IB 

Union Calendar No. 32 

111TH CONGRESS 

1ST SESSION H. R. 1580 

[Report No. 111–75] 

To authorize the Administrator of the Environmental Protection Agency to 

award grants for electronic waste reduction research, development, and 

demonstration projects, and for other purposes. 

IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES 

MARCH 18, 2009 

Mr. GORDON of Tennessee (for himself, Mr. THOMPSON of California, Mr. 

BAIRD, Mr. CARNAHAN, Ms. EDDIE BERNICE JOHNSON of Texas, Mr. 

WU, and Mr. LUJA ́N) introduced the following bill; which was referred 

to the Committee on Science and Technology 

APRIL 21, 2009 

Additional sponsors: Mr. TONKO, Mr. GEORGE MILLER of California, Ms. 

WOOLSEY, Mr. SESTAK, Mrs. BIGGERT, Mr. EHLERS, Mr. MCMAHON, 

Mr. GRIFFITH, Mrs. DAHLKEMPER, Ms. EDWARDS of Maryland, Mr. 

BLUMENAUER, and Ms. BORDALLO

APRIL 21, 2009 

Reported with amendments, committed to the Committee of the Whole House 

on the State of the Union, and ordered to be printed 

[Strike out all after the enacting clause and insert the part printed in italic] 

[For text of introduced bill, see copy of bill as introduced on March 18, 2009] 

A BILL 

To authorize the Administrator of the Environmental Protection Agency to award grants for electronic waste reducVerDate Nov 24 2008 23:46 Apr 21, 2009 Jkt 079200 PO 00000 Frm 00001 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6652 E:\BILLS\H1580.RH H1580

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tion 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, 

3 SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE. 

4 This Act may be cited as the ‘‘Electronic Device Recy5 cling Research and Development Act’’. 

6 SEC. 2. FINDINGS. 

7 Congress finds the following: 

8 (1) The volume of electronic devices in the 

9 United States is substantial and will continue to 

10 grow. The Environmental Protection Agency esti11 mates that over 2 billion computers, televisions, wire12 less devices, printers, gaming systems, and other de13 vices have been sold since 1980, generating 2 million 

14 tons of unwanted electronic devices in 2005 alone. 

15 (2) Electronic devices can be refurbished or recy16 cled to recover and conserve valuable materials, such 

17 as gold, copper, and platinum. However, according to 

18 the Environmental Protection Agency, only 15 to 20 

19 percent of household generated electronic devices reach 

20 recyclers. 

21 (3) The electronic device recycling industry in 

22 the United States is growing; however, challenges re23 main for the recycling of electronic devices generated 

24 by households and other small generators. Collection 


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1 of the electronic devices is expensive, and separation 

2 and proper recycling of some of the materials recov3 ered, like lead from cathode-ray tube televisions, is 

4 costly. 

5 (4) The export of electronic devices to developing 

6 countries also presents a serious challenge. The crude 

7 methods of many of the recycling operations in these 

8 countries can expose workers to harmful chemicals, 

9 jeopardizing their health and polluting the environ10 ment. 

11 (5) Some of the challenges to increasing the 

12 recyclability of electronic devices can be addressed by 

13 improving the logistics and technology of the collec14 tion and recycling process, designing electronic de15 vices to avoid the use of hazardous materials and to 

16 be more easily recycled, and encouraging the use of 

17 recycled materials in more applications. 

18 (6) The public currently does not take full ad19 vantage of existing electronic device recycling oppor20 tunities. Studying factors that influence behavior and 

21 educating consumers about responsible electronic recy22 cling could help communities and private industry 

23 develop recycling programs that draw more participa24 tion. 


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1 (7) The development of tools and technologies to 

2 increase the lifespan of electronic devices and to pro3 mote their safe re-use would decrease the impact of the 

4 production of electronic devices on the environment 

5 and likely increase the recyclability of such devices. 

6 (8) Accurately assessing the environmental im7 pacts of the production of electronic devices and the 

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

9 tools, and methods to better quantify these impacts 

10 would help policymakers and others determine the 

11 best end-of-life management options for electronic de12 vices. 

13 SEC. 3. ELECTRONIC DEVICE ENGINEERING RESEARCH, DE14 VELOPMENT, AND DEMONSTRATION 

15 PROJECTS. 

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

17 multiyear grants to consortia to conduct research to create 

18 innovative and practical approaches to reduce the volume 

19 and manage the environmental impacts of electronic devices 

20 and, through the conduct of this research, to contribute to 

21 the professional development of scientists, engineers, and 

22 technicians in the fields of electronic device manufacturing, 

23 design, refurbishing, and recycling. The grants awarded 

24 under this section shall support research to— 


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1 (1) increase the efficiency of and improve elec2 tronic device collection and recycling; 

3 (2) expand the uses and applications for mate4 rials recovered from electronic devices; 

5 (3) develop and demonstrate environmentally 

6 friendly alternatives to the use of hazardous and po7 tentially hazardous materials in electronic devices 

8 and the production of such devices; 

