Paint producer resp.

AN ACT Relating to extended producer responsibility requirements 1
associated with paint; and amending RCW 70A.515.020, 70A.515.030, 2
70A.515.040, 70A.515.010, 70A.515.050, 70A.515.060, 70A.515.070, 3
70A.515.080, 70A.515.090, 70A.515.100, 70A.515.110, and 70A.208.020.4
BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF WASHINGTON:5
Sec. 1. RCW 70A.515.020 and 2020 c 20 s 1458 are each amended to 6
read as follows: 7
The definitions in this section apply throughout this chapter 8
unless the content clearly requires otherwise. 9
(1) "Aerosol coating product" means a pressurized coating product 10
containing pigments or resins dispensed by means of a propellant and 11
packaged and sold in a disposable aerosol container for handheld 12
application, or for use in specialized equipment for ground traffic 13
or marking applications.14
(2)(a) "Architectural paint" ((or "paint" )) means interior and 15
exterior architectural coatings, sold in a container of five gallons 16
or less. 17
(b) "Architectural paint" ((or "paint")) does not mean industrial 18
coatings, original equipment coatings, or specialty coatings.19
(((2) "Architectural paint stewardship assessment" or 20
"assessment" means the amount determined by a stewardship 21
H-2754.1
HOUSE BILL 2301
State of Washington 69th Legislature 2026 Regular Session
By Representatives Peterson, Fitzgibbon, Reed, Parshley, Duerr,
Doglio, Gregerson, Ormsby, Goodman, and Macri
Prefiled 01/07/26. Read first time 01/12/26. Referred to Committee
on Environment & Energy.
p. 1 HB 2301
organization that must be added to the purchase price of 1
architectural paint sold in this state to cover a stewardship 2
organization's costs of administration, education and outreach, 3
collecting, transporting, and processing of the leftover 4
architectural paint managed through a statewide architectural paint 5
stewardship program.))6
(3)(a) "Coating-related product" means a product used as a paint 7
thinner, paint colorant, paint additive, paint remover, sealant, 8
surface preparation, or surface adhesive, sold for home improvement 9
in a container of five gallons or less for commercial and homeowner 10
use.11
(b) "Coating-related product" does not mean industrial products 12
or original equipment products.13
(4) "Conditionally exempt small quantity generator" means a 14
dangerous waste generator whose dangerous wastes are not subject to 15
regulation under chapter 70A.300 RCW, hazardous waste management, 16
solely because the waste is generated or accumulated in quantities 17
below the threshold for regulation and meets the conditions 18
prescribed in WAC 173-303-171(1), as it existed on July 28, 2019.19
(((4))) (5) "Conditionally exempt small quantity generator waste" 20
means dangerous waste generated by a conditionally exempt small 21
quantity generator. 22
(((5))) (6) "Consumer" includes any household, nonprofit, small 23
business, or other entity whose leftover paint product is eligible 24
under applicable laws and regulations. 25
(((6))) (7) "Covered entity" means any: (a) Household; (b) 26
conditionally exempt small quantity generator of leftover ((oil-based 27
and latex architectural )) paint products; or (c) generator of 28
dangerous waste as defined in RCW 70A.300.010 that brings leftover 29
((architectural)) latex paint to a paint program collection site 30
operating under an approved Washington state paint stewardship plan.31
(((7))) (8) "Curbside service" means a waste collection, 32
recycling, and disposal service providing pickup of leftover 33
((architectural)) paint products from residential sources, such as 34
single-family households and multifamily housing, or other covered 35
entities in quantities generated from households or conditionally 36
exempt small quantity generators, provided by a solid waste 37
collection company regulated under chapter 81.77 RCW or under a 38
contract for solid waste services with any city or town.39
(((8))) (9) "Department" means the department of ecology.40
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(((9))) (10) "Distributor" means a person that has a contractual 1
relationship with one or more manufacturers to market and sell 2
((architectural)) paint products to retailers in Washington.3
(((10))) (11) "End-of-life" or "end-of-life management" means 4
activities including, but not limited to, collection, transportation, 5
reuse, recycling, energy recovery, and disposal for leftover 6
((architectural)) paint products. 7
(((11))) (12) "Energy recovery" means the recovery of energy in a 8
useable form from mass burning or refuse-derived fuel incineration, 9
pyrolysis, or any other means of using the heat of combustion of 10
solid waste that involves high temperature (above ((twelve hundred)) 11
1,200 degrees Fahrenheit) processing. 12
(((12))) (13) "Environmentally sound management practices" means 13
practices that comply with all applicable laws and rules to protect 14
workers, public health, and the environment, provide for adequate 15
recordkeeping, tracking and documenting the fate of materials within 16
the state and beyond, and include environmental liability coverage 17
for the stewardship organization. 18
(((13))) (14) "Final disposition" means the point beyond which no 19
further processing takes place and the paint product has been 20
transformed for direct use as a feedstock in producing new products 21
or is disposed of, including for energy recovery, in permitted 22
facilities. 23
(((14))) (15) "Household hazardous waste" means waste that 24
exhibits any of the properties of dangerous waste that is exempt from 25
regulation under chapter 70A.300 RCW solely because the waste is 26
generated by households. Household hazardous waste may also include 27
other solid waste identified in the local hazardous waste management 28
plan prepared pursuant to chapter 70A.300 RCW. 29
(((15))) (16) "Leftover paint" or "leftover ((architectural)) 30
paint products" means ((architectural)) paint products not used and 31
no longer wanted by a consumer. 32
(((16))) (17) "Moderate risk waste" means solid waste that is 33
limited to conditionally exempt small quantity generator waste and 34
household hazardous waste as defined in this chapter.35
(((17))) (18)(a) "Nonindustrial coating" means arts and crafts 36
paint, automotive refinish paint, driveway sealer, faux finish or 37
glaze, furniture oil, furniture paint, lime wash, lime paint, marine 38
paint, antifouling paint, road and traffic marking paint, two-39
component paint, wood preservative, fire retardant paint, dry fog 40
p. 3 HB 2301
paint, chalkboard paint, and conductive paint, sold in a container of 1
five gallons or less for commercial and homeowner use.2
(b) "Nonindustrial coating" does not mean industrial coatings or 3
original equipment coatings.4
(19)(a) "Paint product" or "paint" means, except as provided in 5
(b) of this subsection:6
(i) Aerosol coating products;7
(ii) Architectural paint;8
(iii) Coating-related products; and9
(iv) Nonindustrial coatings.10
(b) "Paint product" does not include a health and beauty product.11
(20) "Paint product stewardship assessment" or "assessment" means 12
the amount determined by a stewardship organization that must be 13
added to the purchase price of paint products sold in this state to 14
cover a stewardship organization's costs of administration, education 15
and outreach, collecting, transporting, and processing of the 16
leftover paint products managed through a statewide paint product 17
stewardship program.18
(21) "Paint retailer" means any person that offers architectural 19
paint for sale at retail in Washington. 20
(((18))) (22) "Person" includes any individual, business, 21
manufacturer, transporter, collector, processor, retailer, charity, 22
nonprofit organization, or government agency. 23
(((19))) (23) "Producer" means a manufacturer of 24
((architectural)) paint products that ((is)) are sold, offered for 25
sale, or distributed in Washington under the producer's own name or 26
other brand name. 27
(((20))) (24) "Recycling" means transforming or remanufacturing 28
