Concerning extended producer responsibility requirements associated with paint.

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 and Fitzgibbon Prefiled 01/07/26. 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 p. 2 HB 2301 (((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 p. 4 HB 2301 (((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 p. 10 HB 2301 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 p. 11 HB 2301 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 p. 13 HB 2301 (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 p. 14 HB 2301 (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 p. 15 HB 2301 (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 p. 16 HB 2301 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 p. 17 HB 2301 (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 p. 18 HB 2301 (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 p. 20 HB 2301 (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 p. 27 HB 2301 (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 --- END --- p. 28 HB 2301