9 (4) develop methods to identify, separate, and re10 move hazardous and potentially hazardous materials 

11 from electronic devices and to re-use, recycle, or dis12 pose of such materials in a safe manner; 

13 (5) reconsider product design and assembly to fa14 cilitate and improve refurbishment, re-use, and recy15 cling of electronic devices, including an emphasis on 

16 design for recycling; 

17 (6) conduct lifecycle analyses of electronic de18 vices, including developing tools and methods to assess 

19 the environmental impacts of the production, use, and 

20 end-of-life management of electronic devices and elec21 tronic device components; 

22 (7) develop product design, tools, and techniques 

23 to extend the lifecycle of electronic devices, including 

24 methods to promote their upgrade and safe re-use; 

25 and 


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

2 barriers to recycling and re-use for electronic devices 

3 and develop strategies to increase awareness, con4 sumer acceptance, and the practice of responsible re5 cycling and re-use for such devices. 

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

7 awarded under this section on a merit-reviewed, competi8 tive basis. 

9 (c) APPLICATIONS.—A consortium shall submit an ap10 plication for a grant under this section to the Adminis11 trator at such time, in such manner, and containing such 

12 information and assurances as the Administrator may re13 quire. The application shall include a description of— 

14 (1) the research project that will be undertaken 

15 by the consortium and the contributions of each of the 

16 participating entities, including the for-profit entity; 

17 (2) the applicability of the project to reduce im18 pediments to electronic recycling in the electronic de19 vice design, manufacturing, refurbishing, or recycling 

20 industries; 

21 (3) the potential for and feasibility of incor22 porating the research results into industry practice; 

23 and 

24 (4) how the project will promote collaboration 

25 among scientists and engineers from different disVerDate Nov 24 2008 23:17 Apr 21, 2009 Jkt 079200 PO 00000 Frm 00006 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6203 E:\BILLS\H1580.RH H1580

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1 ciplines, such as electrical engineering, materials 

2 science, and social science. 

3 (d) DISSEMINATION OF RESEARCH RESULTS.—Re4 search results shall be made publicly available through— 

5 (1) development of best practices or training ma6 terials for use in the electronics manufacturing, de7 sign, refurbishing, or recycling industries; 

8 (2) dissemination at conferences affiliated with 

9 such industries; 

10 (3) publication on the Environmental Protection 

11 Agency’s website; 

12 (4) demonstration projects; or 

13 (5) educational materials for the public produced 

14 in conjunction with State governments, local govern15 ments, or nonprofit organizations on problems and 

16 solutions related to electronic waste. 

17 (e) FUNDING CONTRIBUTION FROM FOR-PROFIT MEM18 BER OF CONSORTIUM.—The for-profit entity participating 

19 in the consortium shall contribute at least 10 percent of the 

20 total research project cost, either directly or with in-kind 

21 contributions. 

22 (f) PROTECTION OF PROPRIETARY INFORMATION.— 

23 The Administrator— 


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1 (1) shall not disclose any proprietary informa2 tion or trade secrets provided by any person or entity 

3 pursuant to this section; 

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

5 a grant under this section, each member of the consor6 tium has in place proper protections to maintain 

7 proprietary information or trade secrets contributed 

8 by other members of the consortium; and 

9 (3) if any member of the consortium breaches the 

10 conditions under paragraph (2) or discloses propri11 etary information or trade secrets, may require the 

12 return of any funds received under this section by 

13 such member. 

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

15 of enactment of this Act, and every 2 years thereafter, the 

16 Administrator shall transmit a report to Congress that pro17 vides— 

18 (1) a list of the grants awarded under this sec19 tion; 

20 (2) the entities participating in each consortium 

21 receiving a grant; 

22 (3) a description of the research projects carried 

23 out in whole or in part with funds made available 

24 under such a grant; 

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


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

2 adoption or integration of such research results into 

3 the manufacturing processes, management practices, 

4 and products of the electronics industry. 

5 (h) AUTHORIZATION OF APPROPRIATIONS.—There are 

6 authorized to be appropriated to the Administrator to carry 

7 out this section: 

8 (1) $18,000,000 for fiscal year 2010. 

9 (2) $20,000,000 for fiscal year 2011. 

10 (3) $22,000,000 for fiscal year 2012. 

11 SEC. 4. NATIONAL ACADEMY OF SCIENCES REPORT ON 

12 ELECTRONIC DEVICE RECYCLING. 

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

14 and opportunities in the research and training programs 

15 established in this Act, the Administrator shall enter into 

16 an arrangement with the National Academy of Sciences for 

17 a report, to be transmitted to Congress not later than 1 

18 year after the date of enactment of this Act, on— 

19 (1) opportunities for and barriers to— 

20 (A) increasing the recyclability of electronic 

21 devices, specifically addressing— 

22 (i) recycling or safe disposal of elec23 tronic devices and low value materials re24 covered from such devices; 


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1 (ii) designing electronic devices to fa2 cilitate re-use and recycling; and 

3 (iii) the re-use of electronic devices; 

4 and 

5 (B) making electronic devices safer and 

6 more environmentally friendly, specifically ad7 dressing reducing the use of hazardous materials 

8 and potentially hazardous materials in electronic 

9 devices; 

10 (2) the environmental and human health risks 

11 posed by the storage, transport, recycling, and dis12 posal of electronic devices; 

13 (3) the current status of research and training 

14 programs to promote the environmental design of elec15 tronic devices to increase the recyclability of such de16 vices; and 

17 (4) any regulatory or statutory barriers that 

18 may prevent the adoption or implementation of best 

19 management practices or technological innovations 

20 that may arise from the research and training pro21 grams established in this Act. 