waste materials into usable or marketable materials for use other 29
than landfill disposal, energy recovery, or incineration. Recycling 30
does not include collection, compacting, repacking, and sorting for 31
the purpose of transport. 32
(((21))) (25) "Reuse" means any operation by which ((an 33
architectural)) a paint product changes ownership and is used for the 34
same purpose for which it was originally purchased.35
(((22))) (26) "Sell" or "sale" means any transfer of title for 36
consideration, including remote sales conducted through sales 37
outlets, catalogues, or the internet or any other similar electronic 38
means. 39
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(((23))) (27) "Stewardship organization" means a nonprofit 1
organization created by a producer or group of producers to implement 2
a paint stewardship program required under this chapter.3
(((24) "Urban cluster" means areas of population density of two 4
thousand five hundred to fifty thousand, as defined by the United 5
States census bureau.6
(25) "Urbanized area" means areas of high population density with 7
populations of fifty thousand or greater, as defined by the United 8
States census bureau )) (28) "Urban area" means an area delineated by 9
the United States census bureau, based on a minimum threshold of 10
2,000 housing units or 5,000 people, as of January 1, 2026.11
Sec. 2. RCW 70A.515.030 and 2019 c 344 s 3 are each amended to 12
read as follows: 13
(1) All producers of ((architectural)) paint products selling in 14
or into the state of Washington shall participate in an approved 15
Washington state paint stewardship plan for covered entities through 16
membership in and appropriate funding of a stewardship organization.17
(2) Producers not participating in a stewardship plan may not 18
sell ((architectural)) paint products in or into Washington state.19
(3) Paint retailers are prohibited from selling ((architectural)) 20
paint products manufactured or distributed by a producer not in 21
compliance with this chapter. 22
Sec. 3. RCW 70A.515.040 and 2020 c 20 s 1459 are each amended to 23
read as follows: 24
(1) A stewardship organization representing producers shall 25
submit a plan for the implementation of a paint product stewardship 26
program to the department for approval by May 30, 2020, or within one 27
year of July 28, 2019, whichever comes later. Each paint product 28
stewardship organization must update its plan to address all paint 29
products by July 1, 2027. The plan must include the following 30
components: 31
(a) A description of how the program proposed under the plan will 32
collect, transport, recycle, and process leftover paint from covered 33
entities for end-of-life management, including reuse, recycling, 34
energy recovery, and disposal, using environmentally sound management 35
practices; 36
(b) Stewardship organization contact information and a list of 37
participating brands and producers under the program;38
p. 5 HB 2301
(c) A demonstration of sufficient funding for the 1
((architectural)) paint product stewardship program as described in 2
the plan. The plan must include a funding mechanism whereby each 3
((architectural)) paint product producer remits to the stewardship 4
organization payment of ((an architectural )) a paint product 5
stewardship assessment for each container of ((architectural)) paint 6
product the producer sells in this state, unless the distributor or 7
paint retailer has negotiated a voluntary agreement with the producer 8
and stewardship organization to remit the ((architectural paint 9
stewardship)) assessment directly to the stewardship organization on 10
behalf of the producer for the producer's ((architectural)) paint 11
products sold by the distributor or paint retailer in the state. The 12
plan must include a proposed budget and a description of the process 13
used to determine the ((architectural)) paint product stewardship 14
assessment. The ((architectural)) paint product stewardship 15
assessment must be added to the cost of all ((architectural)) paint 16
products sold to Washington paint retailers and distributors, unless 17
the distributor or paint retailer has negotiated an agreement 18
voluntarily with the producer and stewardship organization to remit 19
the assessment directly to the stewardship organization on behalf of 20
the producer for the producer's ((architectural)) paint products sold 21
by the distributor or paint retailer in the state. Each Washington 22
paint retailer or distributor must add the assessment to the purchase 23
price of all ((architectural)) paint products sold in this state. 24
Manufacturers may not require retailers to opt to participate in a 25
voluntary remittance agreement; 26
(d) The establishment in the plan of a uniform ((architectural)) 27
paint product stewardship assessment for all ((architectural)) paint 28
products sold in this state, in order to ensure that the funding 29
mechanism is equitable and sustainable. For purposes of establishing 30
the assessment, the plan must categorize the product types and sizes 31
of ((paint)) containers sold at retail and determine a uniform 32
assessment amount that applies to each ((category of )) product type 33
and container size to cover the paint product categories specified in 34
RCW 70A.515.020(19)(a) (i) through (iv). The ((architectural)) paint 35
product stewardship assessment must be sufficient to recover the 36
costs of the ((architectural)) paint product stewardship program. 37
With the exception of the annual administration costs paid to the 38
department under RCW 70A.515.060(4), the department may not control 39
or have spending authority related to the funds received by the 40
p. 6 HB 2301
stewardship organization from the assessment. Funds received by the 1
stewardship organization are not state funds and are not eligible to 2
be transferred for other state purposes in an appropriations act. The 3
plan must require that any surplus funds generated from the funding 4
mechanism that exceed a reserve greater than the most recent year's 5
operating expenditures be put back into the program to either 6
increase and improve program services or reduce the cost of the 7
program and the ((architectural)) paint product stewardship 8
assessment, or both; 9
(e) A review by an independent financial auditor of the proposed 10
((architectural)) paint product stewardship assessment to ensure that 11
any added cost to paint sold in the state as a result of the paint 12
product stewardship program does not exceed the costs of the program. 13
In a report to the department, the independent auditor must verify 14
that the amount added to each unit of paint will cover the costs of 15
the paint product stewardship program; 16
(f) Assignment to the department of responsibility for the 17
approval of the ((architectural)) paint product stewardship 18
assessment based on the information provided in the plan and the 19
auditor's report; 20
(g) A description of the educational outreach strategy to reduce 21
the generation of leftover paint, to promote the reuse and recycling 22
of leftover paint, for the overall collection of leftover paint, and 23
for the proper end-of-life management of leftover paint. The 24
strategies may be revised by a stewardship organization based on the 25
information collected annually; 26
(h) A description of the reasonably convenient and available 27
statewide collection system, including: 28
(i) A description of how the program will provide for reasonably 29
convenient and available statewide collection of leftover paint 30
products from covered entities in urban and rural areas of the state, 31
including island communities; 32
(ii) A description of how the program will incorporate existing 33
public and private waste collection services and facilities for 34
activities, which may include, but is not limited to:35
(A) The reuse or processing of leftover architectural paint at 36
the permanent collection site; and 37
(B) The collection, transportation, and recycling or proper 38
disposal of leftover architectural paint; and39
