BILL REQ. #:  H-4817.1 

READ FIRST TIME 02/03/10.   

     AN ACT Relating to mercury reduction; 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 legislature finds that:
     (1) Convenient and environmentally sound product stewardship programs for mercury-containing lights that include collecting, transporting, and recycling mercury-containing lights will help protect Washington's environment and the health of state residents;
     (2) Mercury lighting is a toxic and hard to collect waste product that is appropriate for product stewardship;
     (3) The purpose of this act is to achieve a statewide goal of recycling all end-of-life mercury-containing lights by 2020 through expanded public education, a uniform statewide requirement to recycle all mercury-containing lights, and the development of a comprehensive, safe, and convenient collection system that includes use of residential curbside collection programs, mail-back containers, increased support for household hazardous waste facilities, and a network of additional collection locations;
     (4) Product producers must play a significant role in financing no-cost collection and processing programs for household generators and persons discarding up to fifteen mercury-containing lights. Product producers will finance the collection, transportation, and processing costs of mercury-containing lights collected at participating collection locations, including participating household hazardous waste facilities, charities, retailers, government recycling sites, or other suitable locations. Product producers will finance the costs of transporting mercury-containing lights from accumulation points and processing mercury containing lights collected by curbside and mail-back programs; and
     (5) Providers of premium collection services such as residential curbside and mail-back programs may charge a fee to cover the collection costs for these more convenient forms of collection.

