I

104TH CONGRESS

1ST SESSION S. 619

IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES

SEPTEMBER 27, 1995

Referred to the Committee on Commerce

AN ACT

To phase out the use of mercury in batteries and provide

for the efficient and cost-effective collection and recycling

or proper disposal of used nickel cadmium batteries,

small sealed lead-acid batteries, and certain other batteries, 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 ‘‘Mercury-Containing

5 and Rechargeable Battery Management Act’’.
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1 SEC. 2. FINDINGS.

2 The Congress finds that—

3 (1) it is in the public interest to—

4 (A) phase out the use of mercury in bat5 teries and provide for the efficient and cost-ef6 fective collection and recycling or proper dis7 posal of used nickel cadmium batteries, small

8 sealed lead-acid batteries, and other regulated

9 batteries; and

10 (B) educate the public concerning the col11 lection, recycling, and proper disposal of such

12 batteries;

13 (2) uniform national labeling requirements for

14 regulated batteries, rechargeable consumer products,

15 and product packaging will significantly benefit pro16 grams for regulated battery collection and recycling

17 or proper disposal; and

18 (3) it is in the public interest to encourage per19 sons who use rechargeable batteries to participate in

20 collection for recycling of used nickel-cadmium,

21 small sealed lead-acid, and other regulated batteries.

22 SEC. 3. DEFINITIONS.

23 For purposes of this Act:

24 (1) ADMINISTRATOR.—The term ‘‘Adminis25 trator’’ means the Administrator of the Environ26 mental Protection Agency.
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1 (2) BUTTON CELL.—The term ‘‘button cell’’

2 means a button- or coin-shaped battery.

3 (3) EASILY REMOVABLE.—The term ‘‘easily re4 movable’’, with respect to a battery, means detach5 able or removable at the end of the life of the bat6 tery—

7 (A) from a consumer product by a

8 consumer with the use of common household

9 tools; or

10 (B) by a retailer of replacements for a bat11 tery used as the principal electrical power

12 source for a vehicle.

13 (4) MERCURIC-OXIDE BATTERY.—The term

14 ‘‘mercuric-oxide battery’’ means a battery that uses

15 a mercuric-oxide electrode.

16 (5) RECHARGEABLE BATTERY.—The term ‘‘re17 chargeable battery’’—

18 (A) means 1 or more voltaic or galvanic

19 cells, electrically connected to produce electric

20 energy, that is designed to be recharged for re21 peated uses; and

22 (B) includes any type of enclosed device or

23 sealed container consisting of 1 or more such

24 cells, including what is commonly called a bat25 tery pack (and in the case of a battery pack, for
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1 the purposes of the requirements of easy remov2 ability and labeling under section 103, means

3 the battery pack as a whole rather than each

4 component individually); but

5 (C) does not include—

6 (i) a lead-acid battery used to start an

7 internal combustion engine or as the prin8 cipal electrical power source for a vehicle,

9 such as an automobile, a truck, construc10 tion equipment, a motorcycle, a garden

11 tractor, a golf cart, a wheelchair, or a boat;

12 (ii) a lead-acid battery used for load

13 leveling or for storage of electricity gen14 erated by an alternative energy source,

15 such as a solar cell or wind-driven genera16 tor;

17 (iii) a battery used as a backup power

18 source for memory or program instruction

19 storage, timekeeping, or any similar pur20 pose that requires uninterrupted electrical

21 power in order to function if the primary

22 energy supply fails or fluctuates momen23 tarily; or

24 (iv) a rechargeable alkaline battery.
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1 (6) RECHARGEABLE CONSUMER PRODUCT.—

2 The term ‘‘rechargeable consumer product’’—

3 (A) means a product that, when sold at re4 tail, includes a regulated battery as a primary

5 energy supply, and that is primarily intended

6 for personal or household use; but

7 (B) does not include a product that only

8 uses a battery solely as a source of backup

9 power for memory or program instruction stor10 age, timekeeping, or any similar purpose that

11 requires uninterrupted electrical power in order

12 to function if the primary energy supply fails or

13 fluctuates momentarily.

14 (7) REGULATED BATTERY.—The term ‘‘regu15 lated battery’’ means a rechargeable battery that—

16 (A) contains a cadmium or a lead electrode

17 or any combination of cadmium and lead elec18 trodes; or

19 (B) contains other electrode chemistries

20 and is the subject of a determination by the Ad21 ministrator under section 103(d).