p. 7 HB 2301
(iii) A description of how the program will use the existing 1
household hazardous waste collection infrastructure when selecting 2
collection points for leftover paint products; 3
(i) A description of how leftover paint products will be managed 4
using environmentally sound management practices, including 5
reasonably following the paint waste management hierarchy of: Source 6
reduction; reuse; recycling; energy recovery; and disposal;7
(j) A description of education and outreach efforts to promote 8
the paint product stewardship program. The education and outreach 9
efforts must include strategies for reaching all sectors of the 10
population and describe how the paint product stewardship program 11
will evaluate the effectiveness of its education and outreach;12
(k) A description of collection site procedural manuals for 13
((architectural)) paint products, including training procedures and 14
electronic copies of materials that will be provided to collection 15
sites; and 16
(l) A list of transporters that will be used to manage leftover 17
paint collected by the stewardship organization and a list of 18
potential processors to be used for final disposition.19
(2)(a) To ensure adequate collection coverage, the plan must use 20
geographic information modeling and the information required under 21
subsection (1)(h) of this section to determine the number and 22
distribution of collection sites based on the following criteria: At 23
least ((ninety)) 90 percent of Washington residents must have a 24
permanent collection site for architectural paint within a 25
((fifteen)) 15-mile radius; and unless otherwise approved by the 26
department, one additional permanent collection site for 27
architectural paint must be established for every ((thirty thousand)) 28
50,000 residents of an urban ((ized)) area and for every urban 29
((cluster)) area of at least ((thirty thousand )) 30,000 residents 30
((distributed to provide convenient and reasonably equitable access 31
for residents within each )). For the purposes of compliance with this 32
subsection (2)(a), a stewardship organization and the department may 33
rely upon new or updated designations of urban locations by the 34
United States census bureau that are determined by the department to 35
be similar to the definition of urban areas in RCW 70A.515.020.36
(b) For the portion of the population that does not have a 37
permanent collection location for architectural paint within a 38
((fifteen)) 15-mile radius, the plan must provide residents a 39
reasonable opportunity to drop off leftover architectural paint at 40
p. 8 HB 2301
collection events. The stewardship organization, in consultation with 1
the department and the local community, will determine a reasonable 2
frequency and location of these collection events, to be held in 3
underserved areas. Special consideration is to be made for providing 4
opportunities to island and geographically isolated populations.5
(3)(a) Nothing in subsection (2) of this section prohibits a 6
program plan from identifying an available curbside service for a 7
specific area or population that provides convenient and reasonably 8
equitable access for Washington residents that is at least equivalent 9
to the level of convenience and access that would be provided by a 10
collection site. 11
(b) A fee may not be charged at the time the unwanted paint 12
((is)) products are delivered or collected for management. However, 13
this subsection (3)(b) does not prohibit collectors providing 14
curbside services from charging customers a fee, as provided by city 15
contract or by the Washington utilities and transportation commission 16
under the authority of chapter 81.77 RCW, for the additional 17
collection cost of providing this service. 18
(4) The program plan must utilize the existing public and private 19
waste collection services and facilities where cost-effective and 20
mutually agreeable. 21
(5) ((The program must utilize existing paint retail stores as 22
collection sites where cost-effective and mutually agreeable.23
(6))) The plan must provide the collection site name and location 24
of each site statewide in Washington accepting ((architectural)) 25
paint products under the program , and the categories of paint 26
products specified in RCW 70A.515.020(19)(a) (i) through (iv) 27
accepted at such locations. 28
(((7))) (6) A stewardship organization shall promote a paint 29
product stewardship program and provide consumers, covered entities, 30
and paint retailers with educational and informational materials 31
describing collection opportunities for leftover paint statewide, the 32
((architectural)) paint product stewardship assessment used to 33
finance the program, and promotion of waste prevention, reuse, and 34
recycling. These materials may include, but are not limited to, the 35
following: 36
(a) Signage that is prominently displayed and easily visible to 37
the consumer; 38
p. 9 HB 2301
(b) Written materials and templates of materials for reproduction 1
by paint retailers to be provided to the consumer at the time of 2
purchase or delivery, or both; 3
(c) Advertising or other promotional materials, or both, that 4
include references to the ((architectural)) paint product stewardship 5
program; and 6
(d) An explanation that the ((architectural)) paint product 7
stewardship assessment has been added to the purchase price of 8
((architectural)) paint products to fund the paint product 9
stewardship program in the state. The ((architectural)) paint product 10
stewardship assessment may not be described as a department recycling 11
fee at the point of retail. 12
(((8))) (7) A stewardship organization must submit a new plan or 13
plan amendment to the department for approval when there is a change 14
to the amount of the assessment, if required by the department, or 15
every five years, if the department deems it necessary.16
Sec. 4. RCW 70A.515.010 and 2019 c 344 s 1 are each amended to 17
read as follows: 18
The legislature finds that: 19
(1) Leftover ((architectural paints)) paint products are a waste 20
management issue and present environmental risks and health and 21
safety risks, especially to workers in the solid waste industry. 22
During waste collection and processing, wet paint can create spills 23
and splashes and oil paint containers may rupture, releasing fumes 24
hazardous to workers and the remaining liquids may contribute to 25
leachate problems in landfills. Some local governments are able to 26
devote resources to provide collection sites or events for latex 27
paint in order to provide their residents with at least some disposal 28
options and to keep latex paint out of the solid waste stream. But 29
residents and small businesses need additional and more convenient 30
options for disposal of ((architectural)) paint products. Drying 31
latex for disposal is difficult for many residents and is wasteful of 32
latex paint that can otherwise be reused or recycled. Local 33
government special and moderate-risk waste collection programs are 34
heavily impacted by the cost of managing unwanted ((architectural 35
paints)) paint products and these costs decrease the available funds 36
to address other hazardous and hard-to-handle materials.37
(2) Nationally, an estimated average of ((ten)) 10 percent of 38
architectural paint purchased becomes leftover paint. Current 39
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programs only collect a fraction of the potential leftover paint for 1
proper reuse, recycling, or disposal. There is not a comprehensive 2
statewide, end-of-life management plan for ((architectural)) paint 3
products, resulting in significant missed opportunities to reduce, 4
reuse, and recycle paint. 5
(3)(a) It is in the best interest of Washington for paint 6
manufacturers to assume responsibility for the development and 7
implementation of a cost-effective paint product stewardship program 8
that: 9
(i) Develops and implements strategies to reduce the generation 10
of leftover paint; 11
(ii) Promotes the reuse of leftover paint; 12
