II 

109TH CONGRESS 

1ST SESSION S. 510

To reduce and eliminate electronic waste through recycling. 

IN THE SENATE OF THE UNITED STATES 

MARCH 3, 2005

Mr. WYDEN (for himself and Mr. TALENT) introduced the following bill; which 

was read twice and referred to the Committee on Finance 

A BILL

To reduce and eliminate electronic waste through recycling.

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 Waste Recy5 cling Promotion and Consumer Protection Act’’. 

6 SEC. 2. FINDINGS. 

7 Congress finds that—

8 (1) the National Safety Council estimates 

9 that—

10 (A) in 2003, over 60,000,000 personal 

11 computers became obsolete and between 1997 
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1 and 2007 more than 500,000,000 computers 

2 will need to be discarded; and 

3 (B) at an average weight of 70 pounds, 

4 this will result in over 6,300,000,000 pounds of 

5 plastic and 1,600,000,000 pounds of lead added 

6 to the supply of waste needing to be managed; 

7 (2) according to the Environmental Protection 

8 Agency—

9 (A) a computer monitor or television set 

10 generally contains 4 to 8 pounds of lead; 

11 (B) mercury, cadmium, and other heavy 

12 metals are generally used in such equipment as 

13 well; and 

14 (C) households and businesses in the 

15 United States often do not discard older com16 puters and televisions when buying newer 

17 versions of the same products; 

18 (3) according to experts, the average household 

19 may have between 2 and 3 older computers and tele20 visions in storage, and approximately 20,000,000 to 

21 24,000,000 computers and televisions are placed in 

22 storage each year; 

23 (4) according to the Environmental Protection 

24 Agency, discarded computer, television, and other 

25 electronic equipment—
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1 (A) when not discarded in large quantities, 

2 is currently managed in most States as munic3 ipal solid waste, just like ordinary trash; and 

4 (B) constitute 40 percent of the lead and 

5 70 percent of the heavy metals that are found 

6 in landfills and, if not handled properly, can be 

7 released into the environment, contaminating 

8 air and groundwater and posing a significant 

9 threat to human health, including potential 

10 damage to kidney, brain, and nervous system 

11 function, and cancer in cases of excessive expo12 sure; 

13 (5) materials used in computers, televisions, 

14 and similar electronic products can be recovered 

15 through recycling, which conserves resources and 

16 minimizes the potentially harmful human and envi17 ronmental health effects of those materials; and 

18 (6) establishing a nationwide infrastructure for 

19 electronic waste recycling will—

20 (A) facilitate access of people in the United 

21 States to recycling services; and 

22 (B) improve the efficiency and use of elec23 tronic waste recycling. 

24 SEC. 3. DEFINITIONS. 

25 In this Act: 
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1 (1) ADMINISTRATOR.—The term ‘‘Adminis2 trator’’ means the Administrator of the Environ3 mental Protection Agency. 

4 (2) CATHODE RAY TUBE.—The term ‘‘cathode 

5 ray tube’’ means a vacuum tube used to convert an 

6 electronic signal into a visual image, for use in a 

7 computer monitor, television, or other piece of elec8 tronic equipment. 

9 (3) COMPUTER.—

10 (A) IN GENERAL.—The term ‘‘computer’’ 

11 means an electronic, magnetic, optical, electro12 chemical, or other high speed data processing 

13 device that performs logical, arithmetic, or stor14 age functions. 

15 (B) EXCLUSIONS.—The term ‘‘computer’’ 

16 does not include an automated typewriter or 

17 typesetter, video game console, portable hand 

18 held calculator, personal digital assistant, cel19 lular telephone, or other similar device. 

20 (4) CONSUMER.—The term ‘‘consumer’’ 

21 means—

22 (A) an occupant of a single, detached 

23 dwelling unit or a single unit of a multiple 

24 dwelling unit who—
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1 (i) has used a computer monitor, a 

2 television, or another piece of electronic 

3 equipment that contains a display screen 

4 or a system unit; and 

5 (ii) used the equipment described in 

6 subparagraph (A) at the dwelling unit of 

7 the occupant; and 

8 (B) a commercial, educational, or other en9 tity that discarded for recycling not more than 

10 20 display screens or system units per year dur11 ing the previous 5 years. 

