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California bills · 2025-2026 Regular Session

California AB 70

Solid waste: organic waste: diversion: biomethane.

  1. Introduced
  2. In committee
  3. Passed House
  4. Passed Senate
  5. To Governor
  6. Became law

Sponsors

Summary

Official abstract published by the California legislature· summary

(1) The California Integrated Waste Management Act of 1989 generally regulates solid waste disposal, management, and recycling. The act requires each city, county, and regional agency to develop a source reduction and recycling element of an integrated waste management plan. The act requires that element to include a 50% solid waste diversion requirement, as specified, and provides that up to 10% may be achieved through biomass conversion under certain conditions, with biomass conversion defined as the production of heat, fuels, or electricity by certain means from specified materials. One of the conditions for using biomass conversion to satisfy a portion of the solid waste diversion requirement is that pyrolysis not be included in the source reduction and recycling element. Pyrolysis is not defined for that purpose or for other purposes in the act. This bill would define pyrolysis for purposes of the act as the thermal decomposition of material at elevated temperatures in the absence or near absence of oxygen. (2) Existing law requires the Department of Resources Recycling and Recovery, in consultation with the State Air Resources Board, to adopt regulations, as specified, to achieve specified reductions in the organic waste disposed of in landfills. The department's regulations provide for, among other things, the calculation by the department of recovered organic waste product procurement targets for each local jurisdiction and a list of eligible recovered organic waste products for purposes of the procurement targets. This bill would require the department, no later than January 1, 2027, to amend those regulations to include, as a recovered organic waste product attributable to a local jurisdiction's procurement target, pipeline biomethane converted exclusively from organic waste, as specified. This bill would incorporate additional changes to Section 42652.5 of the Public Resources Code proposed by AB 786 to be operative only if this bill and AB 786 are enacted and this bill is enacted last.

Text versions

Roll-call votes

State vote data last updated Oct 16, 2026, 12:24 AM.

DateVoteResultYour legislators
Sep 11, 2025
House		AB 70 Aguiar-Curry Concurrence in Senate AmendmentspassSet your home in California to see
Sep 10, 2025
Senate		3rd Reading AB70 Aguiar-Curry By GraysonpassSet your home in California to see
Aug 29, 2025
Senate		Do passpassSet your home in California to see
Jul 14, 2025
Senate		Placed on suspense filepassSet your home in California to see
Jul 2, 2025
Senate		Do pass, but first be re-referred to the Committee on [Appropriations] with the recommendation: To Consent CalendarpassSet your home in California to see
Jun 3, 2025
House		AB 70 Aguiar-Curry Assembly Third ReadingpassSet your home in California to see
May 23, 2025
House		Do pass as amended.passSet your home in California to see
Mar 24, 2025
House		Do pass and be re-referred to the Committee on [Appropriations]passSet your home in California to see

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