(a) Except as provided in subdivisions (b), (c), (d), and (e), all local jurisdictions or recycling service providers shall include in their collection and recycling programs all covered material contained on the lists published pursuant to subdivisions (c) and (d) of Section 42061. This section does not authorize the department to require mandatory route collection service where it does not already exist. This section shall not limit a local jurisdiction from collecting additional materials for recycling or composting.

(b) The department shall grant an extension of, or exemption from, a requirement of subdivision (a) upon a written showing by the local jurisdiction or recycling service provider that compliance with the requirement is not practicable for a specific identified covered material because of specific local conditions, circumstances, or challenges. If the PRO objects to the extension or exemption, the PRO shall be responsible for arranging alternative means for the collection, processing, storage, and transportation of covered materials resulting from implementing this chapter. The department shall review a granted extension or exemption every two years, and may renew the extension or exemption after that review. An exemption or extension for a local jurisdiction or recycling service provider does not in any way relieve a producer or PRO from meeting the requirements of this chapter.

(c) A county board of supervisors of a rural county or a rural jurisdiction, as those terms are defined in Section 42649.8, may adopt a resolution to exempt the rural county or rural jurisdiction from the requirements of this section. If a rural jurisdiction is a regional agency composed of jurisdictions that are located entirely within one or more rural counties, the board of the regional agency may adopt a resolution, as prescribed in this subdivision, to exempt the rural jurisdiction from the requirements of this section. An exemption for a rural county or a rural jurisdiction does not in any way relieve a producer or PRO from meeting the requirements of this chapter.

(d) A local jurisdiction or recycling service provider shall not be required to collect material for recycling or composting on the lists published pursuant to subdivisions (c) and (d) of Section 42061 that does not meet the criteria described in subdivision (l) of Section 42051.1 and is collected and recycled or composted by means other than curbside collection in a producer responsibility plan.

(e) A local jurisdiction shall not be required to collect a material category that is subject to an ordinance passed by the local jurisdiction prohibiting the sale or distribution of that covered material in the local jurisdiction before the publication of the lists of recyclable or compostable material pursuant to subdivisions (c) and (d) of Section 42061.

(Amended by Stats. 2023, Ch. 131, Sec. 188. (AB 1754) Effective January 1, 2024.)