(iii) Collects, transports, and processes leftover paint for end-13
of-life management, including reuse, recycling, energy recovery, and 14
disposal; and 15
(iv) Provides for transparency under chapter 42.56 RCW, the 16
public records act. 17
(b) A paint product stewardship program will follow the paint 18
waste management hierarchy for managing and reducing leftover paint 19
in the order as follows: 20
(i) Reduce consumer generation of leftover paint products;21
(ii) Reuse; 22
(iii) Recycle; and 23
(iv) Provide for energy recovery and disposal.24
(c) The establishment of a comprehensive leftover paint product 25
management program that requires paint product manufacturers to 26
assume responsibility for the collection, recycling, reuse, 27
transportation, and disposal of leftover paint products, and that 28
allows paint retailers to voluntarily participate in the collection 29
of leftover paint products, will provide more opportunities for 30
consumers to properly manage their leftover paint products, provide 31
fiscal relief for local government in managing leftover paint 32
products, keep paint products out of the waste stream, and conserve 33
natural resources. 34
(4) ((The legislature further finds that )) Washington's existing 35
waste collection, recycling, and disposal system leads the nation in 36
innovation and environmentally sound practices. This system has 37
achieved some of the highest overall recycling rates in the nation at 38
((fifty-one)) 51 percent in 2012. The legislature further finds that 39
leftover paint products may be a toxic and hard-to-handle waste 40
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product that is appropriate for a product stewardship program to 1
increase the safe, convenient, and effective reuse, recycling, and 2
disposal of leftover paint. Product stewardship programs for toxic 3
and hard-to-handle materials, including ((an architectural )) a paint 4
product stewardship program, should integrate with and complement the 5
existing waste collection, recycling, and disposal system.6
(5) This chapter creates ((an architectural )) a paint product 7
stewardship program to be enforced by the department.8
Sec. 5. RCW 70A.515.050 and 2020 c 20 s 1460 are each amended to 9
read as follows: 10
(1) Each stewardship organization shall submit a paint product 11
stewardship program plan in accordance with RCW 70A.515.040.12
(2) Each stewardship organization shall develop and distribute a 13
collection site procedural manual to collection sites to help ensure 14
proper management of ((architectural paints )) paint products at 15
collection locations. 16
(3) A stewardship organization shall implement the paint product 17
stewardship program plan by November 30, 2020, or within six months 18
after approval of a paint product stewardship program plan under RCW 19
70A.515.040, whichever is later. A stewardship organization shall 20
implement the updated paint product stewardship program plan 21
addressing all paint products by July 1, 2028, or within six months 22
after approval of the updated paint product stewardship program plan 23
under RCW 70A.515.040, whichever is later.24
(4) A stewardship organization shall submit an annual report by 25
October 15, 2020, or a later date agreed to by the department, 26
structured to be used as a basis for annual plan review by the 27
department. The report must be based on the requirements outlined in 28
RCW 70A.515.080. 29
(5) A stewardship organization shall work with producers, 30
distributors, paint retailers, and local governments to provide 31
consumers with educational and informational materials describing 32
collection opportunities for leftover paint statewide and promotion 33
of waste prevention, reuse, and recycling of leftover paint products.34
(6) A stewardship organization shall pay an annual administrative 35
fee, described in RCW 70A.515.060, in an amount sufficient to cover 36
only the department's cost of administering and enforcing a paint 37
product stewardship program established under this chapter.38
p. 12 HB 2301
Sec. 6. RCW 70A.515.060 and 2020 c 20 s 1461 are each amended to 1
read as follows: 2
(1) The department shall review the plan or updated plan within 3
((one hundred twenty )) 120 days of receipt, and make a determination 4
as to whether or not to approve the plan. The department shall 5
provide a letter of approval for the plan if it provides for the 6
establishment of a paint product stewardship program that meets the 7
requirements of RCW 70A.515.040 and 70A.515.050. If a plan is 8
rejected, the department shall provide the reasons for rejecting the 9
plan to the stewardship organization. The stewardship organization 10
must submit a new plan within ((sixty)) 60 days after receipt of the 11
letter of disapproval. 12
(2) When a plan , updated plan, or an amendment to an approved 13
plan is submitted under this section, the department shall make the 14
proposed plan, updated plan, or amendment available for public review 15
and comment for at least ((thirty)) 30 days. 16
(3) The department shall provide oversight of a stewardship 17
organization in the determination and implementation of the 18
((architectural)) paint product stewardship assessment specified in 19
RCW 70A.515.040(1). 20
(4) The department shall identify the costs it incurs under this 21
chapter. The department shall set the fee at an amount that, when 22
paid by every stewardship organization or producer that submits a 23
plan, is adequate to reimburse the department's full costs of 24
administering and enforcing this chapter. The total amount of annual 25
fees collected under this subsection must not exceed the amount 26
necessary to reimburse costs incurred by the department to enforce 27
and administer this chapter. 28
(5) A stewardship organization or producer subject to this 29
chapter must pay the department's administrative fee under this 30
subsection on or before June 30, 2020, and annually thereafter. The 31
annual administrative fee may not exceed five percent of the 32
aggregate assessment added to the cost of all ((architectural)) paint 33
products sold by producers in the state for the preceding calendar 34
year. 35
(6) The department shall enforce this chapter.36
(a) The department may administratively impose a civil penalty on 37
any person who violates this chapter in an amount of up to ((one 38
thousand dollars)) $1,000 per violation per day. 39
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(b) The department may administratively impose a civil penalty of 1
up to ((ten thousand dollars )) $10,000 per violation per day on any 2
person who intentionally, knowingly, or negligently violates this 3
chapter. 4
(c) Any person who incurs a penalty under this section may appeal 5
the penalty to the pollution control hearings board established by 6
chapter 43.21B RCW. 7
(7) Upon the date the first plan is approved, the department 8
shall post on its website a list of producers and their brands for 9
which the department has approved a plan pursuant to RCW 70A.515.040. 10
The department shall update the list of producers and brands 11
participating under an approved program plan on a monthly basis based 12
on information provided to the department from a stewardship 13
organization. 14
(8) Upon a demonstration to the satisfaction of the department 15
that a previously unlisted producer is in compliance with this 16
chapter, within ((fourteen)) 14 days the department must add the name 17
of the producer to its website. 18
(9) The department shall review each annual report required 19
pursuant to RCW 70A.515.080 within ((ninety)) 90 days of its 20
submission to ensure compliance with RCW 70A.515.080(1).21
(10) The department may adopt rules as necessary for the purpose 22
of implementing, administering, and enforcing this chapter.23
Sec. 7. RCW 70A.515.070 and 2019 c 344 s 7 are each amended to 24
read as follows: 25
(1) A producer or paint retailer may not sell or offer for sale 26
to any person in the state ((architectural)) paint products unless 27