22 (8) REMANUFACTURED PRODUCT.—The term

23 ‘‘remanufactured product’’ means a rechargeable

24 consumer product that has been altered by the re-
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1 placement of parts, repackaged, or repaired after

2 initial sale by the original manufacturer.

3 SEC. 4. INFORMATION DISSEMINATION.

4 The Administrator shall, in consultation with rep5 resentatives of rechargeable battery manufacturers, re6 chargeable consumer product manufacturers, and retail7 ers, establish a program to provide information to the pub8 lic concerning the proper handling and disposal of used

9 regulated batteries and rechargeable consumer products

10 with nonremovable batteries.

11 SEC. 5. ENFORCEMENT.

12 (a) CIVIL PENALTY.—When on the basis of any infor13 mation the Administrator determines that a person has

14 violated or is in violation of any requirement of this Act,

15 the Administrator—

16 (1) in the case of a willful violation, may issue

17 an order assessing a civil penalty of not more than

18 $10,000 for each violation and requiring compliance

19 immediately or within a reasonable specified time pe20 riod, or both; or

21 (2) in the case of any violation, may commence

22 a civil action in the United States district court in

23 the district in which the violation occurred for ap24 propriate relief, including a temporary or permanent

25 injunction.
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1 (b) CONTENTS OF ORDER.—An order under sub2 section (a)(1) shall state with reasonable specificity the

3 nature of the violation.

4 (c) CONSIDERATIONS.—In assessing a civil penalty

5 under subsection (a)(1), the Administrator shall take into

6 account the seriousness of the violation and any good faith

7 efforts to comply with applicable requirements.

8 (d) FINALITY OF ORDER; REQUEST FOR HEARING.—

9 An order under subsection (a)(1) shall become final un10 less, not later than 30 days after the order is served, a

11 person named in the order requests a hearing on the

12 record.

13 (e) HEARING.—On receiving a request under sub14 section (d), the Administrator shall promptly conduct a

15 hearing on the record.

16 (f) SUBPOENA POWER.—In connection with any

17 hearing on the record under this section, the Adminis18 trator may issue subpoenas for the attendance and testi19 mony of witnesses and for the production of relevant pa20 pers, books, and documents.

21 (g) CONTINUED VIOLATION AFTER EXPIRATION OF

22 PERIOD FOR COMPLIANCE.—If a violator fails to take cor23 rective action within the time specified in an order under

24 subsection (a)(1), the Administrator may assess a civil
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1 penalty of not more than $10,000 for the continued non2 compliance with the order.

3 (h) SAVINGS PROVISIONS.—The Administrator may

4 not take any enforcement action against a person for sell5 ing, offering for sale, or offering for promotional purposes

6 to the final consumer a battery or product governed by

7 this Act that was—

8 (1) purchased ready for final sale; and

9 (2) sold, offered for sale, or offered for pro10 motional purposes without modification.

11 SEC. 6. INFORMATION GATHERING AND ACCESS.

12 (a) RECORDS AND REPORTS.—A person who is re13 quired to carry out the objectives of this Act, including—

14 (1) a regulated battery manufacturer;

15 (2) a rechargeable consumer product manufac16 turer;

17 (3) a mercury-containing battery manufacturer;

18 and

19 (4) an authorized agent of a person described

20 in paragraph (1), (2), or (3),

21 shall establish and maintain such records and report such

22 information as the Administrator may by regulation rea23 sonably require to carry out the objectives of this Act.

24 (b) ACCESS AND COPYING.—The Administrator or

25 the Administrator’s authorized representative, on presen-
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1 tation of credentials of the Administrator, may at reason2 able times have access to and copy any records required

3 to be maintained under subsection (a).

4 (c) CONFIDENTIALITY.—The Administrator shall

5 maintain the confidentiality of documents and records that

6 contain proprietary information.

7 SEC. 7. STATE AUTHORITY.

8 Except as provided in sections 103(e) and 104, noth9 ing in this Act shall be construed to prohibit a State from

10 enacting and enforcing a standard or requirement that is

11 more stringent than a standard or requirement established

12 or promulgated under this Act.

