Mattress producer resp.

AN ACT Relating to mattress producer responsibility 1
organizations; reenacting and amending RCW 43.21B.110 and 43.21B.300; 2
adding a new section to chapter 82.04 RCW; adding a new chapter to 3
Title 70A RCW; and prescribing penalties. 4
BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF WASHINGTON:5
NEW SECTION. Sec. 1. The legislature finds that:6
(1) While mattresses are generally made of recyclable materials, 7
the majority of mattresses are landfilled. There are few options for 8
mattress recycling in Washington. 9
(2) Mattresses are bulky products that are difficult to handle, 10
on average weighing 55 pounds and taking up about one cubic yard of 11
landfill space, they float to the surface of landfills and are 12
challenging to manage at transfer stations. They are illegally dumped 13
along our roadways and in remote locations. 14
(3) There are economic benefits to increasing mattress recycling. 15
Most mattress recyclers use manual labor to dismantle a mattress, 16
which involves cutting it open, separating the components, and 17
bailing them to then be recycled by other commodity recyclers into 18
useful products elsewhere. Increasing the number of mattresses 19
recycled will increase recycling jobs and reduce the environmental 20
and economic costs of landfilling and illegal dumping.21
H-1138.2
HOUSE BILL 1901
State of Washington 69th Legislature 2025 Regular Session
By Representatives Hunt, Berry, Doglio, Parshley, Duerr, Fitzgibbon,
Ormsby, Ramel, Hill, Macri, and Pollet
Read first time 02/07/25. Referred to Committee on Environment &
Energy.
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(4) There are environmental benefits to increasing mattress 1
recycling, which captures useful materials such as metal, foam, wood, 2
and cotton for recycling, and reduces climate emissions associated 3
with production of new materials and avoids their placement in 4
landfills. Mattress recycling also avoids damage to solid waste 5
equipment. 6
NEW SECTION. Sec. 2. The definitions in this section apply 7
throughout this chapter unless the context clearly requires 8
otherwise.9
(1) "Department" means the department of ecology.10
(2) "Environmentally sound management practices" means practices 11
that: (a) Comply with all applicable laws and rules to protect 12
workers, public health, and the environment; (b) provide for adequate 13
recordkeeping, tracking, and documenting of the fate of materials 14
within the state and beyond; and (c) include comprehensive liability 15
coverage for the producer responsibility organization, including 16
environmental liability coverage that is commercially practicable.17
(3) "Foundation" means a ticking-covered structure that is used 18
to support a mattress or sleep surface and that may be constructed of 19
frames, foam, box springs, or other materials, used alone or in 20
combination. 21
(4) "Government entity" means any: 22
(a) County, city, town, or other local government, including any 23
municipal corporation, quasi-municipal corporation, or special 24
purpose district, or any office, department, division, bureau, board, 25
commission, or agency thereof, or other local public agency;26
(b) State office, department, division, bureau, board, 27
commission, or other state agency; 28
(c) Federally recognized Indian tribe whose traditional lands and 29
territories include parts of Washington; or 30
(d) Federal office, department, division, bureau, board, 31
commission, or other federal agency. 32
(5) "Introduce" means to sell, offer for sale, or distribute 33
within or into this state. 34
(6)(a) "Mattress" means: 35
(i) A resilient material or combination of materials that is 36
enclosed by ticking, is used alone or in combination with other 37
products, and is intended or promoted for sleeping upon;38
(ii) A mattress topper; 39
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(iii) A foundation; or 1
(iv) The mattress component of a mattress-containing furniture 2
piece, such as a sofa bed, where the mattress is easily separable 3
from the rest of the furniture piece without specialized tools.4
(b) "Mattress" does not include: 5
(i) A sleeping bag; 6
(ii) A pillow; 7
(iii) A waterbed, air mattress, or other product that contains 8
liquid or gas-filled ticking and that does not contain upholstery 9
material between the ticking and the mattress core; or10
(iv) A mattress-containing furniture piece, such as a sofa bed, 11
where the mattress component is: 12
(A) Not easily separable from the rest of the furniture piece 13
without specialized tools; or 14
(B) No longer included in the furniture piece.15
(7) "Mattress management hierarchy" means a management system of 16
mattresses prioritized in descending order as follows:17
(a) Waste prevention and reduction; 18
(b) Reuse, when reuse is appropriate; 19
(c) Recycling, as defined in this chapter; and20
(d) Other means of end-of-life management, which may only be 21
utilized after demonstrating to the department that it is not 22
feasible to manage the mattresses under the higher priority options 23
in (a) through (c) of this subsection. 24
(8) "Person" means an individual, firm, corporation, association, 25
partnership, consortium, joint venture, or commercial entity.26
(9) "Plan" means a description of the approach and activities 27
developed by a producer responsibility organization to fulfill the 28
requirements and to carry out the responsibilities of producers under 29
this chapter. 30
(10) "Producer" means the following person for a mattress 31
introduced into this state: 32
(a) If the mattress is sold under the brand of the mattress 33
manufacturer, the producer is the person that manufactures the 34
mattress; 35
(b) If the mattress is sold under a retail brand or under a brand 36
owned by a person other than the manufacturer, the producer is the 37
brand owner; 38
(c) If there is no person to which (a) or (b) of this subsection 39
applies, the producer is the person that is the licensee of a brand 40
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or trademark under which the mattress is introduced, whether or not 1
the trademark is registered in this state; 2
(d) If there is no person described in (a) through (c) of this 3
subsection within the United States, the producer is the person who 4
is the importer of record for the mattress into the United States for 5
use in a commercial enterprise that introduces the mattress in this 6
state; 7
(e) If there is no person described in (a) through (d) of this 8
subsection with a commercial presence within the state, the producer 9
is the person who first introduces the mattress into this state.10
(11) "Producer responsibility organization" means:11
(a) A nonprofit organization that qualifies for a tax exemption 12
under 26 U.S.C. Sec. 501 (c)(3) of the federal internal revenue code 13
and is designated by a producer or group of producers to fulfill the 14
requirements of this chapter; 15
(b) A producer that registers with the department as a producer 16
responsibility organization; or 17
(c) An organization as defined by the department by rule.18
(12) "Program" means a program implemented by a producer 19
responsibility organization consistent with an approved producer 20
responsibility plan under this chapter. 21
(13) "Recycling" means transforming or remanufacturing waste 22
materials into usable or marketable materials for use other than:23
(a) Combustion; 24
(b) Incineration; 25
(c) Energy generation; 26
(d) Fuel production; or 27
(e) Beneficial reuse in the construction and operation of a solid 28
waste landfill, including use of alternative daily cover.29
(14) "Retailer" means a person who sells mattresses in or into 30
this state or offers or otherwise makes available mattresses to a 31
customer, including other businesses, for use by the customer in this 32
state. 33
(15) "Service provider" means an entity that serves as a 34
collection site for mattresses or a processor of mattresses. A 35
government entity that provides, contracts for, or otherwise arranges 36
for another party to provide services within its jurisdiction may be 37
a service provider regardless of whether it provided, contracted for, 38
or otherwise arranged for similar services before the approval of the 39
applicable plan. 40
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(16)(a) "Ticking" means the outermost layer of fabric, or related 1
material, of a mattress. 2
(b) "Ticking" does not include any layer of fabric or material 3
quilted together with, or otherwise attached to, the outermost layer 4
of fabric or material of a mattress. 5
NEW SECTION. Sec. 3. (1) A producer of a mattress introduced 6