12 (5) DISPLAY SCREEN—

13 (A) IN GENERAL.—The term ‘‘display 

14 screen’’ means a cathode ray tube, flat panel 

15 screen, or other similar video display device 

16 with a screen size of greater than 4 inches, 

17 measured diagonally. 

18 (B) EXCLUSION.—The term ‘‘display 

19 screen’’ does not include commercial or indus20 trial equipment, or household appliances, that 

21 contain—

22 (i) a cathode ray tube; 

23 (ii) a flat panel screen; or 

24 (iii) another similar video device.
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1 (6) HAZARDOUS WASTE.—The term ‘‘hazardous 

2 waste’’ has the meaning given the term in section 

3 1004 of the Solid Waste Disposal Act (42 U.S.C. 

4 6903). 

5 (7) RECYCLE—The term ‘‘recycle’’ means the 

6 performance of a process by 1 or more persons by 

7 which a display screen or a system unit is—

8 (A) sorted; 

9 (B) if necessary, transported; 

10 (C) to the maximum extent practicable, 

11 separated to recover any component or com12 modity inside the display screen or system unit 

13 that can be reduced to raw materials or prod14 ucts; and 

15 (D) treated such that any remaining mate16 rial is disposed of properly and in an environ17 mentally sound manner consistent with the 

18 Solid Waste Disposal Act (42 U.S.C. 6901 et 

19 seq.). 

20 (8) SYSTEM UNIT.—The term ‘‘system unit’’ 

21 means—

22 (A) the casing or portion of a computer 

23 that contains the central processing unit, which 

24 performs the primary quantity of data proc25 essing; and 
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1 (B) the unit that, together with the mem2 ory, forms the central part of the computer, to 

3 which peripheral devices may be attached. 

4 (9) UNIVERSAL WASTE.—The term ‘‘universal 

5 waste’’ has the meaning given the term in the Envi6 ronmental Protection Agency Standards of Universal 

7 Waste Management established under section 273 of 

8 title 40, Code of Federal Regulations (and successor 

9 regulations). 

10 SEC. 4. CREDIT FOR RECYCLING ELECTRONIC WASTE. 

11 (a) IN GENERAL.—Subpart B of part IV of sub12 chapter A of chapter 1 of the Internal Revenue Code of 

13 1986 is amended by adding at the end the following new 

14 section: 

15 ‘‘SEC. 30B. CREDIT FOR RECYCLING ELECTRONIC WASTE. 

16 ‘‘(a) ALLOWANCE OF CREDIT.—In the case of an eli17 gible taxpayer, there shall be allowed as a credit against 

18 the tax imposed by this chapter for the taxable year an 

19 amount equal to $8 per unit of qualified electronic waste 

20 that is collected from consumers and recycled. 

21 ‘‘(b) ELIGIBLE TAXPAYER.—For purposes of this 

22 section, the term ‘eligible taxpayer’ means any person 

23 which—

24 ‘‘(1) collects from consumers and recycles, or 

25 arranges for the recycling of, not less than 5,000 
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1 units of qualified electronic waste during that per2 son’s taxable year, 

3 ‘‘(2) submits with the person’s tax return docu4 mentation of the final destination of all units of elec5 tronic waste collected from consumers during the 

6 person’s taxable year for the purpose of recycling, 

7 and 

8 ‘‘(3) certifies that all reclamation and recycling 

9 carried out by the person was performed by an eligi10 ble recycler. 

11 ‘‘(c) DEFINITIONS.—For purposes of this section—

12 ‘‘(1) QUALIFIED ELECTRONIC WASTE.—The 

13 term ‘qualified electronic waste’ means any display 

14 screen or any system unit. 

15 ‘‘(2) CONSUMER, DISPLAY SCREEN; RECYCLE; 

16 SYSTEM UNIT.—The terms ‘consumer’, ‘display 

17 screen’, ‘recycle’, and ‘system unit’ have the mean18 ing given the terms by section 3 of the Electronic 

19 Waste Recycling Promotion and Consumer Protec20 tion Act. 

21 ‘‘(d) DISALLOWANCE OF CREDIT.—No credit shall be 

22 allowed under this section for recycling a unit of qualified 

23 electronic waste which is collected from a consumer in a 

24 State which has adopted and implemented a statewide pro25 gram in accordance with State law which mandates or pro-
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1 vides incentives for recycling electronic waste, including a 

2 mandatory per-unit, upfront charge to consumers for the 

3 purpose of recycling electronic waste. 

