[Congressional Bills 116th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[H.R. 7228 Introduced in House (IH)]
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116th CONGRESS
2d Session
H. R. 7228
To provide for a coordinated Federal program to accelerate plastics
waste reduction and support recycling research and development for the
economic and national security of the United States, and for other
purposes.
_______________________________________________________________________
IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES
June 15, 2020
Ms. Stevens (for herself, Mr. Gonzalez of Ohio, Ms. Johnson of Texas,
Mr. Lucas, and Mr. Rooney of Florida) introduced the following bill;
which was referred to the Committee on Science, Space, and Technology
_______________________________________________________________________
A BILL
To provide for a coordinated Federal program to accelerate plastics
waste reduction and support recycling research and development for the
economic and national security of the United States, and for other
purposes.
Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives of the
United States of America in Congress assembled,
SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE.
This Act may be cited as the ``Plastic Waste Reduction and
Recycling Act''.
SEC. 2. FINDINGS.
Congress makes the following findings:
(1) It is estimated that global production of plastic has
increased from 2,000,000 tons of plastic per year in 1950 to
400,000,000 tons per year today, and of the 8.3 billion metric
tons of plastic ever produced globally, 6.3 billion metric tons
has become plastic waste.
(2) The United States has failed to invest in the
development of domestic recycling markets, technology and
materials to make the recycling process more available and
efficient, and as a result, the United States recycles only 9
percent of its plastic waste.
(3) For more than 2 decades, the United States and other
developed nations sold and exported 106,000,000 metric tons of
recyclable plastics to China, but in 2018 China issued a ban on
contaminated United States plastics.
(4) Following the 2018 China ban, more and more United
States communities are sending recyclable items to landfills or
incinerators.
(5) As recycling programs have moved toward single-stream
curbside recycling, more recyclable items are mixed with non-
recyclable items, resulting in fewer potentially recyclable
items actually being recycled and turned into new, valuable
products.
(6) The resin identification coding system in use today has
not been substantially updated since its creation in 1988.
(7) Characterizing the type and recyclability of different
types of plastics in use today requires updated standards.
(8) Separating and processing the many different types of
plastics as well as the heterogenous materials containing
multiple layers of different plastic types commonly in use
today will require new sorting and recycling technologies.
(9) There are currently limited private or public
investments in advanced recycling technologies and other
technologies to reduce the amount and impact of plastic waste.
(10) The Federal Government can play an important role in
supporting research and development and facilitating standards,
tools, and technologies needed across the different stages of
the plastics production and recycling ecosystem.
SEC. 3. DEFINITIONS.
In this Act:
(1) Committee.--The term ``Committee'' means the
Interagency Committee established or designated under section
5.
(2) Director.--The term ``Director'' means the Director of
the Office of Science and Technology Policy.
(3) Participating agencies.--The term ``participating
agencies'' means the agencies under section 5(c).
(4) Program.--The term ``Program'' means the Plastic Waste
Reduction and Recycling Program established under section 4.
(5) Marine debris.--The term ``marine debris'' has the
meaning provided in the Marine Debris Act (33 U.S.C. 1956).
SEC. 4. PLASTIC WASTE REDUCTION AND RECYCLING PROGRAM.
(a) Establishment; Purposes.--The Director, acting through the
Committee and each of the participating agencies, shall establish and
implement a program to be known as the ``Plastic Waste Reduction and
Recycling Program''. The purposes of the Program shall be to--
(1) improve the global competitiveness of the United States
plastics recycling industry;
(2) ensure United States leadership in plastic waste
reduction and recycling research and innovation;
(3) support United States leadership in the development of
national and international standards for advanced plastics and
plastic recycling;
(4) mitigate any harmful effects of plastic waste on the
environment.
(b) Program Activities.--In carrying out the Program, the Director,
acting through the Committee and each of the participating agencies,
shall carry out activities that include the following:
(1) Supporting research, development, and demonstration of
advanced plastics technologies optimized for recyclability,
plastics recycling technologies, bio-based plastics,
biodegradable plastics, remediation, including bioremediation
of plastic waste, recyclability and remediation of plastic-
based textiles, and environmental impacts of plastic waste.
(2) Supporting and facilitating public-private partnerships
to leverage knowledge and resources to accelerate research,
development, and demonstration in advanced plastics, plastics
recycling, plastic waste remediation and other areas consistent
with the purposes of this Act.
(3) Interagency planning and coordination of Federal
research and development of plastic waste reduction and
recycling technologies and plastic waste remediation.
(4) Promoting research collaboration with international
partners, as appropriate.
SEC. 5. COORDINATION BY INTERAGENCY COMMITTEE.