for use in this state shall implement a producer responsibility 7
program through participation in and appropriate funding of a 8
producer responsibility organization to develop and carry out 9
implementation of an approved producer responsibility plan.10
(2) By January 1, 2026, each producer must appoint a producer 11
responsibility organization under which it will participate.12
(3) By July 1, 2026, and annually thereafter, each producer must 13
be listed as a member in good standing in a registration submitted to 14
the department by a producer responsibility organization approved to 15
operate under this chapter. 16
(4) Beginning January 1, 2030, a producer that is not a member in 17
good standing with a registered producer responsibility organization 18
and producer responsibility plan may not introduce mattresses covered 19
by this chapter for use in this state. 20
(5) Participation in a producer responsibility organization does 21
not waive or transfer any requirement or duty of a producer 22
established by this chapter. 23
NEW SECTION. Sec. 4. (1) By March 1, 2026, and annually 24
thereafter, a producer responsibility organization must register with 25
the department on behalf of its producers. A registration submission 26
by a producer responsibility organization must include the following:27
(a) Contact information for a person responsible for implementing 28
an approved plan; 29
(b) A list of all member producers that have entered into written 30
agreements to operate under an approved plan by the producer 31
responsibility organization, copies of the written agreements for 32
each member producer, and a list of all brands of each producer's 33
mattresses introduced; 34
(c) A plan for recruiting additional member producers and 35
executing written agreements confirming producers will operate under 36
an approved plan administered by the producer responsibility 37
organization; 38
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(d) A list of current board members and the executive director if 1
different than the person responsible for implementing approved 2
plans; and 3
(e) Documentation demonstrating adequate financial responsibility 4
and financial controls to ensure proper management of funds and 5
payment of the annual registration fee to the department.6
(2)(a) Except as provided in (b) of this subsection, by May 1, 7
2027, and each May 1st thereafter, a producer responsibility 8
organization must submit the annual registration fee established in 9
section 12 of this act to fund all costs of the department to 10
implement, administer, and enforce this chapter. 11
(b) By September 1, 2026, a producer responsibility organization 12
must submit a one-time payment to the department in an amount 13
determined by the department to cover the costs of the department 14
under this chapter from the effective date of this section through 15
June 30, 2027. 16
(3) By July 1, 2028, or within six months of the adoption of 17
rules under section 12 of this act, whichever comes later, each 18
registered producer responsibility organization must submit a plan 19
that meets the requirements of this chapter to the department for 20
approval. A producer responsibility organization may submit a plan at 21
any time to the department for review and approval, but must submit a 22
plan no less than every five years. 23
(4) By January 1, 2030, or within one year of plan approval, 24
whichever is later, implement the plan approved by the department.25
(5) By June 1, 2030, and each June 1st thereafter, submit an 26
annual report to the department for the prior calendar year.27
(6) A producer responsibility organization registered with the 28
department must: 29
(a) Ensure that each producer operating under a plan administered 30
by the producer responsibility organization complies with the 31
requirements of the plan and this chapter; 32
(b) Expel a producer from the producer responsibility 33
organization if efforts to return the producer to compliance with the 34
plan or the requirements of this chapter are unsuccessful and notify 35
the department of the producer's expulsion; 36
(c) Consider and respond in writing to comments received from the 37
advisory council, including justifications for not incorporating 38
advisory council recommendations; 39
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(d) Notify the department within 30 days of a change made to the 1
contact information for a person responsible for implementing the 2
plan, to board membership, or to the executive director;3
(e) Reimburse service providers in a timely manner;4
(f) Maintain a website and implement education and outreach 5
activities as required under section 11 of this act; and6
(g) Comply with all other applicable requirements of this 7
chapter. 8
NEW SECTION. Sec. 5. (1) Beginning July 1, 2029, a retailer may 9
not sell, offer for sale, distribute, or otherwise make available for 10
sale a mattress for use in this state unless the producer of the 11
mattress certifies to the retailer that the producer participates in 12
a producer responsibility organization whose plan has been approved 13
by the department.14
(2) Retailers of mattresses are not required to make retail 15
locations available to serve as collection sites for a stewardship 16
program operated by a producer responsibility organization. Retailers 17
that serve as a collection site must comply with the requirements for 18
collection sites, consistent with section 9 of this act.19
(3) A retailer selling or offering mattresses for use in this 20
state must provide information to customers regarding available reuse 21
and end-of-life management options offered through the producer 22
responsibility program. 23
(4) Retailers, producers, or producer responsibility 24
organizations may not charge a specific point-of-sale fee to 25
consumers to cover the administrative or operational costs of the 26
producer responsibility organization or the producer responsibility 27
program. 28
NEW SECTION. Sec. 6. (1) A plan submitted by a producer 29
responsibility organization under this act must:30
(a) Describe the producer responsibility organization structure 31
and governance and each producer and mattress brand covered in the 32
plan; 33
(b) Propose performance goals, consistent with section 7 of this 34
act; 35
(c) Describe how the producer responsibility organization will 36
make retailers aware of their obligation to sell only mattresses of 37
producers participating in an approved plan; 38
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(d) Describe the education and communication strategy being 1
implemented to effectively promote participation in the approved 2
producer responsibility program and provide the information necessary 3
for effective participation of consumers, businesses, government 4
entities, retailers, and others; 5
(e) Describe how the producer responsibility organization will 6
make available to retailers, for voluntary use, in-store signage, 7
written materials, and other promotional materials that retailers may 8
use to inform customers of the available reuse and end-of-life 9
management options for mattresses offered through the producer 10
responsibility program; 11
(f) List promotional activities to be undertaken, and the 12
identification of consumer awareness goals and strategies that the 13
program will employ to achieve these goals after the program begins 14
to be implemented; 15
(g) Describe the method to establish and administer a means for 16
fully funding the program in a manner that equitably distributes the 17
program's costs among the producers that are part of the producer 18
responsibility organization and includes plans and funding for 19
infrastructure and market development. For producers that elect to 20
meet the requirements of this chapter individually, the plan must 21
describe the proposed method to establish and administer a means for 22
fully funding the program. For a producer responsibility organization 23
implementing a plan on behalf of multiple producers, describe the 24
financing methods used to implement the plan, consistent with section 25
8 of this act, including how producer fees and fee modulation will 26
incorporate design for reuse, recycling, and resource conservation as 27
objectives; 28
(h) Describe how the producer responsibility organization will 29
pay for activities undertaken by collection sites associated with 30
implementation of the program, and include a template service 31
agreement and any other forms, contracts, or other documents for use 32
in distribution of reimbursements; 33
(i) Describe how the program will collect all mattress types and 34