NEW SECTION.  Sec. 2   The definitions in this section apply throughout this chapter unless the context clearly requires otherwise.
     (1) "Brand" means a name, symbol, word, or mark that identifies a product, rather than its components, and attributes the product to the owner of the brand as the producer.
     (2) "Covered entities" means:
     (a) A single-family or a multifamily household generator and persons that deliver no more than fifteen mercury-containing lights to registered collectors for a product stewardship program during a ninety-day period; and
     (b) A single-family or a multifamily household generator and persons that utilize a registered residential curbside collection program or a mail-back program for collection of mercury-containing lights and that discards no more than fifteen mercury-containing lights into those programs during a ninety-day period.
     (3) "Collection" or "collect" means, except for persons involved in mail-back programs:
     (a) The activity of accumulating any amount of mercury-containing lights at a location other than the location where the lights are used by covered entities, and includes curbside collection activities, household hazardous waste facilities, and other registered drop-off locations; and
     (b) The activity of transporting mercury-containing lights in the state, where the transporter is not a generator of unwanted mercury-containing lights, to a location for purposes of accumulation.
     (4) "Department" means the department of ecology.
     (5) "Final disposition" means the point beyond which no further processing takes place and materials from mercury-containing lights have been transformed for direct use as a feedstock in producing new products, or disposed of or managed in permitted facilities.
     (6) "Hazardous substances" or "hazardous materials" means those substances or materials identified by rules adopted under chapter 70.105 RCW.
     (7) "Mail-back program" means the use of a prepaid postage container with mercury vapor barrier packaging that is used for the collection and recycling of mercury-containing lights from covered entities as part of a product stewardship program and is transported by the United States postal service or a common carrier.
     (8) "Mercury vapor barrier packaging" means sealable containers that are specifically designed for the storage, handling, and transport of mercury-containing lights in order to prevent the escape of mercury into the environment by volatilization or any other means, and that meet the requirements for transporting by the United States postal service or a common carrier.
     (9) "Mercury-containing lights" means lamps, bulbs, tubes, or other devices that contain mercury and provide functional illumination in homes, businesses, and outdoor stationary fixtures.
     (10) "Orphan product" means a mercury-containing light that lacks a producer's brand, or for which the producer is no longer in business and has no successor in interest, or that bears a brand for which the department cannot identify an owner.
     (11) "Person" means a sole proprietorship, partnership, corporation, nonprofit corporation or organization, limited liability company, firm, association, cooperative, or other legal entity located within or outside Washington state.
     (12) "Processing" means recovering materials from unwanted products for use as feedstock in new products or disposal or management in permitted facilities.
     (13) "Producer" means a person that:
     (a) Has or had legal ownership of the brand, brand name, or cobrand of a mercury-containing light sold in or into Washington state;
     (b) Imports or has imported mercury-containing lights branded by a producer that meets the requirements of (a) of this subsection and where that producer has no physical presence in the United States;
     (c) If (a) and (b) of this subsection do not apply, makes or made an unbranded mercury-containing light that is sold or has been sold in or into Washington state; or
     (d)(i) Sells or sold at wholesale or retail a mercury-containing light; (ii) does not have legal ownership of the brand; and (iii) elects to fulfill the responsibilities of the producer for that product.
     (14) "Product stewardship" means a requirement for a producer of mercury-containing lights to manage and reduce adverse safety, health, and environmental impacts of the product throughout its life cycle, including financing and providing for the collection, transporting, reusing, recycling, processing, and final disposition of their products.
     (15) "Product stewardship plan" or "plan" means a detailed plan describing the manner in which a product stewardship program will be implemented.
     (16) "Product stewardship program" or "program" means the methods, systems, and services financed and provided by producers of mercury-containing lights generated by covered entities that addresses product stewardship and includes collecting, transporting, reusing, recycling, processing, and final disposition of unwanted mercury-containing lights, including a fair share of orphan products.
     (17) "Recovery" means the collection and transportation of unwanted mercury-containing lights under this chapter.
     (18)(a) "Recycling" means transforming or remanufacturing unwanted products into usable or marketable materials for use other than landfill disposal or incineration.
     (b) "Recycling" does not include energy recovery or energy generation by means of combusting unwanted products with or without other waste.
     (19) "Reporting period" means the period commencing January 1st and ending December 31st in the same calendar year.
     (20) "Residuals" means nonrecyclable materials left over from processing an unwanted product.
     (21) "Retailer" means a person who offers mercury-containing lights for sale at retail through any means including, but not limited to, remote offerings such as sales outlets, catalogs, or the internet, but does not include a sale that is a wholesale transaction with a distributor or a retailer.
     (22)(a) "Reuse" means a change in ownership of a mercury-containing light or its components, parts, packaging, or shipping materials for use in the same manner and purpose for which it was originally purchased, or for use again, as in shipping materials, by the generator of the shipping materials.
     (b) "Reuse" does not include dismantling of products for the purpose of recycling.
     (23) "Stakeholder" means a person who may have an interest in or be affected by a product stewardship program.
     (24) "Stewardship organization" means an organization designated by a producer or group of producers to act as an agent on behalf of each producer to operate a product stewardship program.
     (25) "Unwanted product" means a mercury-containing light no longer wanted by its owner or that has been abandoned, discarded, or is intended to be discarded by its owner.

NEW SECTION.  Sec. 3   (1)(a) All mercury-containing lights collected in the state by product stewardship programs or other collection programs must be recycled. Mercury and mercury-bearing residuals that exhibit characteristics of hazardous waste from recycling of mercury-containing lights must be retorted at a facility that has the required permits and licenses.
     (b) Mercury recovered from retorting must be recycled or placed in a properly permitted hazardous waste landfill, or placed in a properly permitted mercury repository.
     (2) Product stewardship programs for mercury-containing lights must be fully implemented by January 1, 2012.

NEW SECTION.  Sec. 4   Effective January 1, 2013:
     (1) All persons, residents, government, commercial, industrial, and retail facilities and office buildings must recycle their end-of-life mercury-containing lights.
     (2) No mercury-containing lights may knowingly be placed in waste containers for disposal at incinerators, waste to energy facilities, or landfills.
     (3) No mercury-containing lights may knowingly be placed in a container for mixed recyclables unless there is a separate location or compartment for the mercury-containing lights that complies with local government collection standards or guidelines.
     (4) No owner or operator of a solid waste facility may be found in violation of this section if the facility has posted in a conspicuous location a sign stating that mercury-containing lights must be recycled and are not accepted for disposal.
     (5) No solid waste collector may be found in violation of this section for mercury-containing lights placed in a disposal container by the generator of the mercury-containing light.