13 SEC. 8. AUTHORIZATION OF APPROPRIATIONS.

14 There are authorized to be appropriated such sums

15 as are necessary to carry out this Act.

16 TITLE I—RECHARGEABLE

17 BATTERY RECYCLING ACT

18 SEC. 101. SHORT TITLE.

19 This title may be cited as the ‘‘Rechargeable Battery

20 Recycling Act’’.

21 SEC. 102. PURPOSE.

22 The purpose of this title is to facilitate the efficient

23 recycling or proper disposal of used nickel-cadmium re24 chargeable batteries, used small sealed lead-acid recharge-
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1 able batteries, other regulated batteries, and such re2 chargeable batteries in used consumer products, by—

3 (1) providing for uniform labeling requirements

4 and streamlined regulatory requirements for regu5 lated battery collection programs; and

6 (2) encouraging voluntary industry programs by

7 eliminating barriers to funding the collection and

8 recycling or proper disposal of used rechargeable

9 batteries.

10 SEC. 103. RECHARGEABLE CONSUMER PRODUCTS AND

11 LABELING.

12 (a) PROHIBITION.—

13 (1) IN GENERAL.—No person shall sell for use

14 in the United States a regulated battery that is

15 ready for retail sale or a rechargeable consumer

16 product that is ready for retail sale, if the battery

17 or product was manufactured on or after the date

18 that is 12 months after the date of enactment of

19 this Act, unless the labeling requirements of sub20 section (b) are met and, in the case of a regulated

21 battery, the regulated battery—

22 (A) is easily removable from the recharge23 able consumer product; or

24 (B) is sold separately.
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1 (2) APPLICATION.—Paragraph (1) does not

2 apply to any of the following:

3 (A) The sale of a remanufactured product

4 unit unless paragraph (1) applied to the sale of

5 the unit when originally manufactured.

6 (B) The sale of a product unit intended for

7 export purposes only.

8 (b) LABELING.—Each regulated battery or recharge9 able consumer product without an easily removable battery

10 manufactured on or after the date that is 1 year after

11 the date of enactment of this Act, whether produced do12 mestically or imported, shall bear the following labels:

13 (1) 3 chasing arrows or a comparable recycling

14 symbol.

15 (2)(A) On each regulated battery that is a nick16 el-cadmium battery, the chemical name or the abbre17 viation ‘‘Ni-Cd’’ and the phrase ‘‘BATTERY MUST

18 BE RECYCLED OR DISPOSED OF PROP19 ERLY.’’.

20 (B) On each regulated battery that is a lead21 acid batteries, ‘‘Pb’’ or the words ‘‘LEAD’’, ‘‘RE22 TURN’’, and ‘‘RECYCLE’’ and if the regulated bat23 tery is sealed, the phrase ‘‘BATTERY MUST BE

24 RECYCLED.’’.
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1 (3) On each rechargeable consumer product

2 containing a regulated battery that is not easily re3 movable, the phrase ‘‘CONTAINS NICKEL-CAD4 MIUM BATTERY. BATTERY MUST BE RECY5 CLED OR DISPOSED OF PROPERLY.’’ or

6 ‘‘CONTAINS SEALED LEAD BATTERY. BAT7 TERY MUST BE RECYCLED.’’, as applicable.

8 (4) On the packaging of each rechargeable

9 consumer product, and the packaging of each regu10 lated battery sold separately from such a product,

11 unless the required label is clearly visible through

12 the packaging, the phrase ‘‘CONTAINS NICKEL13 CADMIUM BATTERY. BATTERY MUST BE

14 RECYCLED OR DISPOSED OF PROPERLY.’’ or

15 ‘‘CONTAINS SEALED LEAD BATTERY. BAT16 TERY MUST BE RECYCLED.’’, as applicable.

17 (c) EXISTING OR ALTERNATIVE LABELING.—

18 (1) INITIAL PERIOD.—For a period of 2 years

19 after the date of enactment of this Act, regulated

20 batteries, rechargeable consumer products containing

21 regulated batteries, and rechargeable consumer

22 product packages that are labeled in substantial

23 compliance with subsection (b) shall be deemed to

24 comply with the labeling requirements of subsection

25 (b).
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1 (2) CERTIFICATION.—

2 (A) IN GENERAL.—On application by per3 sons subject to the labeling requirements of

4 subsection (b) or the labeling requirements pro5 mulgated by the Administrator under sub6 section (d), the Administrator shall certify that

7 a different label meets the requirements of sub8 section (b) or (d), respectively, if the different

9 label—

10 (i) conveys the same information as

11 the label required under subsection (b) or

12 (d), respectively; or

13 (ii) conforms with a recognized inter14 national standard that is consistent with

15 the overall purposes of this title.

