IIB 

111TH CONGRESS 

1ST SESSION H. R. 1580 

IN THE SENATE OF THE UNITED STATES 

APRIL 23, 2009 

Received; read twice and referred to the Committee on Environment and 

Public Works 

AN ACT 

To authorize the Administrator of the Environmental Protection Agency to award grants for electronic device recycling research, development, and demonstration projects, 

and for other purposes. 

1 Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representa2 tives of the United States of America in Congress assembled, 


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1 SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE. 

2 This Act may be cited as the ‘‘Electronic Device Re3 cycling Research and Development Act’’. 

4 SEC. 2. FINDINGS. 

5 Congress finds the following: 

6 (1) The volume of electronic devices in the 

7 United States is substantial and will continue to 

8 grow. The Environmental Protection Agency esti9 mates that over 2 billion computers, televisions, 

10 wireless devices, printers, gaming systems, and other 

11 devices have been sold since 1980, generating 2 mil12 lion tons of unwanted electronic devices in 2005 

13 alone. 

14 (2) Electronic devices can be recycled or refur15 bished to recover and conserve valuable materials, 

16 such as gold, copper, and platinum. However, ac17 cording to the Environmental Protection Agency, 

18 only 15 to 20 percent of electronic devices discarded 

19 from households reach recyclers. 

20 (3) The electronic device recycling industry in 

21 the United States is growing; however, challenges re22 main for the recycling of electronic devices by house23 holds and other small generators. Collection of such 

24 electronic devices is expensive, and separation and 

25 proper recycling of some of the materials recovered, 

26 like lead from cathode-ray tube televisions, is costly. 


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1 (4) The export of unwanted electronic devices 

2 to developing countries also presents a serious chal3 lenge. The crude methods of many of the recycling 

4 operations in these countries can expose workers to 

5 harmful chemicals, jeopardizing their health and pol6 luting the environment. 

7 (5) Some of the challenges to increasing the 

8 recyclability of electronic devices can be addressed 

9 by improving the logistics and technology of the col10 lection and recycling process, designing electronic 

11 devices to avoid the use of hazardous materials and 

12 to be more easily recycled, and encouraging the use 

13 of recycled materials in more applications. 

14 (6) The public currently does not take full ad15 vantage of existing electronic device recycling oppor16 tunities. Studying factors that influence behavior 

17 and educating consumers about responsible elec18 tronic device recycling could help communities and 

19 private industry develop recycling programs that 

20 draw more participation. 

21 (7) The development of tools and technologies 

22 to increase the lifespan of electronic devices and to 

23 promote their safe reuse would decrease the impact 

24 of the production of electronic devices on the enviVerDate Nov 24 2008 03:24 Apr 24, 2009 Jkt 079200 PO 00000 Frm 00003 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H1580.RFS H1580

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1 ronment and likely increase the recyclability of such 

2 devices. 

3 (8) Accurately assessing the environmental im4 pacts of the production of electronic devices and the 

5 recycling of such devices is a complex task. Data, 

6 tools, and methods to better quantify these impacts 

7 would help policymakers and others determine the 

8 best end-of-life management options for electronic 

9 devices. 

10 SEC. 3. ELECTRONIC DEVICE ENGINEERING RESEARCH, 

11 DEVELOPMENT, AND DEMONSTRATION 

12 PROJECTS. 

13 (a) IN GENERAL.—The Administrator shall award 

14 multiyear grants to consortia to conduct research to create 

15 innovative and practical approaches to manage the envi16 ronmental impacts of electronic devices and, through the 

17 conduct of this research, to contribute to the professional 

18 development of scientists, engineers, and technicians in 

19 the fields of electronic device manufacturing, design, re20 furbishing, and recycling. The grants awarded under this 

21 section shall support research to— 

22 (1) increase the efficiency of and improve elec23 tronic device collection and recycling; 

24 (2) expand the uses and applications for mate25 rials recovered from electronic devices; 


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1 (3) develop and demonstrate environmentally 

2 friendly alternatives to the use of hazardous and po3 tentially hazardous materials in electronic devices 

