Introduced by California State Senator Josh Newman, The Responsible Textile Recovery Act (SB 707) has successfully advanced through California鈥檚 legislature and is now waiting for Governor Newsom鈥檚 signature. The bill would require clothing companies operating in California to create and fund a program to help clothing get reused, repaired, and recycled. This aims to tackle our overarching problem of waste and overproduction in the fashion industry.
The fashion industry is the fastest growing waste stream in the US, and according to the EPA, only 15% of textiles are actually recycled. The Responsible Textile Recovery Act would give many of these clothing items a second chance, whether they are repaired, resold, or recycled into new materials. 聽Our serious waste problem is largely 鈥嬧�媎riven by fast fashion, a type of fashion that produces cheap, trendy clothing for low cost. These items don鈥檛 last long, and they鈥檙e not intended to. Companies aren鈥檛 making clothing that鈥檚 built to last in order to encourage customers to keep buying more and more.
In our current system, manufacturers have no incentive to minimize the waste they create 鈥� they are only incentivized to grow their profits. But if The Responsible Textile Recovery Act is signed into law, companies鈥� not ratepayers and taxpayers鈥� will be held financially responsible for what happens to their products after they鈥檙e used.