16 (B) CONSTRUCTIVE CERTIFICATION.—

17 Failure of the Administrator to object to an ap18 plication under subparagraph (A) on the

19 ground that a different label does not meet ei20 ther of the conditions described in subpara21 graph (A) (i) or (ii) within 120 days after the

22 date on which the application is made shall con23 stitute certification for the purposes of this Act.

24 (d) RULEMAKING AUTHORITY OF THE ADMINIS25 TRATOR.—
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1 (1) IN GENERAL.—If the Administrator deter2 mines that other rechargeable batteries having elec3 trode chemistries different from regulated batteries

4 are toxic and may cause substantial harm to human

5 health and the environment if discarded into the

6 solid waste stream for land disposal or incineration,

7 the Administrator may, with the advice and counsel

8 of State regulatory authorities and manufacturers of

9 rechargeable batteries and rechargeable consumer

10 products, and after public comment—

11 (A) promulgate labeling requirements for

12 the batteries with different electrode chem13 istries, rechargeable consumer products contain14 ing such batteries that are not easily removable

15 batteries, and packaging for the batteries and

16 products; and

17 (B) promulgate requirements for easy re18 movability of regulated batteries from recharge19 able consumer products designed to contain

20 such batteries.

21 (2) SUBSTANTIAL SIMILARITY.—The regula22 tions promulgated under paragraph (1) shall be sub23 stantially similar to the requirements set forth in

24 subsections (a) and (b).
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1 (e) UNIFORMITY.—After the effective dates of a re2 quirement set forth in subsection (a), (b), or (c) or a regu3 lation promulgated by the Administrator under subsection

4 (d), no Federal agency, State, or political subdivision of

5 a State may enforce any easy removability or environ6 mental labeling requirement for a rechargeable battery or

7 rechargeable consumer product that is not identical to the

8 requirement or regulation.

9 (f) EXEMPTIONS.—

10 (1) IN GENERAL.—With respect to any re11 chargeable consumer product, any person may sub12 mit an application to the Administrator for an ex13 emption from the requirements of subsection (a) in

14 accordance with the procedures under paragraph

15 (2). The application shall include the following infor16 mation:

17 (A) A statement of the specific basis for

18 the request for the exemption.

19 (B) The name, business address, and tele20 phone number of the applicant.

21 (2) GRANTING OF EXEMPTION.—Not later than

22 60 days after receipt of an application under para23 graph (1), the Administrator shall approve or deny

24 the application. On approval of the application the

25 Administrator shall grant an exemption to the appli-
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1 cant. The exemption shall be issued for a period of

2 time that the Administrator determines to be appro3 priate, except that the period shall not exceed 2

4 years. The Administrator shall grant an exemption

5 on the basis of evidence supplied to the Adminis6 trator that the manufacturer has been unable to

7 commence manufacturing the rechargeable consumer

8 product in compliance with the requirements of this

9 section and with an equivalent level of product per10 formance without the product—

11 (A) posing a threat to human health, safe12 ty, or the environment; or

13 (B) violating requirements for approvals

14 from governmental agencies or widely recog15 nized private standard-setting organizations (in16 cluding Underwriters Laboratories).

17 (3) RENEWAL OF EXEMPTION.—A person

18 granted an exemption under paragraph (2) may

19 apply for a renewal of the exemption in accordance

20 with the requirements and procedures described in

21 paragraphs (1) and (2). The Administrator may

22 grant a renewal of such an exemption for a period

23 of not more than 2 years after the date of the grant24 ing of the renewal.
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1 SEC. 104. REQUIREMENTS.

