(a) For the purposes of this section, the following terms have the following meaning:

(1) “Nonprofit charitable reuser” means a charitable organization, as defined in Section 501(c)(3) of the federal Internal Revenue Code, or a distinct operating unit or division of the charitable organization, that reuses and recycles donated goods or materials and receives more than 50 percent of its revenues from the handling and sale of those donated goods or materials.

(2) “Residue” means the solid waste resulting from the receipt, collection, transportation, sorting, processing, or sale of goods or materials donated to the nonprofit charitable reuser for reuse or recycling, including solid wastes left at collection, processing, or sale sites, but does not include solid wastes resulting from other activities of the nonprofit charitable reuser, such as, but not limited to, the assembly or manufacture of products from new materials, the provision of charitable services such as classroom education, meal preparation, and shelter, or the provision of services for a fee, including solid waste handling services.

(b) The Legislature hereby finds and declares both of the following:

(1) In addition to their service to the poor, disabled, and disadvantaged, charitable organizations provide a valuable service by providing for the reuse or recycling of many articles that otherwise would be disposed of at disposal sites. That reuse or recycling is a leading form of source reduction, which has the highest priority among solid waste management practices identified for California.

(2) The purpose of this section is to authorize local agencies to limit the amount of solid waste handling and disposal fees, as well as any fees authorized by this chapter, for nonprofit charitable reusers to help those nonprofit organizations meet the costs of reusing or recycling donated goods or materials.

(3) The activities of nonprofit charitable reusers that reuse and recycle waste that would otherwise be disposed of assist local agencies in meeting the diversion requirements of Section 41780.

(c) (1) A city, county, district, or regional agency may structure its fees for the solid waste handling services or disposal services that it directly provides in a manner that requires nonprofit charitable reusers to pay only the direct costs of handling and disposing of their residue, and exempts them from paying any fee amounts associated with administrative costs to the city, county, district, or regional agency or associated with any other costs that are incurred by the city, county, district, or regional agency pursuant to this division.

(2) A city, county, district, or regional agency may exempt nonprofit charitable reusers from all or part of any fees imposed on the handling or disposal of their residue pursuant to this chapter.

(d) To implement this section, a city, county, district, or regional agency may, by ordinance, resolution, or otherwise, restrict any fee reduction or exemption to specified classes of nonprofit charitable reusers, such as by their size or location, or by the amount, origin, or types of solid waste handled or disposed of, and may require that nonprofit charitable reusers enter into contractual agreements to report the amounts of solid waste disposed of and materials diverted, to maintain specified levels of service and performance, or to perform any activity that the city, county, district, or regional agency may require to achieve the diversion requirements of Section 41780.

(Added by Stats. 1996, Ch. 519, Sec. 1. Effective September 16, 1996.)