BILL REQ. #:  H-0983.3 

Read first time 02/17/2003.   Referred to Committee on Fisheries, Ecology & Parks.

     AN ACT Relating to electronic waste; adding a new section to chapter 70.95 RCW; adding a new chapter to Title 70 RCW; and prescribing penalties.

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

NEW SECTION.  Sec. 1   The definitions in this section apply throughout this chapter unless the context clearly requires otherwise.
     (1) "Advisory committee" means the electronics advisory committee created in section 5 of this act.
     (2) "Collective recovery plan" means a plan in which more than one manufacturer has agreed to participate. A collective recovery plan must represent the plan for all brands of electronic products manufactured by the participating manufacturers.
     (3) "Computer peripherals" means printers, keyboards, mice, scanners, speakers, cables, or other accessories that are primarily designed to be attached to a personal computer.
     (4) "Department" means the department of ecology.
     (5) "Director" means the director of the department of ecology.
     (6) "Electronic products" means all televisions, computer monitors, laptop computers, central processing units, handheld computers, cellular phones, and computer peripherals.
     (7) "Electronic waste" means electronic products that have been discarded by its owner, or that has been otherwise entered into the solid waste stream.
     (8) "End of life fee" means a fee charged to the last consumer to use an electronic product, designed primarily for financing the implementation of a plan required by this chapter.
     (9) "Environment" includes all of the state's natural resources, including land, air, water resources, and plant and animal species, and the habitat upon which they depend.
     (10) "Environmentally friendly products" means electronic products with lower impacts on the environment throughout its life cycle. "Environmentally friendly products" includes products with fewer toxic constituents, that use fewer toxic chemicals in the manufacturing process, that contain recycled or remanufactured parts, that are designed for easy disassembly and recycling, that are easy to upgrade or reuse, and that are designed for a longer life.
     (11) "Front end financing" means costs recovered at the time of sale, either internalized into the final sale price, or specifically itemized and added to the final sale price.
     (12) "Hazardous electronic waste" means electronic equipment, components, constituent subunits, or materials from which the subunits are made, that contain concentrations of toxic materials exceeding the regulatory levels established in Title 40 C.F.R. part 261.24 as it existed on the effective date of this act, using the toxic characteristic leaching procedure.
     (13) "Orphan waste" means electronic waste that was manufactured by, or bears the brand of, a manufacturer that is no longer in business.
     (14) "Manufacturer" means any person who, as of the effective date of this act: (a) Manufactures and sells electronic equipment under its own brand; (b) manufactures and sells electronic equipment without affixing a brand; or (c) resells equipment produced by other suppliers under its own brand and label. The term "manufacturer" applies regardless of the selling technique used, including distance communication.
     (15) "Plan" or "plans" means both the electronic waste recovery and recycling plan required under section 2 of this act that are filed by individual manufacturers and collective recovery plans.
     (16) "Processed" means the removal and separation from electronics, and the management according to existing state and federal regulations, of batteries, printed circuit boards, toner and ink cartridges, plastics containing brominated flame retardants, cathode ray tubes, liquid crystal displays of a surface greater than one hundred square centimeters, mercury-containing devices, copper wiring, lead solder, and external electrical cables.
     (17) "Recycling" means the use of previously manufactured materials including metals, glass, and plastics, as feedstock in the manufacturing of new products. "Recycling" does not include energy recovery or energy generation by means of combusting electronic waste with or without other waste.
     (18) "Reuse" means any operation by which electronic waste or components of electronic waste are used for the same purposes for which they were originally created, including the continued use of the equipment or components of the equipment that are returned to collection points, recyclers, or manufacturers.