the producer or brand of ((architectural)) paint products is 28
participating in an approved stewardship plan under this chapter. A 29
retailer complies with the requirements of this section if, on the 30
date the ((architectural)) paint product was ordered from the 31
producer or its agent, the producer of the paint product was listed 32
on the department's website as a producer participating in an 33
approved paint product stewardship program plan. ((However, a 34
retailer may sell any paint purchased prior to July 28, 2019 )) A 35
retailer may sell any purchased paint products other than 36
architectural paint prior to July 1, 2028, or six months after 37
approval of an updated stewardship program plan, whichever comes 38
later. 39
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(2) A distributor or a paint retailer that distributes or sells 1
((architectural)) paint products shall monitor the department's 2
website to determine if the sale of a producer's ((architectural)) 3
paint products is in compliance with this chapter. 4
(3) At the time of sale to a consumer, a producer, a stewardship 5
organization, or a paint retailer selling or offering architectural 6
paint for sale in Washington shall provide the consumer with 7
information regarding available end-of-life management options for 8
leftover architectural paint collected through a paint product 9
stewardship program. 10
(4) Neither a paint retailer, nor any other retailer, is required 11
to serve as a leftover paint collection facility. 12
(5) No fee may be charged at the time of delivery of leftover 13
paint to a collection site. 14
Sec. 8. RCW 70A.515.080 and 2020 c 20 s 1462 are each amended to 15
read as follows: 16
(1) By October 15, 2020, and annually thereafter, a stewardship 17
organization shall submit to the department a report describing the 18
paint product stewardship program that the stewardship organization 19
implemented during the previous fiscal year. The report must include 20
all of the following: 21
(a) A description of the methods the stewardship organization 22
used to reduce, reuse, collect, transport, recycle, and process 23
leftover paint products statewide in Washington; 24
(b) The volume of latex and oil-based architectural paint 25
collected by the stewardship organization in the preceding fiscal 26
year in Washington, including any increase in total volume of paint 27
collected each year, and the cost of the paint product stewardship 28
program per gallon of paint collected; 29
(c) The volume of latex and oil-based architectural paint 30
collected by method of disposition, including reuse, recycling, 31
energy recovery, and disposal; 32
(d) An estimate of the total weight of all architectural paint 33
containers recycled by the program; 34
(e) A list of all processors through final disposition that are 35
used to manage leftover architectural paint collected by the 36
stewardship organization in the preceding year; 37
(f) A list of all the producers participating in the plan;38
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(g) The total volume of architectural paint sold in Washington 1
during the preceding year based on the ((architectural)) paint 2
product stewardship assessment collected by the stewardship 3
organization; 4
(h) An independent financial audit of the paint product 5
stewardship program implemented by the stewardship organization, 6
including a breakdown of the program's expenses, such as collection, 7
recycling, education, and overhead; 8
(i) The total cost of implementing the paint product stewardship 9
program broken out by administrative, collection, transportation and 10
disposition, and communications costs; 11
(j) An evaluation of the effectiveness of the paint product 12
stewardship program from year to year, and anticipated steps, if 13
needed, to improve performance throughout the state; and14
(k) A summary of outreach and education activities undertaken and 15
samples of the educational materials that the stewardship 16
organization provided to consumers of ((architectural)) paint 17
products during the first year of the program and any changes to 18
those materials in subsequent years. 19
(2) Beginning with the annual report due the year after the 20
initial inclusion of paint products other than architectural paint 21
into the program under this chapter, the annual report must also 22
include the volume of paint products other than architectural paint 23
collected by the stewardship organization in the preceding fiscal 24
year in Washington, including any increase in total volume of paint 25
products collected each year, and the cost of the paint product 26
stewardship program per unit of paint product collected.27
(3) The department must make all reports submitted under this 28
section available to the general public through the internet. 29
Consistent with RCW 70A.515.130, valuable commercial information 30
submitted to the department under this chapter is exempt from public 31
disclosure under RCW 42.56.270. However, the department may use and 32
disclose such information in summary or aggregated form as long as 33
the disclosure does not directly or indirectly identify financial, 34
production, or sales data of an individual producer or stewardship 35
organization. The department is not required to notify individual 36
producers prior to making available to the general public the reports 37
submitted under this section or aggregated or summarized information 38
from reports submitted under this section. 39
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Sec. 9. RCW 70A.515.090 and 2020 c 20 s 1463 are each amended to 1
read as follows: 2
Producers or stewardship organizations acting on behalf of 3
producers that prepare, submit, and implement a paint product 4
stewardship program plan pursuant to RCW 70A.515.040 and thereby are 5
subject to regulation by the department are granted immunity from 6
state laws relating to antitrust, restraint of trade, unfair trade 7
practices, and other regulation of trade and commerce, for the 8
limited purpose of planning, reporting, and operating a paint product 9
stewardship program and proposing and establishing the 10
((architectural)) paint product stewardship assessment required in 11
RCW 70A.515.040(1) (c) and (d). 12
Sec. 10. RCW 70A.515.100 and 2019 c 344 s 10 are each amended to 13
read as follows: 14
The paint product stewardship account is created in the state 15
treasury. All receipts received by the department from stewardship 16
organizations must be deposited in the account. Moneys in the account 17
may be spent only after appropriation. Expenditures from the account 18
may be used by the department only for administering and enforcing 19
paint product stewardship programs. 20
Sec. 11. RCW 70A.515.110 and 2019 c 344 s 11 are each amended to 21
read as follows: 22
This chapter is void if a federal law, or a combination of 23
federal laws, takes effect that establishes a national program for 24
the collection and recycling of ((architectural)) paint products that 25
substantially meets the intent of this chapter, including the 26
creation of a funding mechanism for collection, transportation, 27
recycling, and proper disposal of all architectural paint in the 28
United States. 29
Sec. 12. RCW 70A.208.020 and 2025 c 316 s 102 are each amended 30
to read as follows: 31
The definitions in this section apply throughout this chapter 32
unless the context clearly requires otherwise. 33
(1) "Advisory council" means the council established in RCW 34
70A.208.050. 35
(2) "Alternative recycling process" means a recycling process 36
that occurs other than through purely physical means.37
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(3)(a) "Beverage" means a drinkable liquid intended for human 1
oral consumption. 2
(b) "Beverage" does not include: (i) A drug regulated under the 3
federal food, drug, and cosmetic act, 21 U.S.C. Sec. 301 et seq.; 4
(ii) 100 percent fluid milk; (iii) infant formula; or (iv) a meal 5
replacement liquid. 6
(4) "Beverage container" means any container in which a producer 7
