AN ACT Relating to requiring newspapers printed or published in this state to be printed on recycled paper; amending RCW 70.95.030; adding new sections to chapter 70.95 RCW; creating a new section; and prescribing penalties.

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

NEW SECTION. Sec. 1. The legislature finds in keeping with the provisions of chapter 431, Laws of 1989, that:

(1) Recycling old newspapers saves valuable solid waste landfill space, reduces energy consumption, and preserves timber resources. Specific benefits can be derived by separating old newspapers from the solid waste stream and by using old newspapers to produce newsprint;

(2) Increasing the demand for newsprint made from recycled old newspapers will stimulate manufacturers of newsprint to use larger amounts of old newspapers in their production of newsprint; and

(3) The development of markets for all types and grades of recycled paper is beneficial to the economy of the state and the use of recycled-content paper should be encouraged to the maximum feasible amount.

Sec. 2. Section 3, chapter 134, Laws of 1969 ex. sess. as last amended by section 2, chapter 431, Laws of 1989 and RCW 70.95.030 are each amended to read as follows:

As used in this chapter, unless the context indicates otherwise:

(1) "City" means every incorporated city and town.

(2) "Commission" means the utilities and transportation commission.

(3) "Committee" means the state solid waste advisory committee.

(4) "Department" means the department of ecology.

(5) "Director" means the director of the department of ecology.

(6) "Disposal site" means the location where any final treatment, utilization, processing, or deposit of solid waste occurs.

(7) "Energy recovery" means a process operating under federal and state environmental laws and regulations for converting solid waste into usable energy and for reducing the volume of solid waste.

(8) "Functional standards" means criteria for solid waste handling expressed in terms of expected performance or solid waste handling functions.

(9) "Incineration" means a process of reducing the volume of solid waste operating under federal and state environmental laws and regulations by use of an enclosed device using controlled flame combustion.

(10) "Jurisdictional health department" means city, county, city-county, or district public health department.

(11) "Landfill" means a disposal facility or part of a facility at which solid waste is placed in or on land and which is not a land treatment facility.

(12) "Local government" means a city, town, or county.

(13) "Person" means individual, firm, association, copartnership, political subdivision, government agency, municipality, industry, public or private corporation, or any other entity whatsoever.

(14) "Recyclable materials" means those solid wastes that are separated for recycling or reuse, such as papers, metals, and glass, that are identified as recyclable material pursuant to a local comprehensive solid waste plan. Prior to the adoption of the local comprehensive solid waste plan, adopted pursuant to RCW 70.95.110(2), local governments may identify recyclable materials by ordinance from July 23, 1989.

(15) "Recycling" means transforming or remanufacturing waste materials into usable or marketable materials for use other than landfill disposal or incineration.

(16) "Solid waste" or "wastes" means all putrescible and nonputrescible solid and semisolid wastes including, but not limited to, garbage, rubbish, ashes, industrial wastes, swill, demolition and construction wastes, abandoned vehicles or parts thereof, and recyclable materials.

(17) "Solid waste handling" means the management, storage, collection, transportation, treatment, utilization, processing, and final disposal of solid wastes, including the recovery and recycling of materials from solid wastes, the recovery of energy resources from solid wastes or the conversion of the energy in solid wastes to more useful forms or combinations thereof.

(18) "Source separation" means the separation of different kinds of solid waste at the place where the waste originates.

(19) "Vehicle" includes every device physically capable of being moved upon a public or private highway, road, street, or watercourse and in, upon, or by which any person or property is or may be transported or drawn upon a public or private highway, road, street, or watercourse, except devices moved by human or animal power or used exclusively upon stationary rails or tracks.

(20) "Waste reduction" means reducing the amount or toxicity of waste generated or reusing materials.

(21) "Consumer of newsprint" means a person who uses newsprint in a commercial printing operation or in a commercial publishing operation.

(22) "Deink" or "deinking old newspapers" means a process in which old newspaper is mixed with water, the paper fibers are separated to form a paper pulp, and the pulp is cleaned to remove contaminants.

(23) "Newsprint" means uncoated paper, whether supercalendered or machine finished, of the type generally used for, but not limited to, the publication of newspapers, commercial advertising inserts, directories, or commercial advertising mailers, that is made primarily from mechanical woodpulps combined with some chemical woodpulp. Newsprint includes paper made from old newspapers that have been deinked using recycled pulp in lieu of virgin pulp. Newsprint includes all grades of paper sold as newsprint, supercalendered uncoated groundwood, or machine finished uncoated groundwood.

(24) "Old newspaper" or "recovered newspaper" means any newsprint that is separated from other types of solid waste or collected separately from other types of solid waste and made available for reuse in making new newsprint, and that meets quality standards for use as a raw material in the manufacture of a new paper product.

(25) "Post consumer waste paper" means a finished material that would normally be disposed of as a solid waste, having completed its lifecycle as a consumer item, including, but not limited to, printing plant waste paper.

(26) "Recycled-content newsprint" means newsprint in which not less than forty percent of its fiber consists of post consumer waste paper.