NEW SECTION.  Sec. 2   (1) Except as provided in this section, every manufacturer must develop, submit to the department, implement, and finance the implementation of a plan for the collection and the recycling or reuse of sixty-five percent, by weight, of all electronic waste from its own products each year. The plan must provide and promote convenient, strategically located fixed collection sites to serve urban and rural populations throughout the state. Collection sites may include electronics recyclers and repair shops, recyclers of other commodities, reuse organizations, municipal recycling centers, retailers, or other suitable locations. Rural areas without commercial centers, unincorporated communities, or areas with widely dispersed population may be served by collections at the nearest commercial centers where electronics are sold or by mail-back systems.
     (2) A manufacturer may satisfy the plan requirements of this chapter by agreeing to participate in a collective recovery plan with other manufacturers. The collective recovery plan must meet the same standards and requirements of the plans submitted by individual manufacturers.
     (3) All plans required by this chapter must include, at a minimum:
     (a) A description of the collection system, including the methods of convenient collection;
     (b) A public education element to inform the public about the collection system, including details about meeting all consumer notification and labeling requirements;
     (c) Details for implementing and financing the collection, recovery, recycling, and reuse of all electronic products sold by that manufacturer in the state;
     (d) Documentation of the willingness of all necessary parties to implement the agreement, including the parties that will participate in the collection, treatment, recovery, reuse, and recycling of the electronic products;
     (e) Assurances that the system, and all necessary parties, will operate in compliance with local, state, and federal waste management rules and regulations;
     (f) Descriptions of the performance measures that will be used and reported by the manufacturer to demonstrate that the plan is meeting the required recovery and recycling rates for its own brand of electronic products at end of life, as well as other measures of the plan's effectiveness;
     (g) Descriptions of additional or alternative actions that will be taken if performance measures are not met;
     (h) Details for financing the manufacturer's proportional share of orphan waste;
     (i) Ideas for the creation of economic incentives for the design of environmentally friendly products; and
     (j) Annual sales data on the number and type of electronic products sold by the manufacturer in Washington over the ten years preceding the filing of the plan for televisions, and five years preceding the filing of the plan for computers, cell phones, and other electronic products.
     (4) The manufacturers are responsible for all of the costs associated with the development and implementation of the plans. These costs include cost for collection and public education and outreach. If the costs are passed on to consumers, it must be done so with front end financing, and not with an end of life fee. No funds shall be collected, managed, or generated by a state governmental entity.
     (5) Manufacturers must finance the management of orphan waste. The costs of managing such waste shall be shared proportionally by the manufacturers respective to the manufacturer's market share, by electronic product type, at the time that the waste management costs are incurred. The proportional share of the responsibility for orphan waste may be adjusted on an annual basis by the department, in consultation with the advisory committee.

NEW SECTION.  Sec. 3   (1) All plans required by this chapter must be submitted to the department and the advisory committee by September 30, 2004, and reviewed by the department by December 31, 2004, with implementation by manufacturers beginning by June 30, 2005. The department and advisory committee shall evaluate plans based on the plan's sufficiency in light of all of the required elements. The advisory committee shall develop a means for scoring initial submissions and providing feedback to manufacturers for integration into final plans.
     (2) After June 30, 2005, a manufacturer must have a plan that is approved by the department before that manufacturer is able to sell an electronic product in Washington.
     (3) If a manufacturer with an approved plan fails to meet the recovery and recycling goals of the plan, the department may require the manufacturer to implement additional procedures, including the additional or alternative actions identified in the manufacturer's plan. If the additional procedures fail to accomplish the recovery goal, the department may prohibit the manufacturer from selling electronic products in the state.

NEW SECTION.  Sec. 4   (1) All manufacturers must submit an initial report to the advisory committee by December 31, 2005, and each December 31st thereafter. The reports must contain, at a minimum:
     (a) The quantities of electronic products sold by that manufacturer in the state during the previous year;
     (b) The weight of the electronic waste recovered in the previous year;
     (c) The weight of recovered electronic waste that is reused;
     (d) The weight of recovered electronic waste that is recycled;
     (e) Progress reports towards making more environmentally friendly products;
     (f) The results of any performance measures included in the plan;
     (g) Identification of the end markets for collected electronic waste;
     (h) Educational and promotional efforts that will be undertaken; and
     (i) Any other information deemed necessary by the department.
     (2) The advisory committee and the department must review all reports and provide a notice of adequate compliance or deficiency to manufacturers within six months.
     (3) All reports submitted to the department and the advisory committee must be available to the general public through the internet. However, the manufacturer submitting the report may indicate which portions, if any, it considers proprietary and, if the department concurs that the information meets state legal requirements for confidentiality, those sections of the report shall not be made public.

NEW SECTION.  Sec. 5   (1) The electronics advisory committee is created to oversee the electronic recovery and recycling program. The advisory committee shall receive plans, review annual reports submitted pursuant to section 4 of this act, and report annually to the department and the legislature on recommended adjustments to recycling and recovery goals, products that are required to be covered with a plan, and any regulatory changes.
     (2) The advisory committee must be composed of eleven members, all appointed by the governor. Two members must be representatives of manufacturers, two members must be representatives of electronics recyclers or processors, two members must be representatives of environmental or public interest organizations, two members must be representatives of local government, including at least one local government located east of the crest of the Cascades, and three members must be at-large citizen members with no qualification criteria.
     (3) Members of the advisory committee shall serve four-year renewable terms.
     (4) Members of the advisory committee serve as volunteers, and are not eligible for compensation.
     (5) Staff to the advisory committee must be provided by the department.

NEW SECTION.  Sec. 6   (1) Manufacturers shall phase out the use of lead, mercury, beryllium, cadmium, hexavalent chromium, brominated flame retardants, and polyvinyl chloride in electronic products by January 1, 2007. Phased-out substances must be replaced by more environmentally friendly substances. Additional substances and phase out dates may be adopted in rule by the department at the recommendation of the advisory committee.
     (2) The department, in consultation with the advisory committee, may grant a limited-term exemption from the phase out requirements of this section if a manufacturer sufficiently demonstrates that it is technically impossible to find an alternative to a particular substance. Upon the granting of an exemption, the department must assign an expiration date for the exemption that ensures the manufacturer will invest in research and development to identify an appropriate alternative. An exemption can be rescinded by the department if it becomes possible to execute the phase out before the assigned expiration of the exemption.

