California Governor Vetoes Recycled-Content Substantiation Bill
On September 27, 2026, California Governor Gavin Newsom vetoed Assembly Bill 2253 (“AB 2253”), legislation intended to strengthen substantiation requirements for recycled-content claims made on consumer products.
In his veto message, Governor Newsom expressed concern that expanding recycled-content documentation requirements would unduly burden manufacturers and suppliers already facing economic pressures “caused by federal tariff and trade policy actions.” He stated that adding new compliance requirements could compound those pressures while providing limited additional benefit to consumers.
What AB 2253 Would Have Done
California law currently requires manufacturers and suppliers making recycled-content claims about plastic food containers to maintain documentation supporting those claims. Manufacturers must document that the claimed recycled material was diverted from the waste stream during the manufacturing process or after consumer use, and that the claim complies with the Federal Trade Commission’s (FTC’s) Green Guides.
AB 2253 would have expanded these requirements to all products making voluntary recycled-content claims beginning January 1, 2030.
The bill also would have imposed more specific substantiation requirements. A recycled-content claim could not exceed the amount of third-party-certified recycled content introduced into the manufacturer’s or supplier’s overall supply stream for the material used in that product line. Claims would also have been required to rely on specified chain-of-custody methodologies for calculating recycled content.
For products other than plastic food containers, manufacturers and suppliers would have been required to provide supporting documentation to the California Attorney General upon request if the Attorney General suspected a violation. The bill also provided an option for manufacturers and suppliers to use qualified independent third-party auditors to review their recycled-content accounting and supporting records.
Governor Newsom’s veto leaves California’s existing requirements for recycled-content claims applicable to plastic food container products in place, rather than extending the proposed substantiation framework to recycled-content claims across all product categories.
Competing Views
Supporters of AB 2253 argued that the additional requirements were necessary to prevent misleading recycled-content claims. Assemblymember Tasha Boerner, the bill’s author, argued that some companies use recycled-content credits and accounting mechanisms to make claims that do not accurately reflect the recycled material used in their products.
Californians Against Waste, which sponsored AB 2253, criticized the veto as a missed opportunity to bring greater truth and accountability to recycled-content claims. Kayla Robinson, the organization’s Legislative Director, argued that consumers should be able to expect a “made with recycled content” claim to reflect recycled material actually used in the product, rather than recycled-content credits or other accounting mechanisms.
Federal Legislation on Recycled-Content Claims
The veto also comes amid federal efforts to address how recycled-content claims may be substantiated. The proposed Recycled Materials Attribution Act of 2026 (H.R.7502) would prohibit misleading recycled-content advertising while expressly recognizing mass-balance accounting as an acceptable method for substantiating recycled-content claims when used in accordance with a third-party certification system. The federal bill would also direct the FTC to update the Green Guides and issue guidance establishing a framework for mass-balance recycled-content claims.
On September 16, 2026, the House Energy and Commerce Committee voted 28-0 to order the bill reported to the full House.
The differing approaches reflect an ongoing debate over how recycled-content claims should be substantiated while providing consumers with accurate information.
