§ 7585. Annual report; plan audit

(a) Annual report. Annually, a battery producer or a battery stewardship organization shall submit a report to the Secretary that contains the following:

(1) the weight of covered batteries collected by chemistry by the producer or the battery stewardship organization in the prior calendar year;

(2) the percentage of covered batteries collected in the prior calendar year that are from producers who are not participating in any approved stewardship plan, based on periodic sorting of batteries by the reporting producer;

(3) the collection rate achieved in the prior calendar year under the battery stewardship plan, including a report of the estimated total sales data by weight for covered batteries sold in the State for the previous three calendar years;

(4) the locations for all collection points set up by the battery stewardship plan and contact information for each location;

(5) examples and description of educational materials used to increase collection;

(6) the manner in which the collected covered batteries were managed;

(7) any material change to the battery stewardship plan approved by the Secretary pursuant to section 7586 of this title; and

(8) the cost of implementation of the battery stewardship plan, including the costs of collection, recycling, education, and outreach.

(b) Plan audit. After five years of implementation of an approved battery stewardship plan, a covered battery producer or battery stewardship organization shall hire an independent third party to conduct a one-time audit of the battery stewardship plan and plan operation. The auditor shall examine the effectiveness of the battery stewardship plan in collecting and recycling covered batteries. The independent auditor shall examine the cost-effectiveness of the plan and compare it to that of collection plans or programs for covered batteries in other jurisdictions. The independent auditor shall submit the results of the audit to the Secretary as part of the annual report required under subsection (a) of this section.