Bipartisan Recycling Bills Face Backlash Over Preemption of State Truth-in-Labeling Laws
Two bipartisan House bills, the Recycled Materials Attribution Act and the Packaging and Claims Knowledge (PACK) Act, have advanced through committee, potentially facing a full vote after the 2026 midterms. ProPublica reports that while the legislation promises national standards for recycling labels, it would preempt stricter state laws, such as California’s 'truth in labeling' rules. The bills endorse 'mass balance' accounting, a method critics call 'peak greenwashing' because it allows companies to claim recycled content even when little actual reprocessed plastic is used. Industry groups spent millions lobbying for these measures, which could neutralize state efforts to ban misleading recycling symbols on non-recyclable or toxic products.