HR-4109-119
Forwarded by Subcommittee to Full Committee by Voice Vote.
Sponsored by Joe Neguse (D-CO)
What it does
This bill would direct the EPA to collect data and report to Congress on composting and recycling infrastructure, materials recovery facilities, access to services, contamination rates, and end-market sales, and to develop a voluntary-data-based national recycling rate. It would also require the Comptroller General to report on federal agency recycling and purchasing, and require an EPA study of recyclable materials diverted from a circular market. It would authorize $4 million per year for fiscal years 2025 through 2029 and bars any mandate on states, localities, or Tribes without funding.
Who benefits
State, local, and Tribal solid waste programs that would receive better data and technical assistance on diversion and contamination. Congress and policymakers who would gain standardized national recycling figures. Recyclers, composters, and materials manufacturers that may use end-market price and facility data. Residents lacking access to recycling or composting, whose barriers would be measured and documented.
Who is hurt
No group faces direct regulatory burdens, since the bill imposes no mandates and data collection is largely voluntary. Federal taxpayers would bear roughly $20 million in authorized spending over five years. State, local, and Tribal agencies may incur staff time responding to EPA information requests. Facility operators and manufacturers may face some reporting burden or concern about disclosure of business data, though confidential information is protected. EPA would divert staff from other priorities.
Supporters argue
Supporters argue that the United States lacks consistent, reliable data on recycling and composting, which makes it hard for communities to plan investments or reduce contamination. They contend that standardized rates, facility inventories, and end-market price reporting would help local governments and businesses make informed decisions at a modest cost of $4 million per year. They note the bill is bipartisan, voluntary for states, and protects confidential business information.
Opponents argue
Opponents argue that the bill adds more federal reporting and study requirements without funding any actual recycling or composting infrastructure, so it may produce reports with limited practical effect. They contend that state and local governments and private industry already gather much of this data, and that the $4 million annual authorization may duplicate existing EPA work such as the National Recycling Strategy. They also note that voluntary data may yield incomplete national estimates.
Constitutional context
The bill rests on Congress's Article I spending and Commerce Clause powers (the Solid Waste Disposal Act framework) and imposes no mandates on states, so it raises no meaningful Tenth Amendment or anti-commandeering problem under New York v. United States (1992). Its section barring unfunded mandates further reduces any federalism concern.
Checks and balances
Congress directs the executive branch (EPA and the Comptroller General, a legislative-branch officer) to gather and report information, strengthening congressional oversight; the checks are annual appropriations, the congressional reporting requirement, and the bar on unfunded mandates.
Historical precedent
The Save Our Seas 2.0 Act (2020) required a similar EPA report on recycling end markets, which this bill would update and expand.