AB 411: Livestock carcasses: disposal: composting. - California

04/02/25 - Amended Assembly → 04/23/25 - Amended Assembly · 6 edits · Apr 23, 2025

MODERATE

The April 23 amendment to AB 411 makes several substantive changes to the livestock composting framework: it adds geographic restrictions requiring off-site composting to occur in the same or an adjacent county, adds a transport compliance requirement, introduces a new 30-day notification requirement to local enforcement agencies, and tightens the language around best management practices for cured compost application. It also corrects several drafting errors from the prior version.

REQUIREMENT

New paragraph (6) requires the operator of a composting operation to notify the applicable local enforcement agency within 30 days of commencing operation, providing the location and operator contact information.

Paragraph (5) now includes language requiring that cured compost applied to an agricultural site must be done in compliance with the best management practices adopted pursuant to paragraph (1), adding a BMP compliance condition to land application of finished compost.

SCOPE

Paragraph (4) now restricts off-site composting to the county where the carcass was generated or an adjacent county, and requires that transport of carcasses comply with all applicable state and local laws and regulations. Previously there was no geographic limitation on where composting could occur relative to the site of death.

TECHNICAL

Changed 'in consultation with' to 'in collaboration with' regarding the Secretary of Food and Agriculture's development of best management practices with CalRecycle and the State Water Resources Control Board, suggesting a more active joint role.

Corrected drafting errors: removed duplicate text in paragraph (2) that had merged two versions of the 100 cubic yard limit sentence, fixed 'shall may be known' to 'shall be known' in Section 1, and consolidated two separate paragraph (4) provisions into a single coherent provision.

Changed 'approved by the Secretary of Food and Agriculture' to 'approved adopted by the Secretary of Food and Agriculture, as specified' in the summary section, clarifying that BMPs are formally adopted rather than merely approved.

10/11/25 - Chaptered → AB411 · 1 edit

MINOR

No substantive policy changes were made between these two versions. The legislative text of AB 411 (the C.A.T.T.L.E. Act) is identical in both versions. The differences are entirely presentational: the document was reformatted from a traditional printed chaptered layout to a web-based presentation, adding website navigation elements, metadata fields, and minor line-break adjustments.

TECHNICAL

The document was reformatted from a traditional printed chaptered format (with page numbers, centered headers, and column layout) to a web-based presentation format that includes site navigation links, a quick search box, bill information panels, version history dropdowns, and a 'Digest Key' metadata section showing vote type, appropriation status, fiscal committee review, and local program designation.

09/11/25 - Enrolled → 10/11/25 - Chaptered · 3 edits · Oct 11, 2025

MINOR

No substantive policy changes occurred between the enrolled and chaptered versions of AB 411. The differences are purely administrative: the bill was assigned Chapter number 613, the governor's approval date (October 11, 2025) was inserted, and standard authenticated document headers replaced the enrolled bill formatting. The statutory text authorizing composting of livestock carcasses is identical in both versions.

TECHNICAL

Chapter number 613 was assigned and the governor's approval date (October 11, 2025) was inserted, reflecting the standard process of a bill becoming law after signature.

Document headers changed from enrolled bill format (passage dates, clerk/secretary lines) to authenticated chaptered format (STATE OF CALIFORNIA AUTHENTICATED ELECTRONIC LEGAL MATERIAL).

Line wrapping and page numbering were adjusted to match the standard chaptered bill layout; no statutory language was altered.

07/17/25 - Amended Senate → 09/11/25 - Enrolled · 4 edits · Sep 11, 2025

MODERATE

This diff reflects the transition of AB 411 from its Amended Senate version to the Enrolled version after it passed both chambers. No substantive policy changes were made; the legal text of Section 19348.2 is identical in both versions. The differences are purely procedural: removal of amendment history headers, addition of passage dates (Assembly September 9, 2025 and Senate September 8, 2025), removal of line numbers, and addition of enrolled bill formatting including the Governor's receipt and approval lines.

TECHNICAL

Removed amendment history headers (dates of prior amendments in Assembly and Senate) that are no longer needed once the bill is enrolled.

Added passage dates: 'Passed the Assembly September 9, 2025' and 'Passed the Senate September 8, 2025,' confirming final legislative approval.

Removed line numbers from the bill text and reflowed the formatting to match enrolled bill style.

Added Governor's receipt line and 'Approved ___, 2025' signature block, indicating the bill is ready for executive action.

02/24/25 - Amended Assembly → 04/02/25 - Amended Assembly · 4 edits · Apr 2, 2025

MODERATE

AB 411 (the C.A.T.T.L.E. Act) was amended to tighten requirements for composting livestock carcasses on farms. The 100 cubic yard volume limit now applies to all composting material rather than just carcasses, a new requirement mandates that composting occur on the owner's own agricultural site, and the disposal options for cured compost were narrowed to either application on the owner's own farm or transport to an approved landfill.

REQUIREMENT

The 100 cubic yard limit was expanded from applying only to livestock carcasses to covering the total amount of all composting material onsite, making it harder to reach the threshold with mixed materials.

A new requirement (subsection a)(4)) mandates that the composting activity itself must occur on an agricultural site owned or leased by the owner of the livestock carcasses, restricting where composting can take place.

The source requirement was clarified to specify that all composting material must come from an agricultural site or sites owned or leased by the owner of the livestock carcasses, and now explicitly includes multiple sites.

Cured compost disposal options were narrowed. Previously it could return to 'the agricultural site' or go to 'a source approved by CalRecycle.' Now it must either be applied to an agricultural site owned or leased by the owner of the carcasses that produced it, or taken specifically to a landfill approved by CalRecycle.

04/23/25 - Amended Assembly → 07/17/25 - Amended Senate · 3 edits · Jul 17, 2025

MINOR

The Senate amended AB 411 (the C.A.T.T.L.E. Act) to strengthen environmental protections for livestock carcass composting. The bill now requires best management practices to include specific provisions for groundwater protection, public health, pile management, local enforcement collaboration, and penalties. It also eliminates the option to send cured compost to a landfill, requiring it to be applied only on the owner's agricultural land, and expands notification requirements to include regional water quality control boards.

REQUIREMENT

Best management practices must now include five specific elements: groundwater protection protocols, public health and food supply protection, proper compost pile management, collaboration procedures with local enforcement agencies, and enforcement and penalties for non-compliance. The word 'approved' was changed to 'adopted' and 'consultation' to 'collaboration.'

The option to dispose of cured compost at a CalRecycle-approved landfill was removed. Cured compost must now be applied only to an agricultural site owned or leased by the owner of the livestock carcasses that produced it.

ENFORCEMENT

Operators must now notify both the applicable local enforcement agency AND the regional water quality control board within 30 days of commencing operation, rather than just the local enforcement agency.

02/04/25 - Introduced → 02/24/25 - Amended Assembly · 2 edits · Feb 24, 2025

MINOR

The amendment adds a short title for the bill, naming it the 'Caring About The Terrain, Livestock, and Ecosystems (C.A.T.T.L.E) Act,' and renumbers the existing section accordingly. The substantive composting requirements remain unchanged from the introduced version.

TECHNICAL

Added a new Section 1 that gives the bill its short title: 'the Caring About The Terrain, Livestock, and Ecosystems (C.A.T.T.L.E) Act.'

The original Section 1 (adding Section 19348.2 to the Food and Agricultural Code) was renumbered as Section 2 to accommodate the new short title section.

Livestock carcasses: disposal: composting.

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