brands on a free, continuous, convenient, visible, and accessible 35
basis, and consistent with the requirements of section 8 of this act, 36
including a description of how the statewide convenience standard 37
will be met and a list of collection sites, the address and latitude 38
and longitude of collection sites, and how the program will 39
discourage and address illegal dumping; 40
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(j) Describe the criteria to be used in the program to determine 1
whether an entity may serve as a collection site for mattresses under 2
the program; 3
(k) Identify: 4
(i) Proposed brokers, transporters, processors, and facilities to 5
be used by the program for the reuse, recycling, or final disposition 6
of mattresses; and 7
(ii) How collected mattresses will be managed: 8
(A) In a manner consistent with the mattress management 9
hierarchy, including how each proposed facility used for the final 10
disposition of mattresses will reuse, recycle, or otherwise manage 11
mattresses; and 12
(B) At facilities operating in compliance with all applicable 13
local, state, and federal laws and regulations. For any materials 14
from collected mattresses that are managed outside of the United 15
States, identify how the program will ensure that facilities operate 16
in accordance with human health, labor, and environmental protection 17
standards that are broadly equivalent to or better than those 18
required in the United States; 19
(l) Detail how the program will achieve its target recycling 20
rates, consistent with the requirements of section 7 of this act and 21
calculated consistent with section 11 of this act, including by 22
conducting research, as needed, related to improving used mattress 23
collection, dismantling, and recycling operations, including pilot 24
programs to test new processes, methods, or equipment on a local, 25
regional, or otherwise limited basis; 26
(m) Describe how the public education and outreach components of 27
the program under section 10 of this act will be implemented and how 28
public awareness goals will be met; 29
(n) Describe how any disputes with residents, businesses, 30
government entities, collectors, processors, and producers will be 31
managed and resolved; 32
(o) Propose actions to be taken to make the mattress collection 33
and reuse and recycling system more efficient, such as providing 34
incentives for collection, reducing illegal dumping through campaigns 35
and labeling, and additional collection opportunities; and36
(p) A summary of consultations held with the advisory council and 37
other interested parties to provide input to the plan, a list of 38
recommendations that were incorporated into the plan as a result, and 39
a list of rejected recommendations and the reasons for rejection.40
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(2) If required by the department, a producer responsibility 1
organization must submit a new plan to the department for approval:2
(a) If there are significant changes to the methods of 3
collection, transport, or end-of-life management of mattresses under 4
section 8 of this act that are not provided for in the plan. The 5
department may, by rule, identify the types of significant changes 6
that require a new plan to be submitted to the department for 7
approval. For purposes of this subsection, adding or removing a 8
processor or transporter under the plan is not considered a 9
significant change that requires a plan resubmittal; and10
(b) No less than every five years. 11
(3) As part of a producer responsibility plan, a producer 12
responsibility organization must submit to the department a 13
contingency plan. 14
(a) The contingency plan must demonstrate how the activities in 15
the plan will continue to be carried out by some other entity, such 16
as an escrow company, if needed: 17
(i) Until such time as a new or updated plan is submitted and 18
approved by the department; 19
(ii) Upon the expiration of an approved plan; 20
(iii) If the producer responsibility organization notifies the 21
department that it will cease to implement an approved plan; or22
(iv) In any other event that the producer responsibility 23
organization can no longer carry out plan implementation;24
(b) The requirements of (a) of this subsection do not require a 25
producer responsibility organization to hold funds in a dedicated 26
account until such time as the contingency plan must be implemented;27
(c) The department must follow the same process and timelines for 28
reviewing and approving the contingency plan as it follows for the 29
plan. The department may require a producer responsibility 30
organization to revise the contingency plan coincident with any plan 31
submittal. 32
(4) If required by the department, a producer responsibility 33
organization must provide plan amendments to the department for 34
approval: 35
(a) When proposing changes to the performance goals under section 36
7 of this act based on the up-to-date experience of the program;37
(b) When there is a change to the method of financing plan 38
implementation under section 8 of this act. This does not include 39
changes to the fees or fee structure established in the plan; or40
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(c) When adding or removing a processor or transporter.1
(5) No earlier than five years after the initial approval of a 2
plan, the department may require a producer responsibility 3
organization to submit a revised plan, which may include improvements 4
to the collection site network or increased expenditures dedicated to 5
education and outreach if the approved plan has not met the 6
performance goals under section 7 of this act. 7
NEW SECTION. Sec. 7. (1) Each producer responsibility plan must 8
include performance goals that measure, on an annual basis, the 9
achievements of the program. Performance goals must take into 10
consideration technical feasibility and economic practicality in 11
achieving continuous, meaningful progress in improving:12
(a) The rate of mattress collection for recycling in Washington;13
(b) The reuse and renovation rate of the program;14
(c) The recycling rate of the program; and 15
(d) Public awareness of the program. 16
(2) The performance goals established in each producer 17
responsibility plan must include, but are not limited to:18
(a) Target annual collection rates based, at minimum, on the 19
estimated total weight of mattresses that have been sold in the state 20
in the previous three calendar years by the producers participating 21
in the producer responsibility plan; 22
(b) Target recycling rates of at least 70 percent; and23
(c) Goals for public awareness of the program established in 24
section 10 of this act, including subgoals applicable to public 25
awareness of the program in vulnerable populations and overburdened 26
communities identified by the department under chapter 70A.02 RCW.27
NEW SECTION. Sec. 8. (1) Producers shall fund the full costs of 28
meeting the requirements established by this chapter.29
(2) Each producer responsibility organization must ensure 30
adequate funding is available to fully implement approved producer 31
responsibility plans, including the implementation of aspects of the 32
plan addressing: 33
(a) Mattress collection, transporting, and processing, including 34
disposal of nonrecyclable mattresses; 35
(b) Education and outreach; 36
(c) Program evaluation; and 37
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(d) Payment of the administrative fees to the department as 1
required under section 12 of this act. 2
(3) A nonreimbursable point-of-sale fee may not be charged to 3
consumers to recoup the costs of meeting producer obligations under 4
this chapter. 5
(4) A producer responsibility organization implementing a 6
producer responsibility plan on behalf of producers must develop, and 7
continually improve over the years of program implementation, a 8
system to collect charges from participating producers to cover the 9
costs of plan implementation in an environmentally sound and socially 10
just manner that encourages the use of design attributes that reduce 11
the environmental impacts of mattresses, such as through the use of 12
eco-modulated fees. Examples of fee structures that meet the 13
requirements of this subsection include using eco-modulated fees to:14
(a) Encourage designs intended to facilitate reuse and recycling;15
(b) Encourage the use of recycled content; 16
(c) Discourage the use of problematic materials that increase 17
system costs of managing mattresses; 18
(d) Encourage other design attributes that reduce the 19
environmental impacts of mattresses; and 20
