1. (a) The Department may conduct investigations to examine operation activities and records, as it deems necessary to determine compliance with this chapter or the Act pursuant to subdivision (a) of section 42080 of the Public Resources Code. The investigation may require, for example, entities to produce records to the Department and to cooperate with onsite inspections by the Department. An authorized Department employee or agent shall be allowed to enter the premises of any entity subject to this chapter and the Act during normal working hours to conduct inspections. Methods may include, but are not limited to, the review and copying of any records required by this chapter. Notices of violation issued by the Department may identify additional records and information that the entity must produce regarding such noncompliance.
2. (b) For purposes of assessing administrative civil penalties pursuant to paragraph (1) of subdivision (a) of section 42081 of the Public Resources Code, the Department shall determine the number of violations committed and the number of days on which the violations occurred as set forth in this section.
3. (c) Except as specifically set forth in this section, for each discrete requirement of the Act, this chapter, or a Producer Responsibility Plan, each distinct condition, action, or course of action constituting or resulting in a violation of the requirement shall constitute a single violation of the Act.

4. (d) Except as otherwise provided in this chapter, for purposes of assessing penalties, penalties shall accrue as follows:

   1. (1) For violations committed through discrete actions, such as an action prohibited under the Act, penalties shall accrue on each subsequent day on which the actions are committed following the thirtieth day after the Department issues a notice of violation for the initial violation.
   2. (2) For continuous violations based on the persistence of a particular condition or course of action, such as an ongoing failure to satisfy reporting, plan implementation, source reduction, or other obligations under the Act, the violation shall be deemed to occur each day such conditions or courses of action persist after the thirtieth day after the Department issues a notice of violation.

5. (e) If a PRO or producer fails to maintain records or other evidence sufficient to demonstrate compliance with any requirement of the Act or fails to provide such records upon demand by the Department, penalties for the absence of or failure to provide records shall accrue as follows:

   1. (1) Violations based on the failure to maintain records shall be deemed to have occurred on each day for which a PRO or producer failed to maintain sufficient evidence to demonstrate compliance. Each such day is subject to the per-day penalties set forth in paragraph (1) of subdivision (a) of section 42081 of the Public Resources Code, and such penalties shall not begin accruing until the thirty-first day following issuance of a notice of violation.
   2. (2) Violations based on the failure to provide records to the Department upon request shall be deemed to begin on the date of the request. Penalties shall begin accruing as of the thirty-first day following issuance of a notice of violation, such that no penalties shall be imposed if the records demanded are provided before such date.
6. (f) Except as provided in subdivision (g), if a PRO violates the Act or this chapter, such as by not implementing a discrete requirement of its plan, in a manner that results in particular producers being out of compliance with a discrete requirement of the Act or this chapter that the PRO otherwise would have satisfied on their behalf, each discrete instance of a producer being out of compliance is a violation of the Act by the PRO, except for violations for which the Department has issued a notice of violation directly to such producers.
7. (g) For requirements of the Act or this chapter that apply generally to participants in a PRO plan, such as the requirement to ensure that covered material sold, offered for sale, imported, or distributed in the state achieves the requirements set forth in sections 42050 and subdivision (i) of 42057 of the Public Resources Code, the failure to meet such requirements is a violation by the PRO for each plan participant that is a producer of the covered material at issue, except those to which the Department has issued an individual notice of violation for such failure. For example, if any participating producers continue offering for sale products that use covered material in a particular covered material category that does not meet the recycling rate requirements of subdivision (c) of section 42050 or subdivision (i) of section 42057 of the Public Resources Code, those producers of covered material in that category have violated their obligation under that section, and either the PRO or the individual participating producers may be penalized pursuant to section 42080 of the Public Resources Code for each such violation. Notwithstanding the foregoing, penalties shall not be imposed on the PRO for violations of subdivision (i) of section 42057 of the Public Resources Code that occur before approval of the PRO's plan.

8. (h) For purposes of assessing penalties for violations of section 42050 of the Public Resources Code by a producer or PRO relating to non-compliant covered material used by a product:

   1. (1) Each product that uses non-compliant covered material, without regard to the distribution or sales of discrete instances of the product, shall constitute a distinct violation. Each product shall be identified according to the characteristics listed in paragraph (2) of subdivision (a) of section 42081 of the Public Resources Code, using as many characteristics as necessary to uniquely identify it. In addition to those characteristics, the Department may deem a unique stock keeping unit (SKU) or a global trade item number, such as a universal product code (UPC), to uniquely identify the product according to such characteristics. If the Department determines characteristics listed in paragraph (2) of subdivision (a) of section 42081 of the Public Resources Code are not sufficient to uniquely identify the product, other characteristics may be considered. Multiple variations of a product, such as those identified by multiple SKUs or UPCs, constitute the same product, provided that they use the same amounts and types of covered material but differ in trivial ways not affecting their end-of-life management.
   2. (2) The violation shall be deemed to occur on each day that the product using non-compliant covered material is in distribution or offered for sale in the state.
   3. (3) If a specific covered material satisfies the recycling rate requirement of subdivision (c) of section 42050 of the Public Resources Code, the producer of the covered material shall not be considered to violate that requirement solely because the covered material category encompassing the covered material does not meet that requirement. However, the producer must demonstrate in an annual report that the covered material continues to satisfy the requirement. Recycling rate shall be calculated as described in section 18980.3.2, applied solely to the covered material rather than to the covered material category.

9. (i) For violations of section 42060.5 of the Public Resources Code by a local jurisdiction:

   1. (1) The number of violations shall be the number of covered material categories contained on the lists identified in subdivision (a) of section 42060.5 of the Public Resources Code that are not included in their collection and recycling programs.
   2. (2) Penalties for each violation shall accrue on each day any covered material category is not included in their collection and recycling programs, except as described in sections 18980.11.1 and 18980.11.2, or unless the local jurisdiction is otherwise not required to include the covered material category in its collection and recycling programs under section 42060.5 of the Public Resources Code.
   3. (3) No penalty may be imposed against a local jurisdiction during the pendency of a request for an extension for, or exemption from, a requirement of subdivision (a) of section 42060.5 asserting that compliance with the requirement is not practicable for a specific identified covered material.
10. (j) The number of violations of section 42060.5 of the Public Resources Code by a recycling service provider and the accrual of penalties shall be calculated in the same manner as would apply under subdivision (i) for local jurisdictions committing the same violations. No penalty may be imposed against a recycling service provider during the pendency of a request for an extension for, or exemption from, a requirement of subdivision (a) of section 42060.5 asserting that compliance with the requirement is not practicable for a specific identified covered material.
11. (k) Except as otherwise provided, all factual determinations pursuant to this chapter, including whether any conditions have been met or factual circumstances have been established or demonstrated, shall be made based on the preponderance of evidence, meaning that, in consideration of all relevant facts and circumstances, the facts to be determined must be shown more likely than not to be true.

Note: Authority cited: Sections 40401, 40502, 42057, 42060 and 42080, Public Resources Code. Reference: Sections 42050, 42057, 42060.5, 42080, 42081 and 42083, Public Resources Code.

History

1. New article 13 (sections 18980.13-18980.13.5) and section filed 5-1-2026; operative 5-1-2026 pursuant to Government Code section 11343.4(b)(3) (Register 2026, No. 19).