(a) Interagency Committee.--Not later than 180 days after the date
of enactment of this Act, the Director, acting through the National
Science and Technology Council, shall establish or designate an
Interagency Committee to coordinate Federal programs and activities in
support of plastic waste reduction and recycling and plastic waste
remediation research and development under the Program.
(b) Co-Chairs.--The Committee shall be co-chaired by the Director
of the Office of Science and Technology Policy or designee and a
representative from an agency participating in the Committee, as
selected by the Director of the Office of Science and Technology
Policy.
(c) Agency Participation.--The Committee shall include
representatives from--
(1) the National Institute of Standards and Technology;
(2) the National Science Foundation;
(3) the Department of Energy;
(4) the Environmental Protection Agency;
(5) the Department of Transportation;
(6) the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration;
(7) the Department of Agriculture; and
(8) any other Federal agency as considered appropriate by
the Director of the Office of Science and Technology Policy.
(d) Responsibilities.--The Committee shall--
(1) provide for interagency coordination of Federal
plastics reduction and recycling and plastic waste remediation
research, development, and demonstration, standards
development, and education and training activities and programs
of Federal departments and agencies undertaken pursuant to the
Program;
(2) develop definitions for the following terms to guide
the activities of the Program--
(A) recycle;
(B) recyclability;
(C) remediation;
(D) advanced recycling;
(E) advanced plastics;
(F) biobased plastics;
(G) biodegradable plastics;
(H) microplastic;
(I) nanoplastic; and
(J) pyroplastic;
(3) develop and update every 3 years a strategic plan, to
be made publicly available, for plastic waste reduction and
recycling and plastic waste remediation that--
(A) establishes goals, priorities, and metrics for
guiding and evaluating the activities of the Program;
and
(B) describes--
(i) how the Program will determine and
prioritize areas of plastic waste reduction and
recycling and plastic waste remediation for
Federal research investments;
(ii) the Program's support for long-term
funding for interdisciplinary plastic waste
reduction and recycling research, development,
demonstration, standards development,
education, and public outreach activities;
(iii) how Federal agencies participating in
the Program will collaborate with industry and
with local governments, as appropriate; and
(iv) how the program will help move the
results of research out of the laboratory and
into commercial or municipal application; and
(C) with respect to the previous 3 years, provides
a summary of--
(i) federally funded plastic waste
reduction and recycling and plastic waste
remediation research, development, and
demonstration;
(ii) the adoption of advanced plastics
reduction and recycling technologies by
Federal, State, and local governments and
private entities; and
(iii) other related activities for the
previous 3 years; and
(4) consider input from universities, State and local
governments, scientific societies, and public, private and
nonprofit plastic recycling manufacturers and organizations in
the development of the goals, priorities and metrics required
under paragraph (3)(A).
(e) Termination.--The Interagency Committee shall terminate 10
years after the date on which the Committee is established under
subsection (a).
SEC. 6. NATIONAL INSTITUTE OF STANDARDS AND TECHNOLOGY.
As part of the Program, the Director of National Institute of
Standards and Technology shall--
(1) establish a science program for characterization of
plastic properties before, during, and after recycling and
manufacturing, development of classification systems, and
creation of new data tools, techniques, and processes to
advance plastics engineering and post-consumer plastic
recycling and manufacturing;
(2) develop innovations for effective and efficient
measures for processing plastics, including films and textiles,
collected for recycling, while considering existing waste
streams and future new materials;
(3) provide the metrology basis for standards development
for plastic sorting infrastructure, processing technologies,
classification systems, including for biobased plastics, and
recycling by design;
(4) develop a clearinghouse to collect and support
dissemination of tools, guidelines and standards developed
under this section;
(5) consult with appropriate stakeholder groups to promote
adoption and implementation of such guidelines and standards,
including diverse manufacturing and industry groups, such as
packaging, including food packaging, agriculture,
transportation, textile and fashion;
(6) support plastics recycling research collaboration and
coordinate standards development, as appropriate, with other
agencies, State and local governments, nonprofit organizations,
academia, private sector, and international partners; and
(7) establish a program for measurements, methods and
standards to assess the environmental impacts of plastics
waste, including marine debris, and plastic particles and
fibers.
SEC. 7. NATIONAL SCIENCE FOUNDATION.
As part of the Program, the National Science Foundation shall--
(1) support multidisciplinary basic research on advanced
plastics that are designed for recyclability or biodegradation,
on plastic waste remediation, on advanced recycling
technologies for different plastics, and on composting and
compostable plastics, and on plastic waste valorization;
(2) support multidisciplinary research on the environmental
and biological effects of plastic waste, and particularly the
formation, transport and bioaccumulation of nano- and micro-
plastics relevant to plastics recycling and plastic waste
remediation;
(3) support, as appropriate, development of
interdisciplinary undergraduate and graduate curriculum and
instructional materials relevant to plastics recycling and
plastic waste remediation;
(4) support research experiences for undergraduate students
relevant to plastics recycling and plastic waste remediation;
and
(5) support plastics recycling research collaborations, as
appropriate, with other agencies, State and local governments,
nonprofit organizations, academia, private sector, and
international partners.