(e) Encourage the responsible management of mattresses in 21
accordance with this chapter and discourage the illegal dumping of 22
mattresses. 23
(5)(a) Each producer responsibility organization is responsible 24
for all costs of participating mattress collection, transportation, 25
processing, education, administration, agency reimbursement, delivery 26
to a reuse operator, recycling, and end-of-life management in 27
accordance with the mattress management hierarchy and environmentally 28
sound management practices. 29
(b) Each producer responsibility organization must meet the 30
collection goals as specified in section 7 of this act.31
(c) A producer responsibility organization is not authorized to 32
reduce or cease collection, education and outreach, or other 33
activities implemented under an approved plan based on achievement of 34
program performance goals. 35
(6)(a) A producer responsibility organization must reimburse 36
government entities for demonstrable costs, as defined by rules 37
adopted by the department, incurred as a result of a government 38
entity's facility or solid waste handling facility serving as a 39
collection site for a program including, but not limited to, 40
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associated labor costs and other costs associated with accessibility 1
and collection site standards such as storage. 2
(b) Except as to the costs of containers and other materials and 3
services requirements addressed by a government entity or local 4
government facility exercising the authority granted by section 9 (4) 5
of this act, a producer responsibility organization shall at a 6
minimum provide collection sites with appropriate containers for 7
mattresses subject to its program, signage, safety guidance, and 8
educational materials, at no cost to the collection sites.9
(c) A producer responsibility organization must include in its 10
producer responsibility plan a template of the service agreement and 11
any other forms, contracts, or other documents for use in 12
distribution of reimbursements. The service agreement template must 13
be developed with government entity input. The entities seeking or 14
receiving reimbursement from the producer responsibility organization 15
are not required to use the template agreement included in the 16
program plan and are not limited to the terms of the template 17
agreement included in the program plan. 18
NEW SECTION. Sec. 9. (1) Producer responsibility organizations 19
implementing a producer responsibility program must provide for the 20
collection of all mattresses, including all types and brands of 21
mattresses, on a free, continuous, convenient, visible, and 22
accessible basis to any person, business, government agency, or 23
nonprofit organization. Each producer responsibility program plan 24
must:25
(a) Allow any person, business, government agency, or nonprofit 26
organization to discard each type and brand of mattress at each 27
collection site that counts towards the satisfaction of the 28
collection site criteria in subsection (3) of this section;29
(b) Incentivize the responsible management of mattresses in 30
accordance with this chapter and discourage the illegal dumping of 31
mattresses; and 32
(c) Provide a collection mechanism for capturing mattresses 33
illegally dumped. 34
(2)(a) For each collection site utilized by the program, each 35
producer responsibility organization must provide suitable collection 36
containers for mattresses that are segregated from other solid waste 37
or make mutually agreeable alternative arrangements for the 38
collection of mattresses at the site. The location of collection 39
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containers at each collection site used by the program must be 1
accompanied by signage made available to the collection site by the 2
producer responsibility organization that informs customers regarding 3
the end-of-life management options for mattresses provided by the 4
collection site under this chapter. Each collection site must adhere 5
to the operations manual and other safety information provided to the 6
collection site by the producer responsibility organization.7
(b) Each producer responsibility organization must provide for 8
collection of nonrecyclable mattresses in each county of the state, 9
either through collection sites or collection events.10
(3)(a) Each producer responsibility organization implementing a 11
producer responsibility program plan shall ensure statewide 12
collection opportunities for all mattresses. Producer responsibility 13
organizations shall coordinate activities with other program 14
operators, including mattress collection and recycle programs, with 15
regard to the proper management or recycling of collected mattresses, 16
for purposes of providing the efficient delivery of services and 17
avoiding unnecessary duplication of effort and expense. Statewide 18
collection opportunities must be determined by geographic information 19
modeling that considers permanent collection sites.20
(b) Each producer responsibility program shall provide:21
(i) At least one permanent collection site within a 15 mile 22
radius for at least 95 percent of Washington residents;23
(ii) The establishment of collection sites that are accessible 24
and convenient to overburdened communities identified by the 25
department under chapter 70A.02 RCW, in an amount that is roughly 26
proportional to the number and population of overburdened communities 27
identified by the department under chapter 70A.02 RCW relative to the 28
population or size of the state as a whole; 29
(iii) At least one permanent collection site in addition to those 30
required in (b)(i) of this subsection for every 30,000 residents of 31
each urban area in this state. For the purposes of compliance with 32
this subsection (3)(b)(iii), a producer responsibility organization 33
and the department may rely upon new or updated designations of urban 34
locations by the United States census bureau that are determined by 35
the department to be similar to the state definition of urban areas 36
under chapter 70A.555 RCW; 37
(iv) Collection opportunities at special locations where 38
mattresses are often spent and replaced, such as college campuses; 39
and 40
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(v) Service to areas without a permanent collection site, 1
including service to island and geographically isolated communities 2
without a permanent collection site. 3
(c) Producer responsibility programs may use curbside collection 4
services in lieu of permanent collection sites as required under 5
(b)(iii) of this subsection and to meet the requirements of (b)(iv) 6
and (v) of this subsection provided that no fee is charged for 7
curbside collection services. 8
(4)(a) Producer responsibility programs must use existing public 9
and private waste collection services and facilities, including 10
mattress collection sites that are established through other mattress 11
collection services, transporters, consolidators, processors, and 12
retailers, where cost-effective, mutually agreeable, and otherwise 13
practicable. 14
(b)(i) Producer responsibility programs must use as a collection 15
site for mattresses any retailer, wholesaler, municipality, solid 16
waste management facility, or other entity that meets the criteria 17
for collection sites in the approved plan, upon the submission of a 18
request by the entity to the producer responsibility organization to 19
serve as a collection site. 20
(ii) Producer responsibility programs must use as a site for a 21
collection event for mattresses any retailer, wholesaler, 22
municipality, solid waste management facility, or other entity that 23
meets the criteria for collection events in the approved plan, upon 24
the submission of a request by the entity to the producer 25
responsibility organization to serve as a site for a collection 26
event. A signed agreement between a producer responsibility 27
organization and the entity requesting to hold a collection event 28
must be established at least 60 days prior to any collection of 29
mattresses under a stewardship program. All costs associated with 30
collection events initiated by an entity other than a producer 31
responsibility organization are the sole responsibility of the entity 32
unless otherwise agreed upon by a producer responsibility 33
organization. A collection event under this subsection (4)(b)(ii) 34
must allow any person to discard each type and brand of covered 35
mattress at the collection event. 36
NEW SECTION. Sec. 10. (1) Each producer responsibility 37
