SACRAMENTO, CA. — Today, Governor Gavin Newsom vetoed Assembly Bill (AB) 2253 by Assemblymember Tasha Boerner (D-Encinitas). AB 2253, known as the Protecting Consumers Against Greenwashing Act, would have protected consumers from deceptive recycled content claims by requiring companies that advertise recycled content in their products to be honest about the amount of recycled material used. The bill is sponsored by Californians Against Waste.
“People believe businesses are being honest about their products, oftentimes paying more for sustainable products because they align with their values. However, businesses are lying about the recycled content in their products, frequently buying recycling credits and falsely claiming that their product has ‘100% recycled content’,” stated Assemblymember Boerner. “Consumers deserve honest information. Our planet and consumers cannot afford environmental deception.”
“It’s disappointing that California is passing up an opportunity to bring basic truth and accountability to recycled-content claims. Consumers deserve to know whether the products they buy actually contain recycled material, not whether a company has purchased credits or relied on an accounting scheme. We will continue working to ensure that ‘made with recycled content’ means what Californians reasonably expect it to mean,” said Kayla Robinson, Legislative Director at Californians Against Waste, the sponsor of AB 2253.
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Assemblymember Tasha Boerner represents the 77th District, which encompasses Carlsbad, Encinitas, Solana Beach, Del Mar, Coronado and the coastal communities of La Jolla south to Downtown San Diego. You can learn more about Assemblymember Boerner at a77.asmdc.org, Facebook, Instagram, or BlueSky.