SEC. 8. DEPARTMENT OF ENERGY.
As part of the Program, the Secretary of Energy shall--
(1) support integrated research, development,
demonstration, and commercial application for--
(A) chemical and bio-inspired plastic recycling,
including research on the potential environmental
impact of chemical recycling technologies;
(B) advanced plastic synthesis;
(C) plastic waste remediation;
(D) recyclability-by-design;
(E) systems-level strategies for improved plastics
separation and recovery; and
(F) upcycling of recycled plastics into new high-
value plastics, including for food-grade packaging and
advanced manufacturing applications;
(2) coordinate research efforts funded through existing
programs across the Department of Energy, including the
National Laboratories and relevant Manufacturing USA Institutes
under section 34 of the National Institute of Standards and
Technology Act (15 U.S.C. 278s); and
(3) support plastics recycling research collaborations, as
appropriate, with other agencies, State and local governments,
nonprofit organizations, academia, private sector, and
international partners.
SEC. 9. ENVIRONMENTAL PROTECTION AGENCY.
As part of the Program, the Administrator of the Environmental
Protection Agency shall--
(1) conduct and support research development and
demonstration of innovative plastic waste management solutions,
including reduction, reuse, recycling, recovery, composting
infrastructure for bio-based plastics, and prevention of
plastics, including microplastics, nanoplastics, and
pyroplastics, from entering the air, soil, oceans, and
waterways;
(2) support and conduct research and analysis on the public
health impacts of airborne and waterborne microplastics,
nanoplastics, and pyroplastics, including research on routes of
exposure, estimates of exposure in different populations, and
toxicity assessments on animal and aquatic health, including
the food chain; and
(3) support plastics recycling research collaborations, as
appropriate, with other agencies, State and local governments,
nonprofit organizations, academia, private sector, and
international partners.
SEC. 10. NATIONAL OCEANIC AND ATMOSPHERIC ADMINISTRATION.
As part of the Program, the Administrator of the National Oceanic
and Atmospheric Administration shall--
(1) conduct and support research, data collection, and
analysis of plastic marine debris and ocean plastic pollution
generation and sources, including microplastics, nanoplastics,
and pyroplastics;
(2) support research and analysis on the health impacts of
oceanic microplastics on marine animal health, including the
food chain; and
(3) support ocean plastic research collaborations, as
appropriate, with other agencies, State and local governments,
nonprofit organizations, academia, private sector, and
international partners.
SEC. 11. COMPTROLLER GENERAL REPORT.
Not later than 2 years after the strategic plan required by section
5(d)(3) is first issued, the Comptroller General shall submit a report
to Congress that assesses the implementation of the strategic plan by
the Committee and participating agencies.
SEC. 12. AUTHORIZATIONS.
There is authorized to be appropriated to carry out activities
under this Act--
(1) to the National Institute of Standards and Technology--
(A) $10,000,000 for fiscal year 2021;
(B) $10,650,000 for fiscal year 2022;
(C) $11,342,000 for fiscal year 2023;
(D) $12,079,000 for fiscal year 2024; and
(E) $12,865,000 for fiscal year 2025;
(2) to the National Science Foundation--
(A) $30,000,000 for fiscal year 2021;
(B) $31,950,000 for fiscal year 2022;
(C) $34,027,000 for fiscal year 2023;
(D) $36,328,000 for fiscal year 2024; and
(E) $38,594,000 for fiscal year 2025;
(3) to the Department of Energy--
(A) $25,000,000 for fiscal year 2021;
(B) $26,625,000 for fiscal year 2022;
(C) $28,356,000 for fiscal year 2023;
(D) $30,199,000 for fiscal year 2024; and
(E) $32,162,000 for fiscal year 2025;
(4) to the Environmental Protection Agency--
(A) $10,000,000 for fiscal year 2021;
(B) $10,650,000 for fiscal year 2022;
(C) $11,342,000 for fiscal year 2023;
(D) $12,079,000 for fiscal year 2024; and
(E) $12,865,000 for fiscal year 2025; and
(5) to the National Oceanic and Atmospheric
Administration--
(A) $10,000,000 for fiscal year 2021;
(B) $10,650,000 for fiscal year 2022;
(C) $11,342,000 for fiscal year 2023;
(D) $12,079,000 for fiscal year 2024; and
(E) $12,865,000 for fiscal year 2025.
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