At long last, California publishes SB 54 EPR rules

The milestone gives way to next compliance steps for the sweeping extended producer responsibility and source reduction law. Circular Action Alliance also published estimated fees for obligated producers.

What happened

Permanent regulations for SB 54, California’s highly anticipated extended producer responsibility and packaging source reduction law, are now in effect.

The rules were approved by the Office of Administrative Law and filed with the secretary of state on Friday. That same day, producer responsibility organization Circular Action Alliance published illustrative fees for obligated producers in California.

Why it matters

“We’re taking action to stop producers from using excessive amounts of plastic packaging that pollutes our communities,” CalRecycle Director Zoe Heller said in a statement. “With strong state oversight, producers will be accountable for designing less wasteful packaging and funding systems to make sure their materials are collected, reused, and composted or recycled when consumers are done with them.”

Come 2032, producers must reduce their use of covered materials by 25%; ensure recycling rates of 65%; and ensure 100% recyclability or compostability for all single-use packaging and service ware. There are phased targets along the way.

The May 1 regulatory milestone was years in the making after Gov. Gavin Newsom signed SB 54 into law in 2022. In the time since, CalRecycle and an EPR advisory board have worked through needs assessments, covered material category lists and other key documents. Both CalRecycle and Circular Action Alliance have undergone multiple leadership changes.

This news brief is based on reporting published by Packaging Dive on 2026-05-04. The original report is linked below.