NEW SECTION.  Sec. 7   By June 30, 2005, all electronic products sold in Washington must bear a clear label, or be packaged with informational materials, provided by the manufacturer, that provides the consumer or end user with information relating to the following:
     (1) The hazardous materials contained in the electronic product and its parts and subparts;
     (2) The restrictions relating to the disposal of electronic products in landfills, incinerators, and other means that are not a part of the manufacturer's approved plans; and
     (3) A toll-free phone number or internet site where consumers can obtain information and instructions concerning the safe disposition of the electronic product through the manufacturer's plan.

NEW SECTION.  Sec. 8   (1) Every plan required by this chapter must include a consumer education element. The consumer education element must be designed to ensure that the users of electronic products understand:
     (a) The prohibition on disposal of electronic waste by any means other than as listed in the manufacturer's plan;
     (b) The electronic waste return and collection systems that are available;
     (c) The potential effects on the environment and human health that could result from the presence and improper disposal of hazardous substances contained in electronic equipment;
     (d) The consumer's role in contributing to the reuse, recycling, and other forms of electronic waste recovery.
     (2)(a) All manufacturers must demonstrate through independent polling that at least eighty-five percent public awareness has been achieved for each of that manufacturer's covered electronic products within two years following a plan's implementation. Manufacturers may satisfy this subsection by collectively undertaking demonstrations of public awareness as long as the polling instrument is designed to identify the public awareness of a majority of the manufacturer's plans or a majority of the electronic products.
     (b) The design, protocols, and implementation of the public opinion polling required by this subsection must be approved by the advisory committee.

NEW SECTION.  Sec. 9   Every plan required by this chapter must include a provision for facilitating the correct and environmentally sound treatment of electronic waste. Manufacturers must demonstrate adequate measures to provide information to recyclers and processors about their electronic products. Within one year of the introduction of a new electronic product, the manufacturer must provide new information to recyclers and processors regarding the end of life treatment of the new product, including directions for disassembly, information about material content, and safety concerns.

NEW SECTION.  Sec. 10   No plan required under this chapter may include the use of prison labor unless the manufacturer can demonstrate that:
     (1) They provide all occupational safety, health, and environmental protections required of private enterprise, nonprison labor operations; and
     (2) Prison labor does not unfairly compete with private sector operations by providing a hidden subsidy not available to a private recycling infrastructure.

NEW SECTION.  Sec. 11   The legislature finds that exporting electronic waste to other nations with environmental standards that are less stringent than the United States does not safely remove that waste from the global environment. Therefore, all plans submitted pursuant to this chapter are encouraged to prohibit the export of hazardous electronic waste to foreign countries.

NEW SECTION.  Sec. 12   All persons processing electronic waste as part of an approved plan must protect the health and safety of their employees and contractors by, at a minimum, providing evidence of compliance with all state and federal occupational health and safety laws and regulations.

NEW SECTION.  Sec. 13   Manufacturers or an organization of manufacturers that participate in a collective recovery plan under this chapter shall not be found liable or guilty under any state rule of trade or commerce for any activities required by this chapter.

NEW SECTION.  Sec. 14   The department of general administration shall establish purchasing and procurement policies that require the vendors of electronic products sold to the state to take back the electronic waste when the equipment becomes obsolete, is discarded, or is otherwise removed from service. Purchasing and procurement policies must also establish a preference for electronic products that meet environmental performance standards relating to the reduction or elimination of hazardous materials.

NEW SECTION.  Sec. 15   If a national system for the collection and recycling of electronic products or orphan waste that meets the same or similar standards as this chapter is implemented, the department must notify the appropriate committees of the legislature and provide a recommendation as to whether the state should allow the national agreements or requirements to preempt this chapter.

NEW SECTION.  Sec. 16   Nothing in this chapter restricts the ability of a manufacturer, importer, or domestic distributor from transporting electronic products through the state, or storing electronic products in the state for later distribution outside of the state.

NEW SECTION.  Sec. 17   The department may adopt rules to implement this chapter.

NEW SECTION.  Sec. 18   A new section is added to chapter 70.95 RCW to read as follows:
     Unprocessed electronic products and hazardous electronic waste, as those terms are defined in section 1 of this act, shall not be disposed of in landfills, incinerators, and other municipal solid waste disposal systems after January 1, 2007.

NEW SECTION.  Sec. 19   If any provision of this act or its application to any person or circumstance is held invalid, the remainder of the act or the application of the provision to other persons or circumstances is not affected.

NEW SECTION.  Sec. 20   Sections 1 through 17 and 19 of this act constitute a new chapter in Title 70 RCW.