NEW SECTION.  Sec. 5   (1) Except for persons involved in registered mail-back programs, a person who collects unwanted mercury-containing lights in the state, receives funding through a product stewardship program for mercury-containing lights, and who is not a generator of unwanted mercury-containing lights must:
     (a) Register with the department as a collector of unwanted mercury-containing lights. Until the department adopts rules for collectors, the collector must provide to the department the legal name of the person or entity owning and operating the collection location, the address and phone number of the collection location, and the name, address, and phone number of the individual responsible for operating the collection location and update any changes in this information within thirty days of the change;
     (b) Maintain a spill and release response plan at the collection location that describes the materials, equipment, and procedures that will be used to respond to any release from an unwanted mercury-containing light;
     (c) Maintain a worker safety plan at the collection location that describes the handling of the unwanted mercury-containing lights at the collection location and measures that will be taken to protect worker health and safety; and
     (d) Use packaging and shipping material that will minimize the release of mercury into the environment and minimize breakage and use mercury vapor barrier packaging if mercury-containing lights are transported by the United States postal service or a common carrier.
     (2) A person who operates a curbside collection program or owns or operates a mail-back business participating in a product stewardship program for mercury-containing lights and uses the United States postal service or a common carrier for transport must register with the department and use mercury vapor barrier packaging for curbside collection and mail-back containers.

NEW SECTION.  Sec. 6   (1) Every producer of mercury-containing lights sold in or into Washington state must participate in a product stewardship program for that product.
     (2) Every producer must:
     (a) Operate, either individually or jointly with other producers, a product stewardship program approved by the department; or
     (b) Enter into an agreement with a stewardship organization to operate, on the producer's behalf, a product stewardship program approved by the department.
     (3) A producer, group of producers, or stewardship organization must pay all administrative and operational costs associated with their program or programs, except for the collection costs associated with curbside and mail-back collection programs. For curbside and mail-back programs, a producer, group of producers, or stewardship organization shall finance the costs of transporting mercury-containing lights from accumulation points and for processing mercury-containing lights collected by curbside and mail-back programs. For collection locations, including household hazardous waste facilities, charities, retailers, government recycling sites, or other suitable locations, a producer, group of producers, or stewardship organization shall finance the costs of collection, transportation, and processing of mercury-containing lights collected at the collection locations.
     (4) Product stewardship programs shall collect, free of charge, unwanted mercury-containing lights delivered from covered entities for reuse, recycling, processing, or final disposition.
     (5) The department or its designee may inspect, audit, or review audits of processing and disposal facilities used to fulfill the requirements of a product stewardship program.
     (6) No product stewardship program required under this chapter may use federal or state prison labor for processing unwanted products.

NEW SECTION.  Sec. 7   (1) As of the implementation date established under this chapter for mercury-containing lights, no producer, wholesaler, retailer, or other person may sell or offer for sale that product to any person in this state unless the producer is participating in a product stewardship program under a plan approved by the department.
     (2) Each product stewardship plan must be approved by the department.
     (3) A person selling or offering for sale mercury-containing lights in this state must receive from the producer of the product verification that the producer is participating in an approved product stewardship program prior to selling the product in or into the state. A person is considered to have complied with this subsection if, on the date the person ordered mercury-containing lights from a producer or its agent, the producer was listed by the department as participating in an approved product stewardship program or the producer provided written verification on the shipping documents or billing invoice.

