Key facts
- Seventeen U.S. states are suing California to overturn its new plastics packaging law.
- The law requires producers to reduce single-use plastic packaging by 25% and ensure all packaging is recyclable or compostable by 2032.
- The states argue the law violates the Commerce Clause of the U.S. Constitution.
- Plaintiffs contend the law will lead to higher consumer prices and inflationary effects.
- The lawsuit was filed in federal court in Sacramento, California.
Seventeen U.S. states, led by Nebraska, have filed a federal lawsuit challenging California's new Plastic Pollution Prevention and Packaging Producer Responsibility Act. The states, all with Republican attorneys general, accuse California of attempting to impose its policy preferences nationwide with the law, which took effect on May 1.
The plaintiffs argue that the law violates the U.S. Constitution's Commerce Clause by placing a substantial burden on interstate commerce. They also contend that the law will increase prices for consumers, particularly impacting lower-income Americans, as producers pass on the costs of transforming their products and practices to meet the new requirements.
Nebraska Attorney General Mike Hilgers stated that California is once again enacting a policy that negatively affects the rest of the country, warning that consumers will be forced to pay more for basic necessities if the state's actions go unchecked. The National Association of Wholesaler-Distributors is also a plaintiff in the case. Defendants include Zoe Heller, director of California's Department of Resources Recycling & Recovery (CalRecycle), and the Circular Action Alliance, a producer responsibility organization tasked with implementing the law.