Declaring support by the House of Representatives for Design for Recycling (DFR) initiatives that limit all types of waste by encouraging manufacturers to design their products to have the maximum number of recyclable components.

IV 119TH CONGRESS 1ST SESSION H. RES. 927 Declaring support by the House of Representatives for Design for Recycling (DFR) initiatives that limit all types of waste by encouraging manufac- turers to design their products to have the maximum number of recycla- ble components. IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES DECEMBER 4, 2025 Mr. C ORREA (for himself, Mrs. K IM, and Mr. M ORELLE) submitted the fol- lowing resolution; which was referred to the Committee on Energy and Commerce RESOLUTION Declaring support by the House of Representatives for De- sign for Recycling (DFR) initiatives that limit all types of waste by encouraging manufacturers to design their products to have the maximum number of recyclable components. Whereas Design for Recycling (DFR) is a method of design- ing products to ensure they are made from recycled ma- terial, are free of hazardous materials that may impede the recycling process, and can be easily recycled through current or newly designed recycling processes and proce- dures after the end of their life in a cost-effective man- ner; VerDate Sep 11 2014 22:27 Dec 04, 2025 Jkt 069200 PO 00000 Frm 00001 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6300 E:\BILLS\HR927.IH HR927ssavage on LAPJG3WLY3PROD with BILLS 2 •HRES 927 IH Whereas DFR would reduce the amount of waste that ends up in landfills, reducing greenhouse gases and the con- sumption of raw materials; Whereas the recycled materials industry annually contributes nearly $170,000,000,000 to the United States economy and provides nearly $20,200,000,000 in net exports, helping to reduce the United States trade deficit; Whereas, according to the Recycled Materials Association, the recycled materials industry annually generates $7,160,000,000 in State and local tax revenues and pro- vides another $11,550,000,000 in Federal tax revenue from the industry and its employees; Whereas, according to the Recycled Materials Association, the recycled materials industry provides nearly 600,000 jobs in the United States both directly and indirectly; Whereas, in 2022, the recycled materials industry recycled over 137,000,000 metric tons of materials; Whereas, according to calculations from the Waste Reduction Model, Version 16, of the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA), using recycled materials in manufac- turing reduces energy consumption by up to 90 percent; Whereas the EPA estimates that about 75 percent of waste is recyclable, but only 35 percent of that is actually recy- cled, leaving the rest to go to landfills and incinerators; Whereas Americans generated more than 267,000,000 tons of solid waste in 2020 or 4.9 pounds per person per day; Whereas the container and fiberglass industries collectively purchase 3,350,000 tons of recycled glass annually, which is remelted and repurposed for use in the production of new containers and fiberglass products; VerDate Sep 11 2014 22:27 Dec 04, 2025 Jkt 069200 PO 00000 Frm 00002 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6300 E:\BILLS\HR927.IH HR927ssavage on LAPJG3WLY3PROD with BILLS 3 •HRES 927 IH Whereas, according to the nonprofit rePurpose Global, about 75 percent of global plastics produced are thermoplastics that can be melted and molded over and over to produce new plastics (or plastic products); Whereas only about 20 percent of the polyethylene terephthalate, high-density polyethylene, and poly- propylene plastics in circulation in the United States are recycled; Whereas the United States generates about 6,900,000 tons of e-waste but only recycles around 25 percent; Whereas, according to the EPA, e-waste sometimes has haz- ardous chemicals such as lead, mercury, and arsenic that can require special disposal methods; Whereas recycling e-waste is a sustainable way to recover rare earth materials like neodymium, dysprosium, and yt- trium; Whereas, according to the American Forest and Paper Asso- ciation nearly 60 percent more paper products are recy- cled today than in 1990 due to innovative packaging and investments focused on improving recycling technology; Whereas, according to a study by The Recycling Partnership, additional investment in recycling will create 200,000 new jobs; Whereas, according to the Ellen Macarthur Foundation, ma- terial journey mapping, which is a process of under- standing the entire lifecycle of a material from extraction to disposal, can help companies succeed at DFR; Whereas, in 2021, the company Cascade Engineering manu- factured the first curbside cart, EcoCart, made from bulky rigid plastics collected from curbside residential re- cycling, this is an example of DFR; VerDate Sep 11 2014 22:27 Dec 04, 2025 Jkt 069200 PO 00000 Frm 00003 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6300 E:\BILLS\HR927.IH HR927ssavage on LAPJG3WLY3PROD with BILLS 4 •HRES 927 IH Whereas the California Redemption Value program incentivizes consumers through the free market to return their cans and bottles to a recycling center; Whereas, according to the Ellen Macarthur Foundation, ‘‘the circular economy is a system where products and mate- rials are kept in circulation through processes like main- tenance, reuse, recycling, and composting.’’; Whereas there are companies that assist manufacturers to embrace a circular approach through their eco-design and sustainable sourcing models; Whereas using local resources in manufacturing and under- standing locally available resources can promote circu- larity (a circular approach); Whereas product life extension means keeping material and products in the supply chain for as long as possible so products are more durable, and companies can find inno- vative ways to use the product after its normal life ends; Whereas dematerialization is a strategy to minimize the use of raw materials and energy in product creation while maintaining the products quality; Whereas the collection of recycling data by CalRecycle is crit- ical to helping manufacturers design packaging for recyclability and is a model for other programs; and Whereas DFR would encourage manufacturers of goods to ensure their products are made of recycled material and fully recyclable: Now, therefore, be it Resolved, That the House of Representatives— 1 (1) supports measures by the manufacturing 2 community to adopt ‘‘Design for Recycling’’ initia-3 tives that aim to make it easier for companies to re-4 VerDate Sep 11 2014 22:27 Dec 04, 2025 Jkt 069200 PO 00000 Frm 00004 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\HR927.IH HR927ssavage on LAPJG3WLY3PROD with BILLS 5 •HRES 927 IH cycle products, reduce waste and greenhouse gas 1 emissions, and reduce the need for raw materials; 2 and 3 (2) confirms that the recycled materials indus-4 try serves an essential role in our economy as they 5 manage end-of-life products, provide vital raw mate-6 rials to the manufacturing supply chain, contribute 7 to the economy, and employ over half-a-million peo-8 ple throughout the United States. 9 Æ VerDate Sep 11 2014 22:27 Dec 04, 2025 Jkt 069200 PO 00000 Frm 00005 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6301 E:\BILLS\HR927.IH HR927ssavage on LAPJG3WLY3PROD with BILLS