organization must carry out promotional activities in support of plan 38
implementation including, but not limited to, the development:39
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(a) And maintenance of a website; 1
(b) And distribution of periodic press releases and articles;2
(c) And placement of advertisements for use on social media or 3
other relevant media platforms; 4
(d) Of promotional materials about the program and the 5
restriction on the disposal of mattresses to be used by retailers, 6
government agencies, and nonprofit organizations; 7
(e) And implementation of outreach and educational resources 8
targeted to overburdened communities and vulnerable populations 9
identified by the department under chapter 70A.02 RCW that are 10
conceptually, linguistically, and culturally accurate for the 11
communities served and reach the state's diverse ethnic populations, 12
including through meaningful consultation with communities that bear 13
disproportionately higher levels of adverse environmental and social 14
justice impacts. 15
(2) Each producer responsibility organization must provide 16
consumer-focused educational promotional materials to each collection 17
site used by the program and retailers that sell mattresses, and make 18
them directly accessible to customers on the organization's own 19
website. 20
(3) Each producer responsibility organization must provide 21
outreach and educational resources to service providers for the 22
management of mattresses prior to the implementation of the program.23
(4) Upon request by a retailer, the producer responsibility 24
organization must provide the retailer educational materials 25
describing collection opportunities for mattresses.26
(5) If multiple producer responsibility organizations are 27
implementing plans approved by the department, the producer 28
responsibility organizations must coordinate in carrying out their 29
education and outreach responsibilities under this section and must 30
include in their annual reports to the department under section 11 of 31
this act a summary of their coordinated education and outreach 32
efforts. 33
(6) During the fourth year of program implementation and every 34
five years thereafter, each producer responsibility organization must 35
carry out a survey of public awareness regarding the requirements of 36
the program established under this chapter. Each producer 37
responsibility organization must share the results of the public 38
awareness surveys with the department. 39
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NEW SECTION. Sec. 11. (1) By June 1, 2030, and each June 1st 1
thereafter, each producer responsibility organization must submit an 2
annual report to the department covering the preceding calendar year 3
of producer responsibility plan implementation. The report must 4
include the following elements, based on information provided by each 5
participating producer:6
(a) An independent financial assessment of a program implemented 7
by the producer responsibility organization, including a breakdown of 8
the program's expenses, such as collection, reuse, recycling, 9
education, and overhead, when required by the department;10
(b) A summary financial statement documenting the financing of a 11
producer responsibility organization's program and an analysis of 12
program costs and expenditures, including an analysis of the 13
program's expenses, such as collection, transportation, reuse, 14
recycling, education, and administrative overhead, and activities and 15
investments undertaken related to infrastructure and market 16
development. The summary financial statement must be sufficiently 17
detailed to provide transparency that funds collected from producers 18
as a result of their activities in this state are spent on program 19
implementation in this state. Producer responsibility organizations 20
implementing similar producer responsibility programs in multiple 21
states may submit a financial statement including all covered states, 22
as long as the statement breaks out financial information pertinent 23
to this state; 24
(c) The estimated aggregate sales, by unit, weight, and type, of 25
mattresses sold in this state by participating producers for each of 26
the previous three calendar years; 27
(d) The unit and weight, by type, of mattresses collected under 28
the program and the collection rate achieved under the program, 29
including a description of how this collection rate was calculated;30
(e) The number of mattresses managed relative to the state's 31
mattress management hierarchy, including weight of materials recycled 32
from mattresses collected under the program, in total, and by method 33
of mattress recycling; 34
(f) A calculation of the recycling rates, as measured consistent 35
with subsection (2) of this section; 36
(g) For each facility used for the reuse, recycling, or final 37
disposition of mattresses, a description of how the facility reused, 38
recycled or otherwise disposed of mattresses and mattress components, 39
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including a discussion of best available technologies and the 1
recycling rate; 2
(h) The weight and type of mattresses sent to each facility used 3
for reuse, recycling, or the final disposition of mattresses. The 4
information in this subsection (1)(h) may be approximated for program 5
operations in this state based on extrapolations of national or 6
regional data for programs in operation in multiple states;7
(i) A description of education and outreach efforts supporting 8
plan implementation including, but not limited to, a:9
(i) Summary of education and outreach provided to consumers, 10
including to diverse populations and through culturally and 11
linguistically appropriate materials, collection sites, government 12
entities, manufacturers, distributors, and retailers by the producer 13
responsibility organization for the purpose of promoting the 14
collection and reuse or recycling of mattresses; 15
(ii) Description of how the education and outreach met the 16
requirements of section 10 of this act and samples of education and 17
outreach materials; 18
(iii) Summary of coordinated education and outreach efforts with 19
any other producer responsibility organization implementing a plan 20
approved by the department; and 21
(iv) Summary of any changes made during the previous calendar 22
year to education and outreach activities; 23
(j) A list of all collection sites, including accompanying 24
latitude and longitude data and an address for each listed site, and 25
an up-to-date map indicating the location of all collection sites 26
used to implement the program with links to appropriate websites 27
where there are existing websites associated with a site;28
(k) A description of methods and services used to collect, 29
transport, and reuse and recycle mattresses by the producer 30
responsibility organization, including population coverage and 31
accessibility in accordance with section 9 of this act;32
(l) A summary on progress made towards the program performance 33
goals established under section 7 of this act, and an explanation of 34
why any performance goals were not met; and 35
(m) An evaluation of the effectiveness of education and outreach 36
activities and customer service efforts. 37
(2) The weight of mattresses or recovered resources from those 38
mattresses must only be counted once and may not be counted by more 39
than one producer responsibility organization. 40
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(3) In addition to the requirements of subsection (1) of this 1
section, with respect to each facility used in the processing or 2
disposition of mattresses collected under the program, the producer 3
responsibility organization must report: 4
(a) Whether the facility is located domestically, in an 5
organization for economic cooperation and development country, or in 6
a country that meets organization for economic cooperation and 7
development operating standards; and 8
(b) What facilities processed the mattresses, including a summary 9
of any violations of environmental or labor laws and regulations over 10
the previous three years at each facility. 11
(4) If a producer responsibility organization has disposed of 12
mattresses through energy recovery, incineration, or landfilling 13
during the preceding calendar year of program implementation, the 14
annual report must specify the steps that the producer responsibility 15
organization will take to make the reuse or recycling of mattresses 16
cost-effective, where possible, or to otherwise increase mattress 17
recycling rates achieved by the producer responsibility organization.18