originally prepackaged and sealed a beverage. 8
(5) "Brand" means a name, symbol, word, logo, or mark that 9
identifies an item and attributes the item and its components, 10
including packaging, to the brand owner of the item.11
(6) "Collection rate" means the amount of a covered material by 12
covered materials type collected by service providers and transported 13
for recycling or composting divided by the total amount of the type 14
of a covered material by covered materials type introduced by the 15
relevant unit of measurement established in the plan.16
(7) "Compostable" means a product that is capable of composting 17
in a composting system and is in compliance with the requirements for 18
a product labeled as compostable under chapter 70A.455 RCW.19
(8) "Composting" means the controlled microbial degradation of 20
source separated compostable materials to yield a humus-like product.21
(9) "Composting rate" means the amount of compostable covered 22
material that is managed through composting, divided by the total 23
amount of compostable covered material introduced by the relevant 24
unit of measurement. 25
(10) "Composting system" means a system meeting the requirements 26
of chapter 70A.205 RCW applicable to facilities that treat solid 27
waste for composting. 28
(11) "Contamination" means: 29
(a) The presence of materials that are not on the list of 30
materials collected in that material stream; or 31
(b) The presence of materials that are not specified or accepted 32
as a component of the feedstock or commodity. 33
(12) "Covered entity" means a person or location that receives 34
covered services for covered materials in accordance with the 35
requirements of this chapter, including: 36
(a) A single-family residence; 37
(b) A multifamily residence; and 38
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(c) A public place where a government entity managed recycling 1
collection receptacles as of August 1, 2025, and any additional 2
public place identified in an approved plan. 3
(13)(a) "Covered material" means packaging and paper products 4
introduced into the state. 5
(b) "Covered material" does not include exempt materials.6
(14) "Covered materials type" means a singular and specific type 7
of material, such as paper, plastic, metal, or glass, that is a 8
covered material and that: 9
(a) May be categorized based on distinguishing chemical or 10
physical properties, including properties that allow a covered 11
materials type to be aggregated into a discrete commodity category 12
for purposes of reuse, recycling, or composting; and13
(b) Is based on similar uses in the form of a product or 14
packaging. 15
(15)(a) "Covered services" means collecting, transferring, 16
transporting, sorting, processing, recovering, preparing, or 17
otherwise managing for purposes of waste reduction, refill, reuse, 18
recycling, composting, or disposal of contamination or residuals.19
(b) Except with regard to contamination, "covered services" do 20
not include: 21
(i) Resource recovery through mixed municipal solid waste 22
composting or incineration; or 23
(ii) Land disposal. 24
(16) "De minimis producer" means a producer that:25
(a) In their most recent fiscal year introduced less than one ton 26
of covered materials; 27
(b) Has a global gross revenue, not including on-premises alcohol 28
sales, for the prior fiscal year of: 29
(i) Until January 1, 2031, less than $5,000,000; or30
(ii) Beginning January 1, 2031, less than $5,000,000, as adjusted 31
for inflation. The department must use the consumer price index for 32
urban wage earners to calculate the annual rate of inflation 33
adjustment effective January 1st of each year, beginning January 1, 34
2031; or 35
(c) Is an agricultural employer, as defined in RCW 19.30.010, 36
regardless of where the agricultural employer is located, with less 37
than $5,000,000, as adjusted for inflation as described in (b) of 38
this subsection, in gross revenue in Washington from consumer sales 39
p. 19 HB 2301
of agricultural commodities sold under the brand name of the 1
agricultural employer. 2
(17) "Department" means the department of ecology.3
(18) "Drop-off collection site" means a physical location where 4
covered materials are accepted from the public and that is open a 5
minimum of 12 hours weekly throughout the year. 6
(19) "Exempt materials" means materials, or any portion of 7
materials, that are: 8
(a) Packaging for infant formula, as defined in 21 U.S.C. Sec. 9
321(z); 10
(b) Packaging for medical food, as defined in 21 U.S.C. Sec. 11
360ee(b)(3); 12
(c) Packaging for a fortified oral nutritional supplement used by 13
persons who require supplemental or sole source nutrition to meet 14
nutritional needs due to special dietary needs directly related to 15
cancer, chronic kidney disease, diabetes, malnutrition, or failure to 16
thrive, as those terms are defined by the International 17
Classification of Diseases, tenth revision; 18
(d) Packaging for a product regulated as a drug, medical device, 19
or dietary supplement by the United States food and drug 20
administration, including associated components and consumable 21
medical equipment, under the federal food, drug, and cosmetic act (21 22
U.S.C. Sec. 321 et seq.), or a product regulated as a biologic or 23
vaccine by the United States food and drug administration under the 24
public health service act (42 U.S.C. Sec. 201 et seq.);25
(e) Packaging for a medical equipment or product used in medical 26
settings that is regulated by the United States food and drug 27
administration, including associated components and consumable 28
medical equipment; 29
(f) Packaging for drugs, biological products, parasiticides, 30
medical devices, or in vitro diagnostics that are used to treat, or 31
that are administered to, animals and are regulated by the United 32
States food and drug administration under the federal food, drug, and 33
cosmetic act (21 U.S.C. Sec. 301 et seq.) and by the United States 34
department of agriculture under the federal virus-serum-toxin act (21 35
U.S.C. Sec. 151 et seq.); 36
(g) Noncompostable film plastic packaging used in direct contact 37
with raw meat; 38
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(h) Packaging for products regulated by the United States 1
environmental protection agency under the federal insecticide, 2
fungicide, and rodenticide act (7 U.S.C. Sec. 136 et seq.);3
(i) Packaging used to contain liquefied petroleum gas and are 4
designed to be refilled; 5
(j) Packaging used to contain hazardous or flammable products 6
classified by the 2012 federal occupational safety and health 7
administration hazard communication standard, 29 C.F.R. Sec. 8
1910.1200 (2024), that prevent the packaging from being reduced or 9
made reusable, recyclable, or compostable, as determined by the 10
department; 11
(k) Packaging that is associated with paint products ((managed 12
through a paint stewardship plan approved under )) as defined in 13
chapter 70A.515 RCW; 14
(l) Excluded materials, as determined by the department under RCW 15
70A.208.260; 16
(m) Used to protect or store a durable product for a period of at 17
least five years; 18
(n) Packaging used for bulk construction materials;19
(o) Covered materials that: 20
(i) A producer distributes to another producer;21
(ii) Are subsequently used to contain a product and the product 22
is distributed to a commercial or business entity for the production 23
of another product; and 24
(iii) Are not introduced to a person other than the commercial or 25
business entity that first received the product used for the 26
production of another product; and 27
(p) Covered materials for which the producer demonstrates to the 28
department that the covered material meets all of the following 29
criteria: 30
(i) The material is not collected through a residential recycling 31
collection service; 32
(ii) The material is recycled at a responsible market;33
(iii) The material is intended to be used and collected within a 34
commercial setting; 35
(iv)(A) The producer annually demonstrates to the department that 36