NEW SECTION. Sec. 3. RECYCLED-CONTENT NEWSPRINT PROGRAM. (1) On and after January 1, 1992, every consumer of newsprint in this state shall ensure that at least twenty-five percent of all newsprint used by that consumer of newsprint is made from recycled-content newsprint, if recycled-content newsprint is available at a price comparable to that of newsprint made from virgin material, if the recycled-content newsprint meets the quality standards established by the department pursuant to section 4 of this act, and if the recycled-content newsprint is available within a reasonable period of time.

(2) The percentage of newsprint used that is made from recycled-content newsprint shall be calculated in tons used on an annual basis and shall increase to:

(a) Thirty percent on and after January 1, 1995;

(b) Thirty-five percent on and after January 1, 1997;

(d) Fifty percent on and after January 1, 2001.

(3) This section does not apply to any newsprint purchased before January 1, 1991.

NEW SECTION. Sec. 4. CERTIFICATION. (1) Each consumer of newsprint within the state shall, on or before March 1 of each year, certify to the department the number of tons of newsprint used during the preceding calendar year and the number of tons of recycled-content newsprint used during the preceding calendar year.

(2) Every consumer of newsprint who submits recycled-content newsprint usage certification pursuant to subsection (1) of this section may be subject to an audit to ensure that the recycled-content newsprint was used.

(3) Each person who supplies a consumer of newsprint with newsprint shall certify the amounts of recycled-content newsprint contained in each shipment to each consumer of newsprint. If a shipment contains no recycled-content newsprint, the supplier shall so certify.

(4) If a consumer of newsprint is unable to obtain sufficient amounts of recycled-content newsprint within any reporting period because recycled-content newsprint was not available at a comparable price to that for virgin material, failed to meet the quality standards established pursuant to subsection (6) of this section, or was not available within a reasonable period of time, the consumer of newsprint shall so certify to the department and provide the department with the specific reason for failing to use recycled-content newsprint. In order to make that certification in good faith, the newsprint consumer shall have contacted, for the purpose of obtaining recycled-content newsprint, every producer of recycled-content newsprint that offered to sell recycled-content newsprint to the consumer of newsprint within the last twelve months. The name of each person contacted, the corporate name, if any, and address and telephone number shall accompany each filing with the department.

(5) For the purposes of implementing and enforcing this chapter, the department shall develop and maintain a list that identifies every consumer of newsprint and every person who supplies a consumer of newsprint with newsprint, in the state. The department may use information from local business permits, trade publications, or any other relevant information to develop the list.

(6)(a) For the purposes of implementing and enforcing sections 3 through 7 of this act, the department shall set newsprint comparable quality standards for each of the grades of newsprint specified in RCW 70.95.030(23) to determine the comparable quality of recycled-content newsprint to virgin material. These standards shall be based on the average numerical standards of printing opacity, brightness level, and cross machine tear strength available from all producers selling recycled-content newsprint in the state in quantities of at least five thousand metric tons per year. The department shall set standards which deviate from this average by not more than five percent.

(b) The department shall review its standards at least once every two years and determine whether they should be adjusted to reflect changes in industry standards and practices, and, if so, the department shall set new standards according to the criteria in (a) of this subsection.

(7) After January 1, 1995, the department shall conduct a survey of the paper industry to assess the availability of, quality of, and market for all recycled-content papers, including coated groundwood papers and other papers that are not newsprint. The department shall report the findings of its survey to the legislature on or before July 1, 1995.

NEW SECTION. Sec. 5. FALSE CERTIFICATION. (1) If any person provides a consumer of newsprint with a false or misleading certificate concerning the recycled content of the delivered newsprint pursuant to section 4(2) of this act, the department, within thirty days of making this determination, shall refer the false or misleading certificate to the attorney general for prosecution for fraud.

(2) If any consumer of newsprint provides the department with a false or misleading certificate concerning the percentage of recycled-content newsprint used pursuant to section 4(1) of this act, the department, within thirty days of making this determination, shall refer the false or misleading certificate to the attorney general for prosecution for fraud.

(3) If any consumer of newsprint provides the department with a false or misleading certificate concerning why the consumer of newsprint was unable to obtain the minimum amounts of recycled-content newsprint pursuant to section 4(3) of this act, the department, within thirty days of making this determination, shall refer the false or misleading certificate to the attorney general for prosecution for fraud.

(4) Specific information on newsprint prices included as part of a certificate submitted to the department by newsprint consumers or suppliers of newsprint is propriety information and shall not be made available to the general public.

NEW SECTION. Sec. 6. PENALTY. (1) Any person who violates a provision of sections 3 through 5 of this act may be assessed a civil penalty by the department of not more than one thousand dollars for each violation.

(2) Any civil penalties received pursuant to this section shall be deposited in a separate account in the general fund and, upon appropriation, shall be used by that department for the administration of sections 3 through 6 of this act.

NEW SECTION. Sec. 7. CAPTIONS NOT LAW. Section headings as used in sections 3 through 6 of this act do not constitute any part of the law.

NEW SECTION. Sec. 8. Sections 3 through 6 of this act are each added to chapter 70.95 RCW.