(5) Each producer must submit all information and records 19
necessary for the producer responsibility organization to meet the 20
reporting requirements of this section. 21
(6) A producer or producer responsibility organization that 22
submits information or records to the department under this chapter 23
may request that the information or records be made available only 24
for the confidential use of the department, the director of the 25
department, or the appropriate division of the department. The 26
director of the department must consider the request and if this 27
action is not detrimental to the public interest and is otherwise in 28
accordance with the policies and purposes of chapter 43.21A RCW, the 29
director must grant the request for the information to remain 30
confidential as authorized in RCW 43.21A.160. 31
NEW SECTION. Sec. 12. (1) The department must adopt rules as 32
necessary for the purpose of implementing, administering, and 33
enforcing this chapter.34
(2) The department must: 35
(a) By March 31, 2026, determine the one-time payment to the 36
department to cover the costs of the department under this chapter 37
from the effective date of this section through June 30, 2027;38
(b) By March 31, 2027, and each March 31st thereafter:39
p. 19 HB 1901
(i) Determine the total registration annual fee to be paid by 1
each producer responsibility organization that is adequate to cover, 2
but not exceed, the costs to implement, administer, and enforce this 3
chapter in the next fiscal year; and 4
(ii) Adjust the fee to account for funds received during the 5
previous year by: 6
(A) Applying any remaining annual fee payment funds from the 7
current year to the annual fee for the coming fiscal year if the 8
collected annual fee exceeds the costs for a given year; and9
(B) Increasing annual fees for the coming fiscal year to cover 10
the costs if the collected annual fee was less than the amount 11
required to cover costs for a given year; 12
(c) By January 1, 2028, adopt rules to equitably determine annual 13
registration fees for producer responsibility organizations if the 14
department has approved the registration of more than one producer 15
responsibility organization; and 16
(d) Send notice to each producer responsibility organization of 17
fee amounts due. 18
(3) The responsibilities of the department in implementing, 19
administering, and enforcing this chapter include, but are not 20
limited to: 21
(a) By January 1, 2026, appointing the initial membership of the 22
advisory council, and providing administrative and operating support 23
to the advisory council, as required under section 15 of this act;24
(b) By March 1, 2026, accepting the registration of producer 25
responsibility organizations; 26
(c) Reviewing submitted producer responsibility plans and plan 27
amendments and making determinations as to whether to approve the 28
plan or plan amendment: 29
(i) The department must provide a letter of approval for the plan 30
or plan amendment if it provides for the establishment of a producer 31
responsibility program that meets the requirements of sections 3 32
through 9 of this act; 33
(ii) If a plan or plan amendment is rejected, the department must 34
provide the reasons for rejecting the plan to the producer 35
responsibility organization. The producer responsibility organization 36
must submit a new plan within 60 days after receipt of the letter of 37
disapproval; and 38
(iii) When a plan or an amendment to an approved plan is 39
submitted under this section, the department shall make the proposed 40
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plan or amendment available for public review and comment for at 1
least 30 days; 2
(d) Reviewing annual reports submitted under section 11 of this 3
act within 90 days of submission to ensure compliance with that 4
section; 5
(e)(i) Maintaining a website that lists producers and their 6
brands that are participating in an approved plan, and that makes 7
available to the public each plan, plan amendment, and annual report 8
received by the department under this chapter; 9
(ii) Upon the date the first plan is approved, the department 10
must post on its website a list of producers and their brands for 11
which the department has approved a plan. The department must update 12
the list of producers and brands participating under an approved 13
program plan based on information provided to the department from 14
producer responsibility organizations; and 15
(f) Providing technical assistance to producers and retailers 16
related to the requirements of this chapter and issuing orders or 17
imposing civil penalties authorized under section 13 of this act 18
where the technical assistance efforts do not lead to compliance by a 19
producer or retailer. 20
(4) Beginning January 1, 2034, and every five years thereafter, 21
after consultation with producer responsibility organizations, the 22
department may by rule increase the minimum recycling rates 23
established in section 7 of this act based on the most economically 24
and technically feasible processes and methodologies available.25
NEW SECTION. Sec. 13. (1)(a) The department may 26
administratively impose a civil penalty on a person who violates this 27
chapter in an amount of up to $1,000 per violation per day.28
(b) The department may administratively impose a civil penalty of 29
up to $10,000 per violation per day on a person for repeated 30
violations of this chapter or failure to comply with an order issued 31
under (c) of this subsection. 32
(c) Whenever on the basis of any information the department 33
determines that a person has violated or is in violation of this 34
chapter, the department may issue an order requiring compliance. A 35
person who fails to take corrective action as specified in a 36
compliance order is liable for a civil penalty as provided in (b) of 37
this subsection, without receiving a written warning prescribed in 38
(e) of this subsection. 39
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(d) A person who is issued an order or incurs a penalty under 1
this section may appeal the order or penalty to the pollution control 2
hearings board established in chapter 43.21B RCW. 3
(e) Prior to imposing penalties under this section, the 4
department must provide a producer, retailer, or producer 5
responsibility organization with a written warning for the first 6
violation by the producer, retailer, or producer responsibility 7
organization of the requirements of this chapter. The written warning 8
must inform a producer, retailer, or producer responsibility 9
organization that it must participate in an approved plan or 10
otherwise come into compliance with the requirements of this chapter 11
within 30 days of the notice. A producer, retailer, or producer 12
responsibility organization that violates a provision of this chapter 13
after the initial written warning may be assessed a penalty as 14
provided in this subsection. 15
(2) Penalties levied under subsection (1) of this section must be 16
deposited in the responsible mattress management account created in 17
section 14 of this act. 18
NEW SECTION. Sec. 14. The responsible mattress management 19
account is created in the custody of the state treasurer. All 20
receipts from fees paid under this chapter must be deposited in the 21
account. Only the director of the department or the director's 22
designee may authorize expenditures from the account. The account is 23
subject to allotment procedures under chapter 43.88 RCW, but an 24
appropriation is not required for expenditures. Moneys in the account 25
may be used solely by the department for administering, implementing, 26
and enforcing the requirements of this chapter. Funds in the account 27
may not be diverted for any purpose or activity other than those 28
specified in this section.29
NEW SECTION. Sec. 15. (1) The advisory council on responsible 30
management of mattresses is created.31
(2)(a) The advisory council on responsible management of 32
mattresses consists of not more than 12 members appointed by the 33
department to represent the interests of the following entities:34
(i) Government entities representing geographic areas across the 35
state representative of urban and rural communities, including at 36
least one representative of counties and at least one representative 37
of cities; 38
p. 22 HB 1901
(ii) The solid waste industry, including a representative of 1
tribal or indigenous solid waste services organizations;2
(iii) Service providers that serve as collectors, transporters, 3
or processors of mattresses; 4
(iv) The environmental community; 5
