Jeff McDaniel of CalRecycle reviewed loan programs for recycling and circular-economy infrastructure and described several grant programs intended to increase recycling and reuse of beverage containers and glass.

McDaniel said loan programs include the Recycling Market Development Zone (RMDZ) loan (about $22 million available), Greenhouse Gas (GHG) reduction loans (about $5.2 million available) that require quantifiable GHG reductions, a beverage container recycling loan fund (roughly $30 million nonrevolving through 2027) and a tire equipment loan program with approximately $1 million allocated annually for five years. He summarized CalRecycle’s loan approval process as a two-step eligibility review (project eligibility by an environmental scientist, then financial eligibility by loan officers) and noted that loan officers use the "five C's of credit" (character, capacity, capital, collateral, conditions) to evaluate applicants.

On grants, McDaniel highlighted the reusable beverage container infrastructure grant ($23.75 million this fiscal year), beverage container redemption innovation grants ($40 million for dealer co-ops now; additional funding for other entities in 2026) and a $4 million-per-year program to increase glass beverage-container collection. He encouraged applicants to contact bizassist@calrecycle.ca.gov or the listed program emails and to use the CalRecycle website for eligibility guidance and application timelines.