Sacramento –Today, the Senate Business, Professions, and Economic Development Committee approved legislation, authored by Assemblywoman Fiona Ma (D-San Francisco) to crack down on professional recycling poaching rings who steal newspapers from news stands and CRV containers from curbside recycling bins. The legislation, AB 1778, will deter theft by placing modest requirements on recyclers who currently engage in large, cash transactions for aluminum cans, plastic and glass bottles, and newspaper.

“These sophisticated fleets must be brought to a halt,” said Assemblywoman Ma. “AB 1778 equips law enforcement, keeps rates low, and restores order to our neighborhoods that are being trashed in the middle of the night.”

In San Francisco and cities across the state, thieves rummage for bottles and cans in recycling bins late at night.  These poachers, operating as organized fleets, wake residents, throw unwanted materials on the ground, and trespass on private property.  Their theft also increases garbage rates and increases the risk of identity theft. 

AB 1778 narrowly cleared the Assembly Floor last month with bipartisan support and will be heard next in the Senate Environmental Quality Committee on June 23.  The bill requires recyclers to obtain identifying information of individuals who bring in more than $50 of CRV recyclables and newspapers. The bill will also require that payments of the these transactions be made by check.

Although AB 1778 was opposed by certain recycling companies that fought recordkeeping requirements, representatives from local recycler Norcal and the California Newspaper Publishers Association joined Assemblywoman Ma in Committee to support the bill. If passed by the Senate and signed by the Governor, the law will go into effect on January, 1 2009.