NEW SECTION.  Sec. 8   (1) The department shall periodically publish a notice on its web site, and in any other manner it deems appropriate, requesting that stakeholders who are interested in product stewardship programs contact the department. The department shall maintain a list of interested stakeholders, including their mailing address, and make it available in writing upon request.
     (2) A producer, group of producers, or stewardship organization operating or intending to operate a product stewardship program must, at least sixty days prior to submitting a product stewardship plan to the department under subsection (3) of this section, provide public notice of the plan it is considering for submittal to the list of interested stakeholders maintained by the department under subsection (1) of this section. The producer, group of producers, or stewardship organization must solicit stakeholder comment and input during development of the plan and attempt to address any stakeholder concerns regarding the plan prior to submittal. Documentation of these actions must be submitted to the department at the time of plan submittal.
     (3) A producer, group of producers, or stewardship organization operating or intending to operate a product stewardship program must submit a product stewardship plan to the department specifying:
     (a) Information, including contact information, regarding:
     (i) The organization submitting the plan;
     (ii) A list of all participating producers and their brands, including the trademark, if applicable; and
     (iii) If the program is to be operated by a stewardship organization, a description of management, administration, and tasks to be performed by the stewardship organization.
     (b) Recovery goals for unwanted mercury-containing lights, including:
     (i) Recovery goals for the first, second, and third years of the program, expressed as pounds per capita, and an explanation of how these goals reflect a significant percentage of unwanted mercury-containing lights generated by covered entities relative to the quantity of the unwanted product that may be available for reuse or recycling; and
     (ii) Plans to maximize reuse or recycling of packaging or shipping materials that may be collected.
     (c) A collection system for unwanted mercury-containing lights, including:
     (i) Location of collection sites and other collection services to be used by the program;
     (ii) A description of the consideration given to existing residential curbside collection infrastructure and mail-back systems as an appropriate collection mechanism. If the curbside collection infrastructure and the mail-back systems are not utilized by the plan, a written explanation must be provided citing the reasons that curbside collection services and mail-back services are not included in the plan;
     (iii) How unwanted mercury-containing lights from all covered entities will be collected for all cities in the state with populations greater than ten thousand and in all counties of the state;
     (iv) How the collection system will be convenient and adequate to serve the needs of all covered entities in both urban and rural areas; and
     (v) How collected unwanted mercury-containing lights will be transported to processing facilities.
     (d) A processing and disposal system for unwanted mercury-containing lights, including:
     (i) Locations, permit status, and records of any penalties, violations, or regulatory orders received in the previous three years by processing and disposal facilities proposed to be used by the program, including all downstream processing and disposal facilities handling hazardous substances and hazardous materials through final disposition;
     (ii) A third-party audit of each processing and disposal facility proposed to be used by the program for any unwanted mercury-containing lights or residuals containing hazardous substances or hazardous materials, documenting compliance with all applicable laws, regulations, and rules;
     (iii) Policies and procedures to be followed by persons collecting, transporting, processing, and disposing of unwanted mercury-containing lights, including how the program will ensure compliance with all applicable laws, regulations, and rules;
     (iv) A description of how unwanted mercury-containing lights will be processed at each processing facility;
     (v) How all residuals will be disposed of or managed in permitted facilities, including disposal or management of all hazardous substances and hazardous materials in permitted hazardous waste facilities;
     (vi) How hazardous substances and hazardous materials will be safely and securely tracked and handled from collection to final disposition in compliance with this chapter, any rules adopted by the department to implement this chapter, and all other applicable laws and rules; and
     (vii) Management practices that will be used by first processors and their downstream vendors to ensure that hazardous substances and hazardous materials are not released into the environment and will not adversely impact human health.
     (e) How the program will seek to use businesses within the state, including transportation services, retailers, collection sites and services, existing curbside collection services, existing mail-back services, and processing facilities.
     (f) A financing system for the recovery and recycling of unwanted mercury-containing lights, including:
     (i) How the entire product stewardship program will be financed, that may include how costs will be apportioned among and assessed upon producers participating in the program;
     (ii) How those providing services for the collection, transportation, and processing systems will be fairly compensated for their services; and
     (iii) How operators of residential curbside collection programs and mail-back programs will be compensated for the cost of transporting and processing mercury-containing lights collected from covered entities.
     (g) Education and outreach activities, including:
     (i) An effective advertising campaign promoting the use of the program to all covered entities that includes a toll-free telephone number and web site, with market saturation sufficient to ensure meeting recovery goals;
     (ii) A description of how and when information about the program will be provided to retailers, wholesalers, collectors, and other interested parties to disseminate to covered entities; and
     (iii) The methodology for determining how the effectiveness of the outreach activities will be measured.
     (h) The stakeholder process described under subsection (2) of this section, including:
     (i) A description of the process used to solicit stakeholder input during development of the plan; and
     (ii) A summary of stakeholder comments and how any stakeholder concerns were addressed.
     (4) All plans submitted to the department must be made available for public review on the department's web site and at the department's headquarters.