the material has had a state recycling rate of 65 percent for three 37
consecutive years, until December 31, 2029. Beginning January 1, 38
2030, the producer must demonstrate to the department every two years 39
p. 21 HB 2301
that the material has had a state recycling rate of at least 70 1
percent annually; or 2
(B) The producer annually demonstrates to the department that the 3
material is directly managed by the producer and has had a reuse or 4
recycling rate of 65 percent for three consecutive years, until 5
December 31, 2029. Beginning January 1, 2030, the producer must 6
demonstrate to the department every two years that the material 7
controlled by the producer has had a reuse or recycling rate of at 8
least 70 percent annually; and 9
(v) If only a portion of the material sold in or into the state 10
by a producer meets the criteria of (p)(i) of this subsection, only 11
the portion of the material that meets that criteria is an exempt 12
material and any portion that does not meet the criteria is a covered 13
material for purposes of this chapter. 14
(20) "Government entity" means any: 15
(a) County, city, town, or other local government, including any 16
municipal corporation, quasi-municipal corporation, or special 17
purpose district, or any office, department, division, bureau, board, 18
commission, or agency thereof, or other local public agency;19
(b) State office, department, division, bureau, board, 20
commission, or other state agency; 21
(c) Federally recognized Indian tribe whose traditional lands and 22
territories include parts of Washington; or 23
(d) Federal office, department, division, bureau, board, 24
commission, or other federal agency. 25
(21) "Individual plan" means a plan submitted by a producer that 26
registers with the department as a producer responsibility 27
organization to address the covered materials of the producer.28
(22) "Introduce" means to sell, offer for sale, distribute, or 29
ship a product within or into this state. 30
(23) "Material recovery facility" means any facility that 31
receives, compacts, repackages, or sorts source separated solid waste 32
for the purpose of recycling. 33
(24) "Overburdened communities" means the overburdened 34
communities identified and prioritized by the department under RCW 35
70A.02.050(1)(a). 36
(25)(a) "Packaging" means a material, substance, or object that 37
is used to protect, contain, transport, serve, or facilitate delivery 38
of a product and is sold or supplied with the product to the consumer 39
for personal, noncommercial use. 40
p. 22 HB 2301
(b) "Packaging" does not include exempt materials.1
(26) "Paper product" means paper sold or supplied to a consumer 2
for personal, noncommercial use, including flyers, brochures, 3
booklets, catalogs, magazines, printed paper, and all other paper 4
materials except for: (a) Bound books; (b) conservation-grade and 5
archival-grade paper; (c) newspapers, including supplements or 6
enclosures; (d) magazines that have a circulation of fewer than 7
95,000 and that includes content derived from primary sources related 8
to news and current events; (e) copy paper; (f) paper for use in 9
building construction; and (g) paper that could reasonably be 10
anticipated to become unsafe or unsanitary to handle.11
(27)(a) "Plastic source reduction" means the reduction in the 12
amount of covered plastic material introduced by a producer relative 13
to a baseline year of 2023, or relative to an alternative baseline 14
year of no earlier than 2013 where a producer submits data 15
documenting the plastic source reduction to a producer responsibility 16
organization. Methods of source reduction include, but are not 17
limited to, shifting covered material to reusable or refillable 18
packaging or a reusable product, eliminating unnecessary packaging, 19
or reducing the packaging to product ratio. "Plastic source 20
reduction" must include elimination, which means the removal of 21
plastic covered materials. 22
(b) "Plastic source reduction" does not include either of the 23
following: 24
(i) Replacing a recyclable or compostable covered material with a 25
nonrecyclable or noncompostable covered material or a covered 26
material that is less likely to be recycled or composted; or27
(ii) Switching from virgin covered material to postconsumer 28
recycled content, except as allowed under an alternative compliance 29
formula in RCW 70A.208.150(6). 30
(28) "Postconsumer recycled content" has the same meaning as 31
defined in RCW 70A.245.010. 32
(29)(a) "Producer" means the following person responsible for 33
compliance with requirements under this chapter for a covered 34
material introduced into the state: 35
(i) For items sold in or with packaging at a physical retail 36
location in this state: 37
(A) If the item is sold in or with packaging under the brand of 38
the item manufacturer or is sold in packaging that lacks 39
p. 23 HB 2301
identification of a brand, the producer is the person that 1
manufactures the item; 2
(B) If there is no person to which (a)(i)(A) of this subsection 3
applies, the producer is the person that is licensed to manufacture 4
and sell or offer for sale to consumers in this state an item with 5
packaging under the brand or trademark of another manufacturer or 6
person; 7
(C) If there is no person to which (a)(i)(A) or (B) of this 8
subsection applies, the producer is the brand owner of the item;9
(D) If there is no person described in (a)(i)(A), (B), or (C) of 10
this subsection within the United States, the producer is the person 11
who is the importer of record for the item into the United States for 12
use in a commercial enterprise that sells, offers for sale, or 13
distributes the item in this state; or 14
(E) If there is no person described in (a)(i)(A) through (D) of 15
this subsection, the producer is the person that first distributes 16
the item in or into this state; 17
(ii) For items sold or distributed in packaging in or into this 18
state via e-commerce, remote sale, or distribution:19
(A) For packaging used to directly protect or contain the item, 20
the producer of the packaging is the same as the producer identified 21
under (a)(i) of this subsection; and 22
(B) For packaging used to ship the item to a consumer, the 23
producer of the packaging is the person that packages the item to be 24
shipped to the consumer; 25
(iii) For packaging that is a covered material and is not 26
included in (a)(i) and (ii) of this subsection, the producer of the 27
packaging is the person that first distributes the item in or into 28
this state; 29
(iv) For paper products that are magazines, catalogs, telephone 30
directories, or similar publications, the producer is the publisher;31
(v) For paper products not described in (a)(iv) of this 32
subsection: 33
(A) If the paper product is sold under the manufacturer's own 34
brand, the producer is the person that manufactures the paper 35
product; 36
(B) If there is no person to which (a)(v)(A) of this subsection 37
applies, the producer is the person that is the owner or licensee of 38
a brand or trademark under which the paper product is used in a 39
commercial enterprise, sold, offered for sale, or distributed in or 40
p. 24 HB 2301
into this state, whether or not the trademark is registered in this 1
state; 2
(C) If there is no person to which (a)(v)(A) or (B) of this 3
subsection applies, the producer is the brand owner of the paper 4
product; 5
(D) If there is no person described in (a)(v)(A), (B), or (C) of 6
this subsection within the United States, the producer is the person 7
that imports the paper product into the United States for use in a 8
commercial enterprise that sells, offers for sale, or distributes the 9
paper product in this state; or 10
(E) If there is no person described in (a)(v)(A) through (D) of 11
this subsection, the producer is the person that first distributes 12
the paper product in or into this state; 13
(vi) A person is the "producer" of a covered material sold, 14
offered for sale, or distributed in or into this state, as defined in 15
