California EPR program budget expected to exceed $9B in next 5 years

Circular Action Alliance hit a key milestone Monday, submitting its draft program plan with new details on SB 54 implementation. It proposes pushing back a certain source reduction requirement following regulatory delays.

What happened

Circular Action Alliance, the producer responsibility organization selected to implement California’s extended producer responsibility for packaging law, on Monday hit a highly anticipated deadline to submit its program plan to the SB 54 advisory board.

In the draft plan, CAA projects a California program budget of up to $1.87 billion in 2027. Looking at the next five years, it could total between $9.35 billion to $17.2 billion.

Why it matters

A public comment period is open until Aug. 14. CAA will consider the comments as it prepares the final program plan for submission to CalRecycle in October.

The draft program plan offers an insightful road map as to how to implement the plastic waste reduction law signed back in 2022.

The more than 350-page document includes sections related to fees and funding, such as budget development, fee-setting, ecomodulation, and reimbursement and payment processes. It also covers materials topics, including source reduction, covered materials and compostables. Still other sections relate to public engagement, such as education and outreach, and equitable access and environmental justice.

This news brief is based on reporting published by Packaging Dive on 2026-06-16. The original report is linked below.