What California's Textile Recycling Law Means for Fashion Brands Now

California's Responsible Textile Recovery Act, enacted in September 2024, requires companies that sell clothing, footwear, handbags, backpacks and household textiles in the state to help fund collection, repair, reuse and recycling at the end of a product's life. A September 10 client alert from the law firm Curtis outlines what fashion and luxury companies should be doing.

Only one "producer" per product carries the legal duty, assigned by a hierarchy that begins with the manufacturer that owns or licenses the brand and moves down to the brand owner, importer, distributor or retailer. Online sales delivered to California count. Businesses with under about $1 million in global turnover, and sellers of only second-hand goods, are excluded. CalRecycle approved Landbell USA as the program's producer responsibility organization on February 27, 2026, and producers were required to join it by July 1, 2026.

Looking ahead, the organization must deliver a statewide needs assessment by March 1, 2027, rules cannot take effect before July 1, 2028, and an approved plan is due by July 1, 2030. Penalties can reach $10,000 a day, or $50,000 for knowing violations, and once a plan is approved retailers may not sell covered products from producers missing from the compliant list. After the plan, fees will be adjusted to reward durable, repairable products.

The American Apparel & Footwear Association sued in March to vacate the Landbell approval. A Sacramento judge issued a tentative ruling on August 6 denying a preliminary injunction, and the matter was taken under submission after an August 7 hearing, with no final decision confirmed in the sources reviewed. CalRecycle has said the registration obligation stands while the case continues. The alert is a general summary and not legal advice.

Reporting based on Curtis's September 10, 2026 client alert, Jones Day and Resource Recycling coverage.