California Senate passes mattress recycling bill

(Editor’s note: The International Sleep Products Association sent the following Advocacy Connection Alert to its members on June 1. ISPA opposes state-by-state solutions to the problem of used mattress disposal and favors a national solution. ISPA has proposed federal legislation, the Used Mattress Recycling Act, to help create a national program for recycling used mattress materials that would be an efficient, industry-led solution to mattress disposal. For more information on ISPA’s advocacy efforts on recycling, check www.sleepproducts.org.)

On May 31, the California Senate voted 21-17 to pass extended producer responsibility legislation for discarded mattresses. The bill requires manufacturers and retailers to pay for the collection and disposal of discarded mattresses. The California bill differs slightly from mattress EPR legislation in other states in that it appears to allow manufacturers to pass the costs of EPR onto consumers. The bill also allows manufacturers to opt out of participating in the California EPR system by paying the state a fee for each mattress it sells in the state.

The International Sleep Products Association has been working with its members in California, retailers and other business groups to oppose the bill since it was first considered in April. The vote mostly fell along party lines.

The bill must pass the California Assembly and be approved by the governor in order to become law. The California legislature adjourns at the end of August.

Thank you to those ISPA members and others in the industry who have helped inform California legislators why ISPA opposes this legislation.

Members of the mattress industry interested in supporting ISPA’s continuing efforts in California can contact Chris Hudgins, ISPA vice president of government relations, at chudgins@sleepproducts.org.

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