Monitoring the Session

SB 2050

bill banning batteries from the trash

Did not pass

Verdict: No flags

No flagsInitial review
Sen. Brian BirdwellRSenate 22

Initial review · graded Oct 20, 2026 · Headline, summary and grade are analysis of the bill text, not a finding about any person · How we grade

Caption

relating to the recycling and disposal of consumer energy storage modules.

Caption from analyzed text · version I.

Summary

Alkaline, lithium-ion and the rest go to a drop-off site instead.

The bill bans anyone from putting a consumer battery, including ordinary alkaline, lithium-ion, nickel-cadmium and nickel-metal hydride batteries, into mixed municipal solid waste. It touches every household and business that throws batteries in the trash, plus the Texas Commission on Environmental Quality, which must write rules listing businesses or facilities where people can drop off batteries for recycling or disposal. Starting September 1, 2025, batteries are supposed to leave the regular trash stream and go to commission-identified collection points instead.

Labels

Labels: GOT HALFWAY. Passed the Senate on Apr 30, 2025. Died in the House: voted out of the Environmental Regulation committee 7-0, no floor vote.

Receipt

The receipt

89R-SB2050 · 2025-03-07

SOLD BY

Sen. Brian BirdwellRSenate 22

+ 2 coauthors

ITEM

relating to the recycling and disposal of consumer energy storage modules.

WHAT IT DOES

Alkaline, lithium-ion and the rest go to a drop-off site instead.

The bill bans anyone from putting a consumer battery, including ordinary alkaline, lithium-ion, nickel-cadmium and nickel-metal hydride batteries, into mixed municipal solid waste. It touches every household and business that throws batteries in the trash, plus the Texas Commission on Environmental Quality, which must write rules listing businesses or facilities where people can drop off batteries for recycling or disposal. Starting September 1, 2025, batteries are supposed to leave the regular trash stream and go to commission-identified collection points instead.

CHARGES

[ ] NONE FOUND

TOTAL

No significant fiscal implication to the State is anticipated.

LBB estimate · fiscal note version E · source

Sources

Fiscal note · version E · May 18, 2025

No first-year general revenue figure available here.

LBB published estimates · flow over the stated periods.

Source snapshot 2026-10-19, Central time.

HISTORY

  1. Received by the Secretary of the Senate
  2. Filed
  3. Read first time
  4. Referred to Natural Resources
  5. Scheduled for public hearing on . . .
  6. Considered in public hearing
  7. Testimony taken in committee
  8. Left pending in committee
  9. Posting rule suspended
  10. Considered in public hearing
  11. Vote taken in committee
  12. Reported favorably as substituted
  13. Committee report printed and distributed
  14. Co-author authorized
  15. Placed on intent calendar
  16. Co-author authorized
  17. Rules suspended-Regular order of business
  18. Read 2nd time
  19. Amendment(s) offered FA1 Birdwell
  20. Amended
  21. Vote recorded in Journal
  22. Passed to engrossment as amended
  23. Vote recorded in Journal
  24. Three day rule suspended
  25. Record vote
  26. Read 3rd time
  27. Passed
  28. Record vote
  29. Reported engrossed
  30. Received from the Senate
  31. Read first time
  32. Referred to Environmental Regulation
  33. Scheduled for public hearing on . . .
  34. Considered in public hearing
  35. Testimony taken/registration(s) recorded in committee
  36. Left pending in committee
  37. Considered in formal meeting
  38. Reported favorably w/o amendment(s)
  39. Comte report filed with Committee Coordinator
  40. Committee report distributed
  41. Committee report sent to Calendars
  42. Considered in Calendars
  43. Placed on General State Calendar
FILED UNDER

No verified beat found.

SIGNED FOR BY

Senate · 31 yea · 0 nay

Sources

Senate: Final passage · Apr 30, 2025. Journal. Published stock for this vote. Snapshot 2026-10-19, Central time.

All floor motions and other positions below.

No flags

THANK YOU FOR CHECKING THE RECEIPT

CAMPAIGN PAID FOR BY

CAMPAIGN PAID FOR BY

Brian Birdwell

Donors

Texans for Lawsuit Reform PAC Austin TX$30,000
Good Government Fund Fort Worth TX$10,000
Texas Oil & Gas Assn. Good Govt. Cmte Austin TX$10,000

Derived from itemized gifts, Jul 1, 2024 to Jun 30, 2026. State data as of Nov 4, 2026.

Not tied to this bill.

Sources

The author's campaign account only. Own money and internal transfers are separate on the member page.

$353,800 raised since Jul 1, 2024. Derived sum of published report totals. blank in the state's data, consistent with zero. Flow, Jul 1, 2024 through Jun 30, 2026. State filing data as of Nov 4, 2026. 4 of 4 filed reports carry a published figure.

$502,039 spent since Jul 1, 2024. Derived sum of published report totals. Flow, Jul 1, 2024 through Jun 30, 2026. State filing data as of Nov 4, 2026. 4 of 4 filed reports carry a published figure.

$731,044 cash on hand. Published report total. Stock, as of Jun 30, 2026. State filing data as of Nov 4, 2026.

$0 loans outstanding. Published report total. Stock, as of Jun 30, 2026. State filing data as of Nov 4, 2026.

Derived sum of itemized contributions in regular reports and uncovered special-session dates. Unitemized contributions are not included. Flow, Jul 1, 2024 through Jun 30, 2026. State filing data as of Nov 4, 2026.

Money

Missing data does not establish zero giving. Display amounts are rounded.