NEW SECTION.  Sec. 9   (1) A producer, group of producers, or stewardship organization must submit a proposed product stewardship plan for mercury-containing lights from covered entities to the department by January 1, 2011.
     (2) Within ninety days after receiving a proposed product stewardship plan, the department shall determine whether the plan complies with this chapter and any rules adopted to implement this chapter. If it approves a plan, the department shall notify the applicant of its approval. If it rejects a plan, the department shall notify the applicant of its decision and its reasons for rejecting the plan. An applicant whose plan has been rejected by the department may submit a revised plan to the department within sixty days after receiving notice of the rejection to maintain compliance with this chapter or may join another plan within sixty days after receiving notice of rejection.
     (3) At least two years from the start of the product stewardship program and once every four years thereafter, a producer, group of producers, or stewardship organization operating a product stewardship program must update its product stewardship plan and submit the updated plan to the department for review. The department must determine the status of an updated plan within ninety days of its submittal. If the department rejects an updated plan, the department shall provide the reasons it rejected the updated plan. The producer or producers of mercury-containing lights participating in the product stewardship program shall continue to operate under the prior approved plan for not more than ninety days or another time period approved by the department and shall submit a revised updated plan for approval within that time period. The prior approved plan remains in effect until the department approves or rejects the revised plan. Failure of a product stewardship program to submit an updated plan within the time period provided under this subsection is deemed to be out of compliance with this chapter, unless the producers in the product stewardship program notify the department of their intention to disband the plan and join an alternate approved plan.

NEW SECTION.  Sec. 10   (1) Any proposed change to a product stewardship plan must have prior approval of the department except for the following:
     (a) Additions or changes to collection locations for unwanted mercury-containing lights; or
     (b) Additions of producers to a product stewardship program.
     (2) The product stewardship program must inform the department of changes in subsection (1)(a) and (b) of this section fifteen days prior to the changes occurring.

NEW SECTION.  Sec. 11   (1) On or before April 1st of each year, every producer, group of producers, or stewardship organization operating a product stewardship program for mercury-containing lights must prepare and submit to the department a report in a format provided by the department for the immediately preceding reporting period describing:
     (a) Information, including contact information, regarding:
     (i) The organization submitting the report; and
     (ii) A list of all participating producers and their brands and trademarks, if applicable;
     (b) Recovery rates, including:
     (i) The amount, by weight, of unwanted mercury-containing lights collected from covered entities in each county in the state, including documented collection and recycling or disposal of that material; and
     (ii) How the program attained recovery rates established in the product stewardship plan or set by the department, and, if the program did not attain those recovery rates, what actions the program will take during the next reporting period to do so, including how the program will increase and improve effective, measurable outreach and education efforts;
     (c) The collection system, including collection locations and services provided for all cities in the state with populations greater than ten thousand and in all counties in the state;
     (d) The processing and disposal system, including:
     (i) A list of processing and disposal facilities used and their locations, the weight of unwanted mercury-containing lights processed at each processing facility and disposed at each disposal facility, and a description of the methods used at each processing facility;
     (ii) A list of subcontractors used through final disposition that processed or disposed of unwanted mercury-containing lights containing hazardous substances or hazardous materials, and subcontractor facility locations;
     (iii) Documentation and summary results of annual third-party audits conducted on each processing facility and disposal facility as required in section 8 of this act;
     (iv) Final disposition of residuals;
     (v) Any penalties, violations, or regulatory orders received during the reporting period by each processing facility or disposal facility that was used; and
     (vi) Whether policies and procedures in the product stewardship plan for collecting, transporting, processing, and final disposition of unwanted mercury-containing lights were followed during the reporting period, and a description of any noncompliance;
     (e) The financing system, including a description of how the system met the requirements in section 8 of this act;
     (f) The education and outreach activities implemented during the reporting period, including an analysis of the effectiveness of the education and outreach activities;
     (g) How the product stewardship program complied with any other elements in the plan; and
     (h) Any other information that the department may require.
     (2) A producer, group of producers, or stewardship organization operating a product stewardship program under this chapter that attains a ninety percent recovery rate and a recycling rate of eighty percent is only required to report to the department information specified in subsection (1)(a) through (d), (g), and (h) of this section.
     (3) All reports submitted to the department must be made available to the public on the department's web site and at the department's headquarters.