2 For the purposes of carrying out the collection, stor3 age, transportation, and recycling or proper disposal of

4 used rechargeable batteries, batteries described in section

5 3(5)(C) or in title II, and used rechargeable consumer

6 products containing rechargeable batteries that are not

7 easily removable rechargeable batteries, persons involved

8 in collecting, storing, or transporting such batteries or

9 products to a facility for recycling or proper disposal shall,

10 notwithstanding any other law, be regulated in the same

11 manner and with the same limitations as if the persons

12 were collecting, storing, or transporting spent lead acid

13 batteries that are recyclable materials subject to regula14 tions of the Environmental Protection Agency under sub15 part G of part 266 of title 40, Code of Federal Regula16 tions, as in effect on January 1, 1995, except that the

17 requirements of title 40 relating to unmanifested waste

18 reports (40 CFR 264.76 and 265.76) and to waste analy19 sis and recordkeeping (40 CFR 268.7) shall not apply.

20 SEC. 105. COOPERATIVE EFFORTS.

21 Notwithstanding any other law, if 2 or more persons

22 who participate in projects or programs to collect and

23 properly manage used rechargeable batteries or products

24 powered by rechargeable batteries advise the Adminis25 trator of their intent, the persons may agree to develop

26 jointly, or to share in the costs of participating in, such
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1 a project or program and to examine and rely on such

2 cost information as is collected during the project or pro3 gram.

4 TITLE II—MERCURY-CONTAIN5 ING BATTERY MANAGEMENT

6 ACT

7 SEC. 201. SHORT TITLE.

8 This title may be cited as the ‘‘Mercury-Containing

9 Battery Management Act’’.

10 SEC. 202. PURPOSE.

11 The purpose of this title is to phase out the use of

12 batteries containing mercury.

13 SEC. 203. LIMITATIONS ON THE SALE OF ALKALINE-MAN14 GANESE BATTERIES CONTAINING MERCURY.

15 No person shall sell, offer for sale, or offer for pro16 motional purposes any alkaline-manganese battery manu17 factured on or after January 1, 1996, with a mercury con18 tent that was intentionally introduced (as distinguished

19 from mercury that may be incidentally present in other

20 materials), except that the limitation on mercury content

21 in alkaline-manganese button cells shall be 25 milligrams

22 of mercury per button cell.
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1 SEC. 204. LIMITATIONS ON THE SALE OF ZINC-CARBON

2 BATTERIES CONTAINING MERCURY.

3 No person shall sell, offer for sale, or offer for pro4 motional purposes any zinc-carbon battery manufactured

5 on or after January 1, 1996, that contains mercury that

6 was intentionally introduced as described in section 203.

7 SEC. 205. LIMITATIONS ON THE SALE OF BUTTON CELL

8 MERCURIC-OXIDE BATTERIES.

9 No person shall sell, offer for sale, or offer for pro10 motional purposes any button cell mercuric-oxide battery

11 for use in the United States on or after January 1, 1996.

12 SEC. 206. LIMITATIONS ON THE SALE OF OTHER MER13 CURIC-OXIDE BATTERIES.

14 (a) PROHIBITION.—On or after January 1, 1996, no

15 person shall sell, offer for sale, or offer for promotional

16 purposes a mercuric-oxide battery for use in the United

17 States unless the battery manufacturer—

18 (1) identifies a collection site that has all re19 quired Federal, State, and local government approv20 als, to which persons may send used mercuric-oxide

21 batteries for recycling or proper disposal;

22 (2) informs each of its purchasers of mercuric23 oxide batteries of the collection site identified under

24 paragraph (1); and

25 (3) informs each of its purchasers of mercuric26 oxide batteries of a telephone number that the pur-
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1 chaser may call to get information about sending

2 mercuric-oxide batteries for recycling or proper dis3 posal.

4 (b) APPLICATION OF SECTION.—This section does

5 not apply to a sale or offer of a mercuric-oxide button

6 cell battery.

7 SEC. 207. NEW PRODUCT OR USE.

8 On petition of a person that proposes a new use for

9 a battery technology described in this title or the use of

10 a battery described in this title in a new product, the Ad11 ministrator may exempt from this title the new use of the

12 technology or the use of such a battery in the new product

13 on the condition, if appropriate, that there exist reason14 able safeguards to ensure that the resulting battery or

15 product without an easily removable battery will not be

16 disposed of in an incinerator, composting facility, or land17 fill (other than a facility regulated under subtitle C of the

18 Solid Waste Disposal Act (42 U.S.C. 6291 et seq.)).

Passed the Senate September 21 (legislative day,

September 5), 1995.

Attest: KELLY D. JOHNSTON,

Secretary.

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