SECTIONS 42451 - California Statutes

PUBLIC RESOURCES CODE

SECTION 42451

42451. (a) This chapter shall be known, and may be cited, as the
Rechargeable Battery Recycling Act of 2006.
(b) The Legislature finds and declares all of the following:
(1) The Department of Toxic Substances Control has determined
that, due to their hazardous material content, the solid waste
disposal of all household and rechargeable batteries should be
prohibited. A regulation authorizing a temporary householder
exemption to this prohibition will expire, by its own terms, in
February 2006.
(2) The purpose of this chapter is to enact a comprehensive and
innovative system for the reuse, recycling, and proper and legal
disposal of previously used rechargeable batteries.
(3) It is the further purpose of this chapter to enact a law that
establishes a program that is convenient for consumers and the public
to return, recycle, and ensure the safe and environmentally sound
disposal of used rechargeable batteries, and that provides for a
system that does not charge the consumer when a rechargeable battery
is returned.
(4) It is the intent of the Legislature that the cost associated
with the handling, recycling, and disposal of used rechargeable
batteries be the responsibility of the producers and consumers of
rechargeable batteries, and not local government or their service
providers, state government, or taxpayers.
(5) In order to reduce the likelihood of illegal disposal of
hazardous materials, it is the intent of this chapter to ensure that
all costs associated with the proper management of used rechargeable
batteries is internalized by the producers and consumers of
rechargeable batteries at or before the point of purchase, and not at
the point of discard.
(6) Manufacturers and retailers of rechargeable batteries, in
working to achieve the goals and objectives of this chapter, should
have the flexibility to partner with each other and with those
private and nonprofit business enterprises that currently provide
collection and processing services to develop and promote a safe and
effective used rechargeable battery recycling system for California.
(7) The producers of household and rechargeable batteries should
reduce and, to the extent feasible, ultimately phase out the use of
hazardous materials in household and rechargeable batteries.
(8) Household and rechargeable batteries, to the greatest extent
feasible, should be designed for extended life and reuse.
(9) The purpose of this chapter is to provide for the safe, cost
free, and convenient collection, reuse, and recycling of 100 percent
of the rechargeable batteries discarded or offered for recycling in
the state.
(10) In establishing a cost-effective system for the recovery,
reuse, recycling, and proper disposal of used rechargeable batteries,
it is the intent of the Legislature to encourage manufacturers and
retailers to build on the retailer take-back systems initiated by the
Rechargeable Battery Recycling Corporation and others.