The American Forest & Paper Association (AF&PA) today released a statement opposing new amendments to New York’s A.1949A/S.1464A Packaging Reduction and Recycling Infrastructure Act (PRRIA)—legislation that AF&PA has opposed since its introduction. 

“PRRIA, which introduces an Extended Producer Responsibility (EPR) program, will drive up costs for businesses and manufacturers and increase the price of everyday essential products for New York families,” the group said in a statement. 

The full statement by AF&PA President and CEO, Heidi Brock, is below:

“AF&PA has opposed New York’s Packaging Reduction and Recycling Infrastructure Act (PRRIA) from the outset. The proposed amendments only deepen the bill’s fundamental flaws rather than fixing them and do not meaningfully improve the legislation. The bill continues to pose serious affordability concerns for hard-working New York families and businesses without delivering meaningful recycling benefits for paper.

“A study found PRRIA could increase the cost of everyday essentials [by] up to $732 a year for a family of four. New Yorkers are already wary of the state’s EPR program’s impact on their budgets: 56% believe EPR would drive up costs, and 63% worry EPR could increase grocery prices.

“Beyond affordability, the amendments expand the program to include commercial packaging, but this change will not meaningfully improve paper recycling rates. Instead, it will make paper recycling more difficult and expensive. That’s because commercial recycling for paper-based packaging is already widely available through industrial, commercial, and institutional (ICI) collection streams across New York. In fact, AF&PA estimates that over 80% of all cardboard collected for recycling nationwide comes from ICI streams, and more than 90% of these materials are recycled.  

“By advancing amendments developed without meaningful stakeholder engagement, the sponsors continue to overlook practical concerns that will result in added costs and complexity without improving paper recycling outcomes. New York policymakers must focus on solutions that target hard-to-recycle materials and protect the affordability of everyday essentials for New York families.”