(v) A small business not otherwise eligible for representation 6
under this subsection; 7
(vi) Producers, producer trade associations, or producer 8
responsibility organizations; 9
(vii) Retail establishments; and 10
(viii) Consumer rights organizations. 11
(b) A member appointed to the advisory council under this 12
subsection may not be a representative or a member of the board of 13
directors of a producer responsibility organization registered with 14
the department under section 4 of this act. 15
(3) Advisory councilmembers must be appointed by the director of 16
the department by January 1, 2026. In appointing members, the 17
department shall: 18
(a) Appoint members that, to the greatest extent practicable, 19
represent diversity in race, ethnicity, age, and gender, urban and 20
rural areas, and different regions of the state; 21
(b) Consider recommendations for appointments from relevant 22
represented groups or associations and from individuals interested in 23
participating on the advisory council. 24
(4)(a) The terms of initial appointments must be staggered to two 25
and three-year appointments, with subsequent terms of three years. 26
Members are eligible for reappointment. 27
(b) If there is a vacancy for any reason, the department shall 28
make an appointment to become effective immediately for the unexpired 29
term. 30
(5)(a) The advisory council shall elect one of its members to 31
serve as chairperson and another to serve as vice chairperson, for 32
the terms and with the duties and powers necessary for the 33
performance of the functions of such offices as the advisory council 34
determines. The chairperson and vice chairperson may not both be 35
members appointed under the same subsection of subsection (2)(a)(i) 36
through (viii) of this section. 37
(b) The advisory council may adopt bylaws and a charter for the 38
operation of its business for the purposes of this chapter.39
p. 23 HB 1901
(6) The advisory council shall meet at least once every three 1
months for the first three years, at times and places specified by 2
the chairperson. The advisory council may also meet at other times 3
and places, including virtually, specified by the call of the 4
chairperson or of a majority of the councilmembers, as necessary, to 5
carry out the duties of the advisory council. 6
(7)(a) The department shall provide staff support and 7
facilitation as necessary for the advisory council to carry out its 8
duties. 9
(b) The department may select an impartial, third-party 10
facilitator to convene and provide administrative support to the 11
advisory council. 12
(8) The duties of the advisory council include the following:13
(a) Advise and make recommendations to any registered producer 14
responsibility organization during review of stakeholder consultation 15
on plans prior to submission as required under section 6 of this act;16
(b) Review and comment on all new and updated plans submitted by 17
a producer responsibility organization to the department, including 18
making recommendations to the department on plan approvals, as part 19
of the public comment period as established under section 12 of this 20
act; 21
(c) Advise and make recommendations to any registered producer 22
responsibility organization on annual reports prior to submission as 23
established in section 11 of this act; 24
(d) Review and comment on all annual reports submitted by 25
producer responsibility organizations to the department, including 26
making recommendations to the department regarding the need for any 27
plan amendments or other recommendations regarding program 28
activities; 29
(e) Provide input, review, and comment on rules proposed by the 30
department under this chapter. 31
(9) Advisory councilmembers that are representatives of tribes or 32
tribal and indigenous services organizations or community-based and 33
environmental nonprofit organizations must, if requested, be 34
compensated and reimbursed in accordance with RCW 43.03.050, 35
43.03.060, and 43.03.220. 36
(10) The department must include costs related to the advisory 37
council in the estimate of annual costs as established in section 12 38
of this act, including costs for: 39
(a) Department resources, including staff time;40
p. 24 HB 1901
(b) A third-party facilitator, including related costs; and1
(c) Expenses related to member participation. 2
(11) Nothing in this section limits the authority of the 3
department to approve plans or reports or carry out other duties as 4
assigned under this chapter. 5
NEW SECTION. Sec. 16. Producers or producer responsibility 6
organizations acting on behalf of producers that prepare, submit, and 7
implement a producer responsibility program plan pursuant to this 8
chapter and who are thereby subject to regulation by the department 9
are granted immunity from state laws relating to antitrust, restraint 10
of trade, unfair trade practices, and other regulation of trade and 11
commerce, for the limited purpose of planning, reporting, and 12
operating a producer responsibility program, including the:13
(1) Creation, implementation, or management of a producer 14
responsibility organization and any producer responsibility plan 15
regardless of whether it is submitted, denied, or approved;16
(2) Determination of the cost and structure of a producer 17
responsibility plan; and 18
(3) Types or quantities of mattresses being recycled or otherwise 19
managed pursuant to this chapter. 20
NEW SECTION. Sec. 17. Nothing in this chapter changes or limits 21
the authority of the Washington utilities and transportation 22
commission to regulate collection of solid waste, including curbside 23
collection of residential recyclable materials, nor does this chapter 24
change or limit the authority of a city or town to provide the 25
service itself or by contract under RCW 81.77.020.26
NEW SECTION. Sec. 18. A new section is added to chapter 82.04 27
RCW to read as follows: 28
(1) This chapter does not apply to the receipts of a producer 29
responsibility organization formed under chapter 70A.--- RCW (the new 30
chapter created in section 19 of this act) from charges to 31
participating producers under a producer responsibility program as 32
provided in section 8 of this act. 33
(2) This section is not subject to the requirements of RCW 34
82.32.805 and 82.32.808 and is not subject to an expiration date.35
(3) The definitions in section 2 of this act apply throughout 36
this section unless the context clearly requires otherwise.37
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NEW SECTION. Sec. 19. Sections 1 through 17 of this act 1
constitute a new chapter in Title 70A RCW.2
NEW SECTION. Sec. 20. If any provision of this act or its 3
application to any person or circumstance is held invalid, the 4
remainder of the act or the application of the provision to other 5
persons or circumstances is not affected.6
Sec. 21. RCW 43.21B.110 and 2024 c 347 s 5, 2024 c 340 s 4, and 7
2024 c 339 s 16 are each reenacted and amended to read as follows:8
(1) The hearings board shall only have jurisdiction to hear and 9
decide appeals from the following decisions of the department, the 10
director, local conservation districts, the air pollution control 11
boards or authorities as established pursuant to chapter 70A.15 RCW, 12
local health departments, the department of natural resources, the 13
department of fish and wildlife, the parks and recreation commission, 14
and authorized public entities described in chapter 79.100 RCW:15
(a) Civil penalties imposed pursuant to chapter 70A.230 RCW and 16
RCW 18.104.155, 70A.15.3160, 70A.300.090, 70A.20.050, 70A.230.020, 17
70A.205.280, 70A.355.070, 70A.430.070, 70A.500.260, 70A.505.100, 18
70A.505.110, 70A.530.040, 70A.350.070, 70A.515.060, 70A.245.040, 19
70A.245.050, 70A.245.070, 70A.245.080, 70A.245.130, 70A.245.140, 20
70A.65.200, 70A.455.090, 70A.550.030, 70A.555.110, 70A.560.020, 21
70A.565.030, section 13 of this act, 76.09.170, 77.55.440, 78.44.250, 22
88.46.090, 90.03.600, 90.46.270, 90.48.144, 90.56.310, 90.56.330, and 23
90.64.102. 24
(b) Orders issued pursuant to RCW 18.104.043, 18.104.060, 25
18.104.130, 43.27A.190, 70A.15.2520, 70A.15.3010, 70A.15.4530, 26
70A.15.6010, 70A.205.280, 70A.214.140, 70A.300.120, 70A.350.070, 27
70A.245.020, 70A.65.200, 70A.505.100, 70A.555.110, 70A.560.020, 28
70A.565.030, section 13 of this act, 86.16.020, 88.46.070, 90.03.665, 29
90.14.130, 90.46.250, 90.48.120, 90.48.240, 90.56.330, and 90.64.040.30
(c) Except as provided in RCW 90.03.210(2), the issuance, 31
modification, or termination of any permit, certificate, or license 32
by the department or any air authority in the exercise of its 33
jurisdiction, including the issuance or termination of a waste 34