4 and the production of such devices; 

5 (4) develop methods to identify, separate, and 

6 remove hazardous and potentially hazardous mate7 rials from electronic devices and to reuse, recycle, or 

8 dispose of such materials in a safe manner; 

9 (5) reconsider product design and assembly to 

10 facilitate and improve refurbishment, reuse, and re11 cycling of electronic devices, including an emphasis 

12 on design for recycling; 

13 (6) conduct lifecycle analyses of electronic de14 vices, including developing tools and methods to as15 sess the environmental impacts of the production, 

16 use, and end-of-life management of electronic devices 

17 and electronic device components; 

18 (7) develop product design, tools, and tech19 niques to extend the lifecycle of electronic devices, 

20 including methods to promote their upgrade and 

21 safe reuse; and 

22 (8) identify the social, behavioral, and economic 

23 barriers to recycling and reuse for electronic devices 

24 and develop strategies to increase awareness, conVerDate Nov 24 2008 03:24 Apr 24, 2009 Jkt 079200 PO 00000 Frm 00005 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H1580.RFS H1580

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1 sumer acceptance, and the practice of responsible re2 cycling and reuse for such devices. 

3 (b) MERIT REVIEW; COMPETITION.—Grants shall be 

4 awarded under this section on a merit-reviewed, competi5 tive basis. 

6 (c) APPLICATIONS.—A consortium shall submit an 

7 application for a grant under this section to the Adminis8 trator at such time, in such manner, and containing such 

9 information and assurances as the Administrator may re10 quire. The application shall include a description of— 

11 (1) the research project that will be undertaken 

12 by the consortium and the contributions of each of 

13 the participating entities, including the for-profit en14 tity; 

15 (2) the applicability of the project to reduce im16 pediments to electronic device recycling in the elec17 tronic device design, manufacturing, refurbishing, or 

18 recycling industries; 

19 (3) the potential for and feasibility of incor20 porating the research results into industry practice; 

21 and 

22 (4) how the project will promote collaboration 

23 among scientists and engineers from different dis24 ciplines, such as electrical engineering, materials 

25 science, and social science. 


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1 (d) DISSEMINATION OF RESEARCH RESULTS.—Re2 search results shall be made publicly available through— 

3 (1) development of best practices or training 

4 materials for use in the electronic device manufac5 turing, design, refurbishing, or recycling industries; 

6 (2) dissemination at conferences affiliated with 

7 such industries; 

8 (3) publication on the Environmental Protection 

9 Agency’s Web site; 

10 (4) demonstration projects; or 

11 (5) educational materials for the public pro12 duced in conjunction with State governments, local 

13 governments, or nonprofit organizations on problems 

14 and solutions related to electronic device recycling 

15 and reuse. 

16 (e) FUNDING CONTRIBUTION FROM FOR-PROFIT

17 MEMBER OF CONSORTIUM.—The for-profit entity partici18 pating in the consortium shall contribute at least 10 per19 cent of the total research project cost, either directly or 

20 with in-kind contributions. 

21 (f) PROTECTION OF PROPRIETARY INFORMATION.— 

22 The Administrator— 

23 (1) shall not disclose any proprietary informa24 tion or trade secrets provided by any person or enti25 ty pursuant to this section; 


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1 (2) shall ensure that, as a condition of receipt 

2 of a grant under this section, each member of the 

3 consortium has in place proper protections to main4 tain proprietary information or trade secrets contrib5 uted by other members of the consortium; and 

6 (3) if any member of the consortium breaches 

7 the conditions under paragraph (2) or discloses pro8 prietary information or trade secrets, may require 

9 the return of any funds received under this section 

10 by such member. 

11 (g) BIENNIAL REPORT.—Within 2 years after the 

12 date of enactment of this Act, and every 2 years there13 after, the Administrator shall transmit a report to Con14 gress that provides— 

15 (1) a list of the grants awarded under this sec16 tion; 

17 (2) the entities participating in each consortium 

18 receiving a grant; 

19 (3) a description of the research projects car20 ried out in whole or in part with funds made avail21 able under such a grant; 

22 (4) the results of such research projects; and 

23 (5) a description of the rate and success of the 

24 adoption or integration of such research results into 


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1 the manufacturing processes, management practices, 

2 and products of the electronics industry. 