22 (b) RECOMMENDATIONS.—The report under subsection 

23 (a) shall identify gaps in the current research and training 

24 programs in addressing the opportunities, barriers, and 

25 risks relating to electronic device recycling, and the report 


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1 shall recommend areas where additional research and devel2 opment resources are needed to reduce the impact of elec3 tronic devices on the environment. 

4 SEC. 5. ENGINEERING CURRICULUM DEVELOPMENT 

5 GRANTS. 

6 (a) GRANT PROGRAM.—The Administrator, in con7 sultation with the Director of the National Science Founda8 tion, shall award grants to institutions of higher education 

9 to develop curricula that incorporates the principles of envi10 ronmental design into the development of electronic de11 vices— 

12 (1) for the training of electrical, mechanical, in13 dustrial, manufacturing, materials, and software en14 gineers and other students at the undergraduate and 

15 graduate level; and 

16 (2) to support the continuing education of pro17 fessionals in the electronic device manufacturing, de18 sign, refurbishing, or recycling industries. 

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

20 higher education’’, as such term is used with respect to eligi21 bility to receive a grant under subsection (a)(2), includes 

22 any institution of higher education under section 101(b) of 

23 the Higher Education Act of 1965 (20 U.S.C. 1001(b)). 

24 (c) OUTREACH TO MINORITY SERVING INSTITU25 TIONS.—The Administrator shall conduct outreach to miVerDate Nov 24 2008 23:17 Apr 21, 2009 Jkt 079200 PO 00000 Frm 00011 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6203 E:\BILLS\H1580.RH H1580

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1 nority serving institutions for the purposes of providing in2 formation 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 of 

9 an institution of higher education to broaden the under10 graduate and graduate-level engineering curriculum or pro11 fessional continuing education curriculum to include envi12 ronmental engineering design principles and consideration 

13 of product life cycles related to electronic devices and in14 creasing the recyclability of such devices. Activities may in15 clude— 

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 

24 continuing education for professionals in the environVerDate Nov 24 2008 23:17 Apr 21, 2009 Jkt 079200 PO 00000 Frm 00012 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6203 E:\BILLS\H1580.RH H1580

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1 mental 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 are 

9 authorized to be appropriated to the Administrator to carry 

10 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 MATE15 RIALS PHYSICAL PROPERTY DATABASE. 

16 (a) IN GENERAL.—The Director shall establish an ini17 tiative to develop a comprehensive physical property data18 base for environmentally friendly alternative materials for 

19 use in electronic devices. 

20 (b) PRIORITIES.—The Director, working with the elec21 tronic device design, manufacturing, or recycling indus22 tries, shall develop a strategic plan to establish priorities 

23 and the physical property characterization requirements for 

24 the database described in subsection (a). 


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1 (c) AUTHORIZATION OF APPROPRIATIONS.—There are 

2 authorized to be appropriated to the Administrator to carry 

3 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 recycler 

20 of electronic devices or the components of such 

21 devices. 

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

23 Director of the National Institute of Standards and 

24 Technology. 


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1 (4) ELECTRONIC DEVICE.—The term ‘‘electronic 

2 device’’ may include computers, computer monitors, 

3 televisions, laptops, printers, wireless devices, copiers, 

4 fax machines, stereos, video gaming systems, and the 

5 components of such devices. 

6 (5) INSTITUTION OF HIGHER EDUCATION.—The 

7 term ‘‘institution of higher education’’ has the mean8 ing given such term in section 101(a) of the Higher 

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

10 (6) MINORITY SERVING INSTITUTION.—The term 

11 ‘‘minority serving institution’’ means an institution 

12 that is an eligible institution under section 371(a) of 

13 the Higher Education Act of 1965 (20 U.S.C. 

14 1067q(a)). 

Amend the title so as to read: ‘‘A bill 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.’’. 


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Union Calendar No. 32 

111TH CONGRESS 

1ST SESSION H. R. 1580 

[Report No. 111–75] 

A BILL 

To authorize the Administrator of the Environposes. and demonstration projects, and for other pur- electronic waste reduction research, development, mental Protection Agency to award grants for 

APRIL 21, 2009 

Reported with amendments, committed to the Committee 

dered to be printed of the Whole House on the State of the Union, and orVerDate Nov 24 2008 23:46 Apr 21, 2009 Jkt 079200 PO 00000 Frm 00016 Fmt 6651 Sfmt 6651 E:\BILLS\H1580.RH H1580

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