California Senate Bill 279
Session 20252026
Solid waste: compostable materials.
Became Law
Became Law on Oct 11, 2025
Origin Chamber
Senate
Type
Bill
Bill Number
279
State
California
Session
20252026
Motion Text
Unfinished Business SB279 McNerney et al. Concurrence
Senate Roll Call Votes
Yes
Yes
Yes
Yes
Yes
Yes
Yes
Yes
Yes
Summary
Existing law requires the Department of Resources Recycling and Recovery to adopt and revise regulations setting forth minimum standards for composting, in accordance with law. Existing regulations require all compostable materials handling activities to obtain a permit prior to commencing operations and to comply with specified requirements. Existing regulations specify 4 regulatory tiers for composting operations, with different requirements for each tier. The 4 tiers are excluded, enforcement agency notification, registration permit, and full solid waste facility permit.
In the excluded tier, existing regulations specify the "excluded activities" that do not constitute compostable material handing operations or facilities and, therefore, are not subject to permit requirements or other regulatory requirements. One of the excluded activities is the composting of green material, agricultural material, food material, and vegetative food material, alone or in combination, if the total amount of feedstock and compost onsite at any one time does not exceed 100 cubic yards and 750 square feet.
This bill would expand this excluded activity exemption for composting activities by eliminating the maximum square-foot condition and authorizing a total amount of feedstock and compost onsite at any one time of up to 200 cubic yards, or 500 cubic yards for a composting activity owned by a public agency, as defined. The bill would also authorize the Department of Resources Recycling and Recovery to further increase those amounts by regulation. The bill would also make the composting of agricultural materials and residues that are from a large-scale biomass management event at an agricultural facility that does not otherwise operate as a solid waste facility an excluded activity, as specified.
Existing regulations prohibit a composting operation from giving away or selling more than 1,000 cubic yards of compost product annually if it is in the excluded tier or if it is an agricultural material composting operation in the enforcement agency notification tier, its feedstock is both green material and agricultural material, and the operation is located on land zoned for agricultural uses.
This bill would authorize composting activities to give away or sell up to 5,000 cubic yards of compost product annually. The bill would authorize the Department of Resources Recycling and Recovery to increase, by regulation, that amount when the composting is of agricultural materials and residues that are from a large-scale biomass management event at an agricultural facility.
02/05/25 - Introduced
February 5, 2025
03/20/25 - Amended Senate
March 20, 2025
05/12/25 - Amended Senate
May 12, 2025
05/23/25 - Amended Senate
May 23, 2025
06/30/25 - Amended Assembly
June 30, 2025
09/02/25 - Amended Assembly
September 2, 2025
09/12/25 - Enrolled
September 12, 2025
10/11/25 - Chaptered
October 11, 2025
03/18/25- Senate Environmental Quality
March 18, 2025
04/04/25- Senate Appropriations
April 4, 2025
05/23/25- Senate Appropriations
May 23, 2025
05/27/25- Sen. Floor Analyses
May 27, 2025
07/04/25- Assembly Natural Resources
July 4, 2025
08/18/25- Assembly Appropriations
August 18, 2025
09/03/25- ASSEMBLY FLOOR ANALYSIS
September 3, 2025
09/08/25- Sen. Floor Analyses
September 8, 2025
Sort by most recent
10/11/2025
California State Legislature
Chaptered by Secretary of State. Chapter 651, Statutes of 2025.
10/11/2025
California State Legislature
Approved by the Governor.
09/16/2025
California State Legislature
Enrolled and presented to the Governor at 3 p.m.
09/09/2025
Senate
Assembly amendments concurred in. (Ayes 40. Noes 0.) Ordered to engrossing and enrolling.
09/08/2025
Senate
In Senate. Concurrence in Assembly amendments pending.
09/08/2025
Assembly
Read third time. Passed. (Ayes 79. Noes 0. Page 3000.) Ordered to the Senate.
09/03/2025
Assembly
Read second time. Ordered to third reading.
09/02/2025
Assembly
Read second time and amended. Ordered to second reading.
08/29/2025
Assembly
From committee: Do pass as amended. (Ayes 11. Noes 0.) (August 29).
08/20/2025
Assembly
August 20 set for first hearing. Placed on APPR. suspense file.
07/08/2025
Assembly
From committee: Do pass and re-refer to Com. on APPR. (Ayes 14. Noes 0.) (July 7). Re-referred to Com. on APPR.
06/30/2025
Assembly
From committee with author's amendments. Read second time and amended. Re-referred to Com. on NAT. RES.
06/05/2025
Assembly
Referred to Com. on NAT. RES.
05/29/2025
Assembly
In Assembly. Read first time. Held at Desk.
05/29/2025
Senate
Read third time. Passed. (Ayes 38. Noes 0. Page 1336.) Ordered to the Assembly.
05/27/2025
Senate
Read second time. Ordered to third reading.
05/23/2025
Senate
Read second time and amended. Ordered to second reading.
05/23/2025
Senate
From committee: Do pass as amended. (Ayes 5. Noes 0. Page 1194.) (May 23).
05/16/2025
Senate
Set for hearing May 23.
05/12/2025
Senate
From committee with author's amendments. Read second time and amended. Re-referred to Com. on APPR.
04/07/2025
Senate
April 7 hearing: Placed on APPR. suspense file.
03/28/2025
Senate
Set for hearing April 7.
03/20/2025
Senate
Read second time and amended. Re-referred to Com. on APPR.
03/19/2025
Senate
From committee: Do pass as amended and re-refer to Com. on APPR. (Ayes 7. Noes 0. Page 421.) (March 19).
03/07/2025
Senate
Set for hearing March 19.
02/14/2025
Senate
Referred to Com. on E.Q.
02/06/2025
Senate
From printer. May be acted upon on or after March 8.
02/05/2025
Senate
Introduced. Read first time. To Com. on RLS. for assignment. To print.
Sources
Record Created
Feb 6, 2025 5:56:52 AM
Record Updated
Oct 14, 2025 8:28:08 AM