disposal permit, the denial of an application for a waste disposal 35
permit, the modification of the conditions or the terms of a waste 36
disposal permit, a decision to approve or deny a solid waste 37
management plan under RCW 70A.205.055, approval or denial of an 38
p. 26 HB 1901
application for a beneficial use determination under RCW 70A.205.260, 1
an application for a change under RCW 90.03.383, or a permit to 2
distribute reclaimed water under RCW 90.46.220. 3
(d) Decisions of local health departments regarding the granting 4
or denial of solid waste permits pursuant to chapter 70A.205 RCW, 5
including appeals by the department as provided in RCW 70A.205.130.6
(e) Decisions of local health departments regarding the issuance 7
and enforcement of permits to use or dispose of biosolids under RCW 8
70A.226.090. 9
(f) Decisions of the department regarding waste-derived 10
fertilizer or micronutrient fertilizer under RCW 15.54.820.11
(g) Decisions of local conservation districts related to the 12
denial of approval or denial of certification of a dairy nutrient 13
management plan; conditions contained in a plan; application of any 14
dairy nutrient management practices, standards, methods, and 15
technologies to a particular dairy farm; and failure to adhere to the 16
plan review and approval timelines in RCW 90.64.026 as provided in 17
RCW 90.64.028. 18
(h) Any other decision by the department or an air authority 19
which pursuant to law must be decided as an adjudicative proceeding 20
under chapter 34.05 RCW. 21
(i) Decisions of the department of natural resources, the 22
department of fish and wildlife, and the department that are 23
reviewable under chapter 76.09 RCW, and the department of natural 24
resources' appeals of county, city, or town objections under RCW 25
76.09.050(7). 26
(j) Forest health hazard orders issued by the commissioner of 27
public lands under RCW 76.06.180. 28
(k) Decisions of the department of fish and wildlife to issue, 29
deny, condition, or modify a hydraulic project approval permit under 30
chapter 77.55 RCW, to issue a stop work order, to issue a notice to 31
comply, to issue a civil penalty, or to issue a notice of intent to 32
disapprove applications. 33
(l) Decisions of the department of natural resources that are 34
reviewable under RCW 78.44.270. 35
(m) Decisions of an authorized public entity under RCW 79.100.010 36
to take temporary possession or custody of a vessel or to contest the 37
amount of reimbursement owed that are reviewable by the hearings 38
board under RCW 79.100.120. 39
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(n) Decisions of the department of ecology that are appealable 1
under RCW 70A.245.020 to set recycled minimum postconsumer content 2
for covered products or to temporarily exclude types of covered 3
products in plastic containers from minimum postconsumer recycled 4
content requirements. 5
(o) Orders by the department of ecology under RCW 70A.455.080.6
(2) The following hearings shall not be conducted by the hearings 7
board: 8
(a) Hearings required by law to be conducted by the shorelines 9
hearings board pursuant to chapter 90.58 RCW, except where appeals to 10
the pollution control hearings board and appeals to the shorelines 11
hearings board have been consolidated pursuant to RCW 43.21B.340.12
(b) Hearings conducted by the department pursuant to RCW 13
70A.15.3010, 70A.15.3070, 70A.15.3080, 70A.15.3090, 70A.15.3100, 14
70A.15.3110, and 90.44.180. 15
(c) Appeals of decisions by the department under RCW 90.03.110 16
and 90.44.220. 17
(d) Hearings conducted by the department to adopt, modify, or 18
repeal rules. 19
(3) Review of rules and regulations adopted by the hearings board 20
shall be subject to review in accordance with the provisions of the 21
administrative procedure act, chapter 34.05 RCW. 22
Sec. 22. RCW 43.21B.300 and 2024 c 347 s 6 and 2024 c 340 s 5 23
are each reenacted and amended to read as follows:24
(1) Any civil penalty provided in RCW 18.104.155, 70A.15.3160, 25
70A.205.280, 70A.230.080, 70A.300.090, 70A.20.050, 70A.245.040, 26
70A.245.050, 70A.245.070, 70A.245.080, 70A.245.130, 70A.245.140, 27
70A.65.200, 70A.430.070, 70A.455.090, 70A.500.260, 70A.505.110, 28
70A.555.110, 70A.560.020, 70A.565.030, section 13 of this act, 29
86.16.081, 88.46.090, 90.03.600, 90.46.270, 90.48.144, 90.56.310, 30
90.56.330, and 90.64.102 and chapter 70A.355 RCW shall be imposed by 31
a notice in writing, either by certified mail with return receipt 32
requested or by personal service, to the person incurring the penalty 33
from the department or the local air authority, describing the 34
violation with reasonable particularity. For penalties issued by 35
local air authorities, within 30 days after the notice is received, 36
the person incurring the penalty may apply in writing to the 37
authority for the remission or mitigation of the penalty. Upon 38
receipt of the application, the authority may remit or mitigate the 39
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penalty upon whatever terms the authority in its discretion deems 1
proper. The authority may ascertain the facts regarding all such 2
applications in such reasonable manner and under such rules as it may 3
deem proper and shall remit or mitigate the penalty only upon a 4
demonstration of extraordinary circumstances such as the presence of 5
information or factors not considered in setting the original 6
penalty. 7
(2) Any penalty imposed under this section may be appealed to the 8
pollution control hearings board in accordance with this chapter if 9
the appeal is filed with the hearings board and served on the 10
department or authority 30 days after the date of receipt by the 11
person penalized of the notice imposing the penalty or 30 days after 12
the date of receipt of the notice of disposition by a local air 13
authority of the application for relief from penalty.14
(3) A penalty shall become due and payable on the later of:15
(a) 30 days after receipt of the notice imposing the penalty;16
(b) 30 days after receipt of the notice of disposition by a local 17
air authority on application for relief from penalty, if such an 18
application is made; or 19
(c) 30 days after receipt of the notice of decision of the 20
hearings board if the penalty is appealed. 21
(4) If the amount of any penalty is not paid to the department 22
within 30 days after it becomes due and payable, the attorney 23
general, upon request of the department, shall bring an action in the 24
name of the state of Washington in the superior court of Thurston 25
county, or of any county in which the violator does business, to 26
recover the penalty. If the amount of the penalty is not paid to the 27
authority within 30 days after it becomes due and payable, the 28
authority may bring an action to recover the penalty in the superior 29
court of the county of the authority's main office or of any county 30
in which the violator does business. In these actions, the procedures 31
and rules of evidence shall be the same as in an ordinary civil 32
action. 33
(5) All penalties recovered shall be paid into the state treasury 34
and credited to the general fund except the following:35
(a) Penalties imposed pursuant to RCW 18.104.155 must be credited 36
to the reclamation account as provided in RCW 18.104.155(7);37
(b) Penalties imposed pursuant to RCW 70A.15.3160 must be 38
disposed of pursuant to RCW 70A.15.3160; 39
p. 29 HB 1901
(c) Penalties imposed pursuant to RCW 70A.230.080, 70A.300.090, 1
70A.430.070, 70A.555.110, and 70A.560.020 must be credited to the 2
model toxics control operating account created in RCW 70A.305.180;3
(d) Penalties imposed pursuant to RCW 70A.245.040 and 70A.245.050 4
must be credited to the recycling enhancement account created in RCW 5
70A.245.100; 6
(e) Penalties imposed pursuant to RCW 70A.500.260 must be 7
deposited into the electronic products recycling account created in 8
RCW 70A.500.130; 9
(f) Penalties imposed pursuant to RCW 70A.65.200 must be credited 10
to the climate investment account created in RCW 70A.65.250;11
(g) Penalties imposed pursuant to RCW 90.56.330 must be credited 12
to the coastal protection fund established in RCW 90.48.390; ((and))13
(h) Penalties imposed pursuant to RCW 70A.355.070 must be 14
credited to the underground storage tank account created in RCW 15
70A.355.090; and16
(i) Penalties imposed pursuant to chapter 70A.--- RCW (the new 17
chapter created in section 19 of this act), which shall be credited 18
to the responsible mattress management account created in section 14 19
of this act. 20
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p. 30 HB 1901