Arizona – Waste Disposal Surcharge

Arizona’s disposal fee of $0.25/ton was established through the Arizona Solid Waste Recycling Act of 1990 (See Laws 1990 Chapter 378) and adopted in 1991. The fee only applies to disposal of solid waste in landfills, not at transfer stations or incinerators. The Solid Waste Recycling Act of 1990 also established the ADEQ Recycling Program, funded by revenue from the disposal fee that is deposited into the Recycling Fund. In FY2024, revenue from the fee amounted to $2,644,957.¹ The law is presently coded in the Arizona Revised Statutes (49-836 and 49-837).

“A disposal fee of twenty-five cents for each six cubic yards of uncompacted solid waste, twenty-five cents for each three cubic yards of compacted solid waste or twenty-five cents per ton of solid waste received at landfills regulated by the department.  From and after June 30, 2004, for each twenty-five cents collected in disposal fees, twelve and one-half cents shall be deposited in the recycling fund and twelve and one-half cents shall be deposited in the solid waste fee fund.  From and after June 30, 2005, all twenty-five cents collected in disposal fees shall be deposited in the recycling fund.”

“Monies from the recycling fund shall be used for the following purposes:

1. Grants to or contracts with political subdivisions, nonprofit organizations or private enterprise for research, demonstration projects, new technologies, market development and source reduction studies and implementation of the recommendations or reports prepared pursuant to this article.

2. Public information, public education and technical assistance programs concerning litter control, recycling and source reduction.

3. The collection and administration of monies in the fund.

4. The administration of this article.

5. The administration of the Arizona commerce authority’s recycled market development program.  At the end of each fiscal year, any funds not spent by the authority for this purpose shall be returned to the fund.

6. The department’s solid waste control program activities prescribed in this chapter and in title 44.”

The Recycling Fund is administered by the ADEQ Director, advised by the Arizona Recycling Advisory Committee, which reviews recycling grant applications and helps monitor the progress of awarded projects.

Recycling Grant Program

The ADEQ Recycling Grant Program was not operational between 2009-2023, when Recycling Fund monies were being redirected into the general fund to be used for other purposes. The grant program was revived for FY 2024, enabling one round of grants, due, in part, to requests from recycling businesses that the funding be used for grants, as was originally intended.² The following grants were awarded in 2023-2024 under the program:

• Waste Reduction Assistance (WRA): Funds initiatives like curbside recycling and household hazardous waste collections to majorly curb the solid waste stream.
• Waste Reduction Initiative Through Education (WRITE): Funds education efforts to teach Arizonans about proper disposal of solid waste, as well as recycling campaigns and outreach programs to encourage participation in recycling.
• Recycling Research & Development (RR&D): Funds development of new tools, products and information to assist in diverting material from landfills by using that material to create new products or by improving old technologies. 

Funding for the grant program was once again removed for FY 2025, though ADEQ is working toward returning the funding to the grant program for future fiscal years. ³

Compost-Specific Grant Recipients

FY 2024 Recycling Grant Awards totaled $1 million in one-time grants. The FY 2024 awarded two out of the twelve total grants to recipients working to expand composting efforts:

• Let’s Go Compost was awarded a $45,000 WRITE Grant for their Classroom Composting Program. They connect over 100 public schools to onsite and offsite food waste reduction solutions – from baseline education to food share tables, food rescue, and then to compost facilities.⁴ The grant funding will “provide several schools with a mobile school garden and composting unit, along with technical guidance, support, and resources to educators to enhance STEAM education programs and deliver hands-on opportunities for students to interact and engage with gardening and composting, while fostering an understanding of composting’s ecological significance.”
• Borderlands Produce Rescue was awarded $139,661 for their community-serving project ‘Potpourri for Animals and Composting’ (PAC). The program plans to increase outreach and capacity to accept more perishable products for farmers to use as animal feed and for composting groups to process into compost.

More Information

• Arizona DEQ Recycling Grant Program
• Arizona DEQ Composting
• Model State Legislation: Funding Waste Diversion and On-Farm Composting via a Disposal Surcharge – Institute for Local Self-Reliance

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Original post from August 22, 2024