NEW SECTION.  Sec. 12   By June of the third program year, the plan operators shall establish required recovery rates for the fourth and subsequent program years, based on information gained in the first through third years, sales data, anticipated product obsolescence, and anticipated sales growth. Annual planned recovery rates must be submitted to the department for approval by September 1st prior to the program year for which the rates are established. The submittal must include documentation of the calculations and data used to determine the recovery rate. The department shall approve, disapprove, or adjust, in consultation with the plan's operator, the submitted recovery rates based upon its assessment of prior years' data, sales data, and other available information that supports the decision. Sixty days after delivering a written warning, the department shall assess a penalty of up to ten thousand dollars for each violation on each plan operator.

NEW SECTION.  Sec. 13   (1) The department shall send a written warning and a copy of this chapter and any rules adopted to implement this chapter to a producer who is not participating in a product stewardship program approved by the department and whose mercury-containing lights are being sold in or into the state.
     (2) A producer not participating in a product stewardship program approved by the department whose mercury-containing lights continue to be sold in or into the state sixty days after receiving a written warning from the department shall be assessed a penalty of one thousand dollars for each violation. A violation is the sale of one mercury-containing light.
     (3) If any producer fails to implement its approved plan, the department shall assess a penalty of up to five thousand dollars for the first violation along with notification that the producer must implement its plan within thirty days of the violation. After thirty days, any producer failing to implement their approved plan must be assessed a penalty of up to ten thousand dollars for the second and each subsequent violation. A subsequent violation occurs each thirty-day period that the producer fails to implement the approved plan.
     (4) The department shall send a written warning to a producer that fails to submit a product stewardship plan, update or change the plan when required, or submit an annual report as required under this chapter. The written warning must include compliance requirements and notification that the requirements must be met within sixty days. If requirements are not met within sixty days, the producer will be assessed a ten thousand dollar penalty per day of noncompliance starting with the first day of notice of noncompliance.
     (5) Penalties prescribed under this section must be reduced by fifty percent if the producer complies within thirty days of the second violation notice.
     (6) A producer may appeal penalties prescribed under this section to the pollution control hearings board created under chapter 43.21B RCW.

NEW SECTION.  Sec. 14   (1) The department shall provide on its web site a list of all producers participating in product stewardship programs that the department has approved and a list of all producers the department has identified as noncompliant with this chapter and any rules adopted to implement this chapter.
     (2) Product retailers must check the department's web site or producer-provided written verification to determine if producers of products they are selling in or into the state are in compliance with this chapter. If the retailer is unsure of the status of the producer or believes the producer is not in compliance with this chapter, the retailer shall contact the department to determine the producer's status.
     (3) The department shall personally serve, or send with delivery confirmation, a written warning explaining the violation along with a copy of this chapter and any rules adopted to implement this chapter to a product retailer known to be selling mercury-containing lights in or into the state from producers who are not participating in a product stewardship program or who are not in compliance with this chapter and rules adopted under this chapter.
     (4) A product retailer who continues to sell mercury-containing lights from a producer who is not participating in an approved product stewardship program sixty days after receiving a written warning from the department may be assessed a penalty two times the value of the products sold in violation of this chapter or five hundred dollars, whichever is greater. This penalty must be waived if the retailer verifies that it has discontinued sale of the mercury-containing lights within thirty days of the date of the penalty assessment. A retailer may appeal penalties assessed under this section to the pollution control hearings board.
     (5) A sale or purchase of mercury-containing lights as a casual or isolated sale as defined in RCW 82.04.040 is not subject to the provisions of this section.
     (6) A person primarily engaged in the business of reuse and resale of a used mercury-containing light is not subject to the provisions of this section when selling used working mercury-containing lights, for use in the same manner and purpose for which it was originally purchased.
     (7) In-state retailers in possession of mercury-containing lights on the date that restrictions on the sale of the product become effective may exhaust their existing stock through sales to the public.