3 (h) AUTHORIZATION OF APPROPRIATIONS.—There 

4 are authorized to be appropriated to the Administrator to 

5 carry out this section: 

6 (1) $18,000,000 for fiscal year 2010. 

7 (2) $20,000,000 for fiscal year 2011. 

8 (3) $22,000,000 for fiscal year 2012. 

9 SEC. 4. NATIONAL ACADEMY OF SCIENCES REPORT ON 

10 ELECTRONIC DEVICE RECYCLING. 

11 (a) IN GENERAL.—In order to better recognize gaps 

12 and opportunities in the research and training programs 

13 established in this Act, the Administrator shall enter into 

14 an arrangement with the National Academy of Sciences 

15 for a report, to be transmitted to Congress not later than 

16 1 year after the date of enactment of this Act, on— 

17 (1) opportunities for and barriers to— 

18 (A) increasing the recyclability of elec19 tronic devices, specifically addressing— 

20 (i) recycling or safe disposal of elec21 tronic devices and low value materials re22 covered from such devices; 

23 (ii) designing electronic devices to fa24 cilitate reuse and recycling; and 


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1 (iii) the reuse of electronic devices; 

2 and 

3 (B) making electronic devices safer and 

4 more environmentally friendly, specifically ad5 dressing reducing the use of hazardous mate6 rials and potentially hazardous materials in 

7 electronic devices; 

8 (2) the environmental and human health risks 

9 posed by the storage, transport, recycling, and dis10 posal of unwanted electronic devices; 

11 (3) the current status of research and training 

12 programs to promote the environmental design of 

13 electronic devices to increase the recyclability of such 

14 devices; and 

15 (4) any regulatory or statutory barriers that 

16 may prevent the adoption or implementation of best 

17 management practices or technological innovations 

18 that may arise from the research and training pro19 grams established in this Act. 

20 (b) RECOMMENDATIONS.—The report under sub21 section (a) shall identify gaps in the current research and 

22 training programs in addressing the opportunities, bar23 riers, and risks relating to electronic device recycling, and 

24 the report shall recommend areas where additional re25 search and development resources are needed to reduce 


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1 the impact of unwanted electronic devices on the environ2 ment. 

3 SEC. 5. ENGINEERING CURRICULUM DEVELOPMENT 

4 GRANTS. 

5 (a) GRANT PROGRAM.—The Administrator, in con6 sultation with the Director of the National Science Foun7 dation, shall award grants to institutions of higher edu8 cation to develop curricula that incorporates the principles 

9 of environmental design into the development of electronic 

10 devices— 

11 (1) for the training of electrical, mechanical, in12 dustrial, manufacturing, materials, and software en13 gineers and other students at the undergraduate and 

14 graduate level; and 

15 (2) to support the continuing education of pro16 fessionals in the electronic device manufacturing, de17 sign, refurbishing, or recycling industries. 

18 (b) ELIGIBLE ENTITIES.—The term ‘‘institution of 

19 higher education’’, as such term is used with respect to 

20 eligibility to receive a grant under subsection (a)(2), in21 cludes any institution of higher education under section 

22 101(b) of the Higher Education Act of 1965 (20 U.S.C. 

23 1001(b)). 

24 (c) OUTREACH TO MINORITY SERVING INSTITU25 TIONS.—The Administrator shall conduct outreach to miVerDate Nov 24 2008 03:24 Apr 24, 2009 Jkt 079200 PO 00000 Frm 00011 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H1580.RFS H1580

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1 nority serving institutions for the purposes of providing 

2 information on the grants available under this section and 

3 how to apply for such grants. 

4 (d) MERIT REVIEW; COMPETITION.—Grants shall be 

5 awarded under this section on a merit-reviewed, competi6 tive basis. 