Votes3

Senate Apr 30, 2025

Yea
31
Nay
0
Present, not voting
Not printed
Absent
Not printed
Excused
Not printed
Names

Senate journal

Names were not printed. No individual positions are inferred.

Sources

Senator Birdwell moved that Senate Rule 7.18 and the Constitutional Rule requiring bills to be read on three several days be suspended and that CSSB 2050 be placed on its third reading and final passage. The motion prevailed by the following vote: Yeas 31, Nays 0. The bill was read third time and was passed by the following vote: Yeas 31, Nays 0.

Published stock of positions for this vote, except where marked derived.

  • Yea: 31 (published)
  • Nay: 0 (published)
  • Present, not voting: Not printed
  • Absent: Not printed
  • Excused: Not printed

Senate journal. Source snapshot 2026-10-19, Central time.

Senate Apr 30, 2025

Yea
31
Nay
0
Present, not voting
Not printed
Absent
Not printed
Excused
Not printed
Names

Senate journal

Names were not printed. No individual positions are inferred.

Sources

Senator Birdwell moved that Senate Rule 7.18 and the Constitutional Rule requiring bills to be read on three several days be suspended and that CSSB 2050 be placed on its third reading and final passage. The motion prevailed by the following vote: Yeas 31, Nays 0.

Published stock of positions for this vote, except where marked derived.

  • Yea: 31 (published)
  • Nay: 0 (published)
  • Present, not voting: Not printed
  • Absent: Not printed
  • Excused: Not printed

Senate journal. Source snapshot 2026-10-19, Central time.

Senate Apr 30, 2025

Yea
Not printed
Nay
Not printed
Present, not voting
Not printed
Absent
Not printed
Excused
Not printed
Names

Senate journal

Names were not printed. No individual positions are inferred.

Voice vote. No numeric tally or individual yeas are inferred.

Sources

CSSB 2050 as amended was passed to engrossment by a viva voce vote.

Published stock of positions for this vote, except where marked derived.

  • Yea: Not printed
  • Nay: Not printed
  • Present, not voting: Not printed
  • Absent: Not printed
  • Excused: Not printed

Senate journal. Source snapshot 2026-10-19, Central time.

Witnesses15
For
13
Against
0
On
2
Names

For

  • Ikea US Retail LLC1 registration
  • Lone Star Chapter Sierra Club1 registration
  • Nucor1 registration
  • Public Citizen2 registrations
  • Recycling Council of Texas1 registration
  • Self2 registrations
  • Self; Air alliance houston1 registration
  • Self; Recycling councili of texas1 registration
  • Self; Texas chapter US Green Building Council1 registration
  • Sierra Club Lone Star Chapter1 registration
  • Waste Management of TX, inc.1 registration

On

  • Texas Commission on Environmental Quality2 registrations
Sources

15 parsed registrations across the loaded witness lists.

Derived stock of witness registrations. Repeated appearances count separately. Organizations and self-representation appear as printed.

House witness list. Source snapshot 2026-10-20, Central time.

Senate witness list. Source snapshot 2026-10-20, Central time.

Fiscal

No significant fiscal implication to the State is anticipated.

LBB estimate · fiscal note version E · source

Sources

Fiscal note · version E · May 18, 2025

No first-year general revenue figure available here.

LBB published estimates · flow over the stated periods.

Source snapshot 2026-10-19, Central time.

How this was graded

Analysis of text version I by claude-opus-5-5, Oct 20, 2026, against the published rubric.

Sources

Texas Senate · Filed Mar 7, 2025

05/27/2025 H Placed on General State Calendar

Texas Legislature Online · Introduced · Senate Committee Report · Engrossed · House Committee Report

Data snapshot Oct 26, 2026 at 4:20 AM CDT. Grades, charges, quotes and corrections follow the published record.

Coauthors
Nathan JohnsonDSenate 16 Judith ZaffiriniDSenate 21
Sponsors
Brooks LandgrafRHouse 81

House committee · Environmental Regulation · Committee vote 7 aye, 0 nay, 2 absent · Out of committee

Senate committee · Natural Resources · Committee vote 9 aye, 0 nay · Out of committee

Subjects

Energy--General

Environment--General

Environment--Recycling

Health--General

Safety

LANDFILLS

ENVIRONMENTAL QUALITY, TEXAS COMMISSION ON

Text

The text as introduced · 209 words

89R7757 DRS-F

By: Birdwell
S.B. No. 2050

A BILL TO BE ENTITLED

AN ACT

relating to the recycling and disposal of consumer energy storage

modules.

BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF TEXAS:

SECTION 1. Chapter 361, Health and Safety Code, is amended

by adding Subchapter P to read as follows:

SUBCHAPTER P. CONSUMER ENERGY STORAGE MODULES

Sec. 361.471. DEFINITION. In this subchapter, "consumer

energy storage module" means a battery or other electrochemical

device that stores chemical energy and transforms it into

electrical energy to power a consumer product or electronic device.

The term includes an alkaline battery, lithium-ion battery, nickel

cadmium battery, or nickel-metal hydride battery.

Sec. 361.472. LAND DISPOSAL PROHIBITED. A person may not

place a consumer energy storage module in mixed municipal solid

waste.

Sec. 361.473. CONSUMER ENERGY STORAGE MODULE COLLECTION FOR

RECYCLING OR DISPOSAL. The commission by rule shall identify

businesses or facilities in this state where a customer may offer a

consumer energy storage module for recycling or disposal.

SECTION 2. As soon as practicable after the effective date

of this Act, the Texas Commission on Environmental Quality shall

adopt rules necessary to implement the changes in law made by this

Act.

SECTION 3. This Act takes effect September 1, 2025.