals specified in § 6056 of this title.
243 (2) An assessment of the activities of both the Department and the Authority in achieving the recycling
244 goals specified in § 6056 of this title.
245 (3) An objective, auditable accounting of recycling rates for total solid waste, municipal solid waste, and
246 residential solid waste.
247 (4) Use the definitions of “recycling” and “municipal solid waste” as stated by the United States
248 Environmental Protection Agency in its document EPA530-R-97-011 dated September 1997. The Department is
249 able to adopt changes to these definitions.
250 (b) The Department, in concert with the Authority, shall:
251 (1) Monitor the State’s recycling initiatives and measure Delaware’s achievements toward attainment of
252 the recycling goals specified in § 6056 of this title.
253 (2) Design and implement public educational efforts aimed at increasing public awareness of recycling
254 opportunities.
255 (3) Provide technical assistance to local entities to assist them in increasing their recycling rates.
SYNOPSIS
This Act adds requirements for persons who collect single-stream recycling from single and multi-family
residential or source-separated customers and requires commercial businesses to assess all wastes and evaluate costs
associated with disposal of recyclable materials. The Act also removes responsibilities associated with recycling grants and
low interest loans, which are no longer available. The Act adds a new provision to facilitate stakeholder engagement with
the Department of Natural Resources and Environmental Control and the Delaware Solid Waste Authority, while removing
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the establishment and associated responsibilities of the Recycling Public Advisory Council. Section 7 of the Act removes
specific civil and administrative penalties, allowing the Department to utilize enforcement authority already established in
Chapter 60, Section 6005 and details the responsibilities of the Department and the Authority to provide an annual report to
the Governor and General Assembly regarding the status of recycling activities in the state.
This Act also makes technical corrections to conform existing law to the standards of the Delaware Legislative
Drafting Manual.
Author: Senator Hoffner
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