7 (e) USE OF FUNDS.—Grants awarded under this sec8 tion shall be used for activities that enhance the ability 

9 of an institution of higher education to broaden the under10 graduate and graduate-level engineering curriculum or 

11 professional continuing education curriculum to include 

12 environmental engineering design principles and consider13 ation of product lifecycles related to electronic devices and 

14 increasing the recyclability of such devices. Activities may 

15 include— 

16 (1) developing and revising curriculum to in17 clude multidisciplinary elements; 

18 (2) creating research and internship opportuni19 ties for students through partnerships with industry, 

20 nonprofit organizations, or government agencies; 

21 (3) creating and establishing certificate pro22 grams; and 

23 (4) developing curricula for short courses and 

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1 ronmental design of electronic devices to increase the 

2 recyclability of such devices. 

3 (f) APPLICATION.—An institution of higher education 

4 seeking a grant under this section shall submit an applica5 tion to the Administrator at such time, in such manner, 

6 and with such information and assurances as the Adminis7 trator may require. 

8 (g) AUTHORIZATION OF APPROPRIATIONS.—There 

9 are authorized to be appropriated to the Administrator to 

10 carry out this section: 

11 (1) $5,000,000 for fiscal year 2010. 

12 (2) $5,150,000 for fiscal year 2011. 

13 (3) $5,304,000 for fiscal year 2012. 

14 SEC. 6. ENVIRONMENTALLY FRIENDLY ALTERNATIVE MA15 TERIALS PHYSICAL PROPERTY DATABASE. 

16 (a) IN GENERAL.—The Director shall establish an 

17 initiative to develop a comprehensive physical property 

18 database for environmentally friendly alternative materials 

19 for use in electronic devices. 

20 (b) PRIORITIES.—The Director, working with the 

21 electronic device design, manufacturing, or recycling in22 dustries, shall develop a strategic plan to establish prior23 ities and the physical property characterization require24 ments for the database described in subsection (a). 


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1 (c) AUTHORIZATION OF APPROPRIATIONS.—There 

2 are authorized to be appropriated to the Administrator to 

3 carry out this section: 

4 (1) $3,000,000 for fiscal year 2010. 

5 (2) $3,000,000 for fiscal year 2011. 

6 (3) $3,000,000 for fiscal year 2012. 

7 SEC. 7. DEFINITIONS. 

8 For the purposes of this Act: 

9 (1) ADMINISTRATOR.—The term ‘‘Adminis10 trator’’ means the Administrator of the Environ11 mental Protection Agency. 

12 (2) CONSORTIUM.—The term ‘‘consortium’’ 

13 means a grant applicant or recipient under section 

14 3(a) that includes— 

15 (A) at least one institution of higher edu16 cation, nonprofit research institution, or govern17 ment laboratory; and 

18 (B) at least one for-profit entity, including 

19 a manufacturer, designer, refurbisher, or recy20 cler of electronic devices or the components of 

21 such devices. 

22 (3) DIRECTOR.—The term ‘‘Director’’ means 

23 the Director of the National Institute of Standards 

24 and Technology. 


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1 (4) ELECTRONIC DEVICE.—The term ‘‘elec2 tronic device’’ may include computers, computer 

3 monitors, televisions, laptops, printers, wireless de4 vices, copiers, fax machines, stereos, video gaming 

5 systems, and the components of such devices. 

6 (5) INSTITUTION OF HIGHER EDUCATION.—The 

7 term ‘‘institution of higher education’’ has the 

8 meaning given such term in section 101(a) of the 

9 Higher Education Act of 1965 (20 U.S.C. 1001(a)). 

10 (6) MINORITY SERVING INSTITUTION.—The 

11 term ‘‘minority serving institution’’ means an insti12 tution that is an eligible institution under section 

13 371(a) of the Higher Education Act of 1965 (20 

14 U.S.C. 1067q(a)). 

Passed the House of Representatives April 22, 2009. 

Attest: LORRAINE C. MILLER, 

Clerk. 


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