The bill authorizes the Alabama Department of Environmental Management to establish a recycle credit program, which includes the issuance, sale, or transfer of recycle credits for recyclable materials. A recycle credit is defined as a transferable credit issued by the department for every ton of recyclable materials used to produce a new product or energy source. The department will issue these credits upon receiving an application from recyclers and may charge a fee for this service. The bill also stipulates that recycle credits will expire after three years or upon transfer to a solid waste disposal facility, whichever comes first. Additionally, the department is tasked with adopting rules to manage recycle credit transactions and is limited to issuing no more than 50 million credits or certificates per calendar year.

Furthermore, the bill includes provisions to impose civil penalties for falsifying recycle credit certificates or fraudulently transferring credits. It mandates that any transfer of a recycle credit must be registered with the department within 30 days, accompanied by a registration fee. The bill will take effect on October 1, 2024. Notably, there are no deletions from current law mentioned in the text, as it primarily introduces new legal language related to the recycle credit program.

Statutes affected:
Introduced: 22-27-2
Engrossed: 22-27-2