(a)(i) through (v) of this subsection, except: 16
(A) Where another person has mutually signed an agreement with a 17
producer as defined in (a)(i) through (v) of this subsection that 18
contractually assigns responsibility to the person as the producer, 19
and the person has joined a registered producer responsibility 20
organization as the responsible producer for that covered material 21
under this chapter. If another person is assigned responsibility as 22
the producer under this subsection, the producer under (a)(i) through 23
(v) of this subsection must provide written certification of that 24
contractual agreement to the producer responsibility organization. 25
The following persons are not eligible to be the assigned recipient 26
of responsibility as a producer under this subsection: (I) A person 27
who produces an agricultural commodity introduced under the brand or 28
trademark of another manufacturer or person; or (II) a distributor of 29
a beverage sold in a beverage container; and 30
(B) If the producer described in (a)(i) through (v) of this 31
subsection is a business operated wholly or in part as a franchise, 32
the producer is the franchisor, if that franchisor has franchisees 33
that have a commercial presence within the state. 34
(b) "Producer" does not include: 35
(i) Government entities; 36
(ii) Registered 501 (c)(3) charitable organizations and 501 (c)(4) 37
social welfare organizations; or 38
(iii) De minimis producers. 39
(30) "Producer responsibility organization" means:40
p. 25 HB 2301
(a) A nonprofit organization that qualifies for a tax exemption 1
under 26 U.S.C. Sec. 501 (c)(3) of the federal internal revenue code 2
and is designated by a producer or group of producers to fulfill the 3
requirements of this chapter; 4
(b) A producer that registers with the department as a producer 5
responsibility organization and implements an individual plan 6
addressing the covered materials of the producer; or7
(c) An organization as defined by the department by rule.8
(31) "Program" means the activities conducted to implement an 9
approved plan. 10
(32)(a) "Public place" means an indoor or outdoor location open 11
to and generally used by the public and to which the public is 12
permitted to have access including, but not limited to, streets, 13
sidewalks, plazas, town squares, public parks, beaches, forests, or 14
other public land open for recreation or other uses, and 15
transportation facilities such as bus and train stations, airports, 16
and ferry terminals. 17
(b) "Public place" does not include a retail establishment or 18
industrial, commercial, or privately owned property that is not 19
required to be accessible to the public. 20
(33) "Recycling" means transforming or remanufacturing covered 21
materials into usable or marketable materials for use other than 22
landfill disposal or incineration and does not include reuse or 23
composting. 24
(34) "Recycling rate" means the amount of covered materials, in 25
aggregate or by individual covered materials type, delivered to 26
responsible markets for recycling in a calendar year divided by the 27
total amount of covered materials introduced by the relevant unit of 28
measurement and excluding covered materials that are reusable or 29
compostable. 30
(35) "Refill" means the continued use of a covered material by a 31
consumer through a system that is: 32
(a) Intentionally designed and marketed for repeated filling of a 33
covered material to reduce demand for new production of the covered 34
material; 35
(b) Supported by adequate logistics and infrastructure to provide 36
convenient access to consumers; and 37
(c) Compliant with all applicable federal, state, and local 38
statutes, rules, ordinances, and other laws governing health and 39
safety. 40
p. 26 HB 2301
(36) "Responsible market" means an entity that:1
(a) First produces and sells, transfers, or uses recycled organic 2
product or recycled content feedstock that meets the quality 3
standards necessary to be used in the creation of new or 4
reconstituted products; 5
(b) Complies with all applicable federal, state, and local 6
statutes, rules, ordinances, and other laws governing environmental, 7
health, safety, and financial responsibility; 8
(c) If the market operates in the state, manages waste according 9
to the state's solid waste management hierarchy established in RCW 10
70A.205.005; and 11
(d) Meets the minimum operational standards adopted under a 12
producer responsibility organization plan to protect the environment, 13
public health, worker health and safety, and minimize adverse impacts 14
to socially vulnerable populations. 15
(37) "Responsible producer" means a producer that is not a de 16
minimis producer. 17
(38) "Retail establishment" includes any person, corporation, 18
partnership, business, facility, vendor, organization, or individual 19
that sells or provides merchandise, goods, or materials directly to a 20
customer. 21
(39) "Return rate" means the amount of reusable covered material 22
in aggregate or by individual covered materials type, collected for 23
reuse by a producer or service provider in a calendar year, divided 24
by the total amount of reusable covered materials introduced by the 25
relevant unit of measurement. 26
(40) "Reusable" means capable of reuse. 27
(41) "Reuse" means the return of a covered material to the 28
marketplace and the continued use of the covered material by a 29
producer or service provider when the covered material is:30
(a) Intentionally designed and marketed to be used multiple times 31
for its original intended purpose without a change in form;32
(b) Designed for durability and maintenance to extend its useful 33
life and reduce demand for new production of the covered material;34
(c) Supported by adequate logistics and infrastructure at a 35
retail location, by a service provider, or on behalf of or by a 36
producer, that provides convenient access for consumers; and37
(d) Compliant with all applicable federal, state, and local 38
statutes, rules, ordinances, and other laws governing health and 39
safety. 40
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(42) "Reuse rate" means the share of units of a reusable covered 1
material introduced into the state in a calendar year that are 2
demonstrated and deemed reusable in accordance with an approved plan.3
(43) "Service provider" means an entity that provides covered 4
services for covered materials. A government entity that provides, 5
contracts for, or otherwise arranges for another party to provide 6
covered services for covered materials within its jurisdiction may be 7
a service provider regardless of whether it provided, contracted for, 8
or otherwise arranged for similar services before the approval of the 9
applicable plan. 10
(44) "Socially vulnerable population" means: 11
(a) Any person residing in: 12
(i) A census tract that contains a high overall social 13
vulnerability index as measured using the United States centers for 14
disease control and the agency for toxic substances and disease 15
registry's social vulnerability index, as it existed as of January 1, 16
2025, for the most recent year such data are available; or17
(ii) As applicable, an alternative population specified in RCW 18
70A.208.270; or 19
(b) Any person that has an income below the minimum necessary for 20
a household based on family composition in a given geography to 21
adequately meet their basic needs without public or private 22
assistance, as measured by the University of Washington's center for 23
women's welfare, for the most recent year such data are available.24
(45) "Third-party certification" means certification by an 25
accredited independent organization that a standard or process 26
required by this chapter, or by a plan approved under this chapter, 27
has been achieved. 28
(46) "Toxic substance" means chemicals that are regulated under 29
chapter 70A.222, 70A.350, 70A.430, or 70A.560 RCW.30
(47) "Vulnerable populations" has the same meaning as defined in 31
RCW 70A.02.010. 32
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p. 28 HB 2301