S. 351 119th Congress Senate

STEWARD Act of 2025

Official title: A bill to establish a pilot grant program to improve recycling accessibility, to require the Administrator of the Environmental Protection Agency to carry out … Show full official titleShow less

Official title: A bill to establish a pilot grant program to improve recycling accessibility, to require the Administrator of the Environmental Protection Agency to carry out certain activities to collect and disseminate data on recycling and composting programs in the United States, and for other purposes.

Introduced: January 30, 2025 Introduced by: Shelley Moore Capito Republican · West Virginia See on congress.gov

Environmental Protection Congressional oversightGovernment information and archivesManufacturingPublic-private cooperation

More subjectsShow fewer subjects

Rural conditions and developmentSolid waste and recyclingState and local government operations

Everywhere this bill has been 11 steps

Introduced

In committee

Reported out

Passed House

Passed Senate

To President

Became law

Nov 20, 2025

Held at the desk.

Nov 20, 2025

Received in the House.

Nov 20, 2025

Message on Senate action sent to the House.

Nov 20, 2025

Passed Senate without amendment by Voice Vote. (consideration: CR S8395-8398; text: CR S8395-8398)

Nov 20, 2025

Passed/agreed to in Senate: Passed Senate without amendment by Voice Vote.

Feb 5, 2025

Committee on Environment and Public Works. Reported by Senator Capito without amendment. Without written report.

Feb 5, 2025

Placed on Senate Legislative Calendar under General Orders. Calendar No. 7.

Feb 5, 2025

Committee on Environment and Public Works. Committee consideration held. Business Meeting printed. S. Hrg. 119-267.

Feb 5, 2025

Committee on Environment and Public Works. Ordered to be reported without amendment favorably.

Jan 30, 2025

Introduced in Senate

Jan 30, 2025

Read twice and referred to the Committee on Environment and Public Works.

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What's happening now November 20, 2025

Held at the desk.

Plain-English summary Congressional Research Service

Strategies To Eliminate Waste and Accelerate Recycling Development Act of 2025 or the STEWARD Act of 2025

This bill establishes requirements to expand recycling and composting efforts, including by creating (1) a pilot grant program, and (2) data collection and reporting requirements.

The bill directs the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) to establish a pilot program that awards grants for improving recycling accessibility in communities, particularly in underserved communities. States, local governments, Indian tribes, and public-private partnerships may apply for those grants.

The bill also directs the EPA to collect data related to composting and recycling infrastructure from states, local governments, and Indian tribes. Within three years and every four years thereafter, the EPA must prepare an inventory of certain recycling facilities in the United States. The EPA must also develop a metric for determining the proportion of recyclable materials in commercial and municipal waste streams that are being diverted from a circular market.

The bill allows the EPA to develop (1) a standardized estimated rate of recyclable materials that have been brought to recycling or composting facilities, and (2) an estimated national recycling rate. The EPA may use the rates and information collected to provide states, local government, and Indian tribes data and technical assistance, such as assistance to reduce their overall waste and to increase their recycling and composting rates.

The bill establishes a variety of reporting requirements for the EPA and directs the Government Accountability Office to publish a report on certain federal agency activities related to recycling.

Hearings & markups 1

Organizational business meeting to consider committee rules, an original resolution authorizing expenditures by the com…
Meeting Feb 5, 2025 · 10:30 AM EST · Environment and Public Works Committee

Related & companion bills 2

Bill text 3 versions

Engrossed in Senate Formatted Text PDF Formatted XML
Introduced in Senate Formatted Text PDF Formatted XML
Reported to Senate Formatted Text PDF Formatted XML

Source documents hosted by congress.gov.

Committees of jurisdiction 1

Environment and Public Works Committee
Senate

Lobbying activity 205

Registered lobbyists who named this bill in their disclosure filings. Source: federal Lobbying Disclosure Act filings.

MARS, INCORPORATED
for MARS, INCORPORATED · Virginia · 3rd Quarter 2026 (July 1 - Sep 30)
AMERICAN CHEMISTRY COUNCIL
for AMERICAN CHEMISTRY COUNCIL · District of Columbia · 3rd Quarter 2026 (July 1 - Sep 30)
GOODWILL INDUSTRIES INTERNATIONAL, INC.
for GOODWILL INDUSTRIES INTERNATIONAL INC · Maryland · 3rd Quarter 2026 (July 1 - Sep 30)
BASF CORPORATION
for BASF CORPORATION · New Jersey · 3rd Quarter 2026 (July 1 - Sep 30)
INVARIANT LLC
for AMERICAN BEVERAGE ASSOCIATION · District of Columbia · 3rd Quarter 2026 (July 1 - Sep 30)
INTERNATIONAL BOTTLED WATER ASSOCIATION (IBWA)
for INTERNATIONAL BOTTLED WATER ASSOCIATION (IBWA) · Virginia · 3rd Quarter 2026 (July 1 - Sep 30)

Bodies those filers lobbied

HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES
204 filings
SENATE
203 filings
U.S. Trade Representative (USTR)
98 filings
Agriculture, Dept of (USDA)
91 filings
Commerce, Dept of (DOC)
80 filings
Environmental Protection Agency (EPA)
77 filings
State, Dept of (DOS)
53 filings
Treasury, Dept of
44 filings

A filing lists the bills it worked on and the parts of government it contacted in separate sections, so these are the bodies those filers named anywhere in the filing, not a per-bill breakdown.

See all 205 filings →

Cosponsors 2