NEW SECTION.  Sec. 15   The department shall establish fees to be charged to and paid annually by producers for administering this chapter. All fees charged must be based on factors relating to administering this chapter and be based on a sliding scale. Fees must be established in amounts to fully recover expenses incurred by the department to implement this chapter. The initial fee schedule must be established by rule. Producers solely engaged in the retail sales of mercury-containing lights are exempt from paying this fee.

NEW SECTION.  Sec. 16   The product stewardship programs account is created in the custody of the state treasurer. All funds received from producers under section 15 of this act and penalties collected under this chapter must be deposited in the account. Expenditures from the account may be used only for administering this chapter. Only the director of the department or the director's designee may authorize expenditures from the account. The account is subject to the allotment procedures under chapter 43.88 RCW, but an appropriation is not required for expenditures.

NEW SECTION.  Sec. 17   (1) The department may adopt rules necessary to implement, administer, and enforce this chapter.
     (2) The department may adopt rules to establish performance standards for product stewardship programs and may establish administrative penalties for failure to meet the standards.
     (3) By December 31, 2012, the department shall report to the appropriate committees of the legislature concerning the status of the product stewardship program and recommendations for changes to the provisions of this chapter.
     (4) Beginning October 1, 2012, the department shall annually invite comments from local governments, communities, and citizens to report their satisfaction with services provided by product stewardship programs. This information must be used by the department to determine if the plan operator is meeting convenience requirements and in reviewing proposed updates or changes to product stewardship plans.
     (5) Beginning October 1, 2012, the department shall annually invite comments from retailers, consumer groups, electric utilities, the Northwest power and conservation council, and other interested parties regarding the impacts of the requirements of this chapter on the availability or purchase of energy efficient lighting within the state. If the department determines that evidence shows the requirements of this chapter have resulted in negative impacts on the availability or purchase of energy efficient lighting in the state, the department shall report this information by December 31st of each year to the appropriate committees of the legislature with recommendations for changes to the provisions of this chapter.
     (6) Beginning October 1, 2012, the department shall annually invite comments from retailers, consumer groups, electric utilities, the Northwest power and conservation council, and other interested parties regarding the availability of energy efficient nonmercury lighting to replace mercury-containing lighting within the state. If the department determines that evidence shows that energy efficient nonmercury-containing lighting is available and achieves similar energy savings as mercury lighting at similar cost, the department shall report this information by December 31st of each year to the appropriate committees of the legislature with recommendations for legislative changes to reduce mercury use in lighting.
     (7) Beginning October 1, 2012, the department shall annually estimate the overall statewide recycling rate for mercury-containing lights and calculate that portion of the recycling rate attributable to the product stewardship program.
     (8) The department may require submission of independent performance evaluations and report evaluations documenting the effectiveness of mercury vapor barrier packaging in preventing the escape of mercury into the environment. The department may restrict the use of packaging for which adequate documentation has not been provided. Any program using restricted mercury vapor barrier packaging is not eligible for participation in the product stewardship program for mercury-containing lights.

NEW SECTION.  Sec. 18   Nothing in this chapter changes or limits the authority of the Washington utilities and transportation commission to regulate collection of solid waste, including curbside collection of residential recyclable materials, nor does this chapter change or limit the authority of a city or town to provide such service itself or by contract under RCW 81.77.020.

NEW SECTION.  Sec. 19   Nothing in this chapter changes the requirements of any entity regulated under chapter 70.105 RCW to comply with the requirements under that chapter.

NEW SECTION.  Sec. 20   This chapter must be liberally construed to carry out its purposes and objectives.

NEW SECTION.  Sec. 21   Sections 1 through 20 and 22 of this act constitute a new chapter in Title 70 RCW.

NEW SECTION.  Sec. 22   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.