4 ‘‘(e) FINAL REGULATIONS.—

5 ‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—Not later than the date 

6 which is 180 days after the date of the enactment 

7 of this section, the Secretary, after consultation with 

8 the Administrator of the Environmental Protection 

9 Agency, shall issue such final regulations as may be 

10 necessary and appropriate to carry out this section. 

11 ‘‘(2) INCLUSION.—

12 ‘‘(A) IN GENERAL.—Subject to subpara13 graph (B), the regulations issued under para14 graph (1) shall include—

15 ‘‘(i) requirements for certifying recy16 clers as eligible to recycle qualified elec17 tronic waste, 

18 ‘‘(ii) requirements to ensure that all 

19 recycling of qualified electronic waste is 

20 performed in a manner that is safe and en21 vironmentally sound, and 

22 ‘‘(iii) a provision which allows a tax 

23 credit under this section to be shared by 2 

24 or more eligible taxpayers, provided that 

25 the total tax credit for a unit of electronic 
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1 waste under this section does not exceed 

2 $8. 

3 ‘‘(B) LIMITATION.—The Secretary shall 

4 not certify a recycler as eligible under this sub5 section unless the recycler is—

6 ‘‘(i) a taxpayer, or 

7 ‘‘(ii) a State or local government. 

8 ‘‘(f) TERMINATION.—This section shall not apply 

9 with respect to any unit of qualified electronic waste which 

10 is recycled after the date which is 3 years after the date 

11 on which the final regulations issued pursuant to subpara12 graph (e) take effect.’’. 

13 (b) CONFORMING AMENDMENT.—The table of sec14 tions for subpart B of part IV of subchapter A of chapter 

15 1 of the Internal Revenue Code of 1986 is amended by 

16 adding at the end the following new item:

‘‘Sec. 30B. Credit for recycling electronic waste.’’.

17 (c) EFFECTIVE DATE.—The amendments made by 

18 this section shall apply with respect to display screens and 

19 system units recycled after the date on which the final 

20 regulations issued pursuant to section 30B of subpart B 

21 of part IV of subchapter A of chapter 1 of the Internal 

22 Revenue Code of 1986 (as added by this section) take ef23 fect.
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1 SEC. 5. CONSUMER CREDIT FOR RECYCLING ELECTRONIC 

2 WASTE. 

3 (a) IN GENERAL.—Subpart A of part IV of sub4 chapter A of chapter 1 of the Internal Revenue Code of 

5 1986 is amended by inserting after section 25B the fol6 lowing new section: 

7 ‘‘SEC. 25C. CONSUMER CREDIT FOR RECYCLING ELEC8 TRONIC WASTE. 

9 ‘‘(a) ALLOWANCE OF CREDIT.—In the case of an eli10 gible consumer, there shall be allowed as a credit against 

11 the tax imposed by this chapter for the taxable year an 

12 amount equal to $15 for the recycling of 1 or more units 

13 of qualified electronic waste. 

14 ‘‘(b) ELIGIBLE CONSUMER.—For purposes of this 

15 section, the term ‘eligible consumer’ means any indi16 vidual—

17 ‘‘(1) with respect to whom a credit under this 

18 section has not been allowed in any preceding tax19 able year, and 

20 ‘‘(2) who submits with the individual’s tax re21 turn such information as the Secretary requires to 

22 document that each unit of qualified electronic waste 

23 was recycled by a recycler certified by the Secretary 

24 pursuant to subsection (d). 

25 ‘‘(c) DEFINITIONS.—For purposes of this section—
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1 ‘‘(1) QUALIFIED ELECTRONIC WASTE.—The 

2 term ‘qualified electronic waste’ means any display 

3 screen or any system unit. 

4 ‘‘(2) CONSUMER, DISPLAY SCREEN; RECYCLE; 

5 SYSTEM UNIT.—The terms ‘consumer’, ‘display 

6 screen’, ‘recycle’, and ‘system unit’ have the mean7 ing given the terms by section 3 of the Electronic 

8 Waste Recycling Promotion and Consumer Protec9 tion Act. 

10 ‘‘(d) FINAL REGULATIONS.—

11 ‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—Not later than the date 

12 which is 180 days after the date of the enactment 

13 of this section, the Secretary, after consultation with 

14 the Administrator of the Environmental Protection 

15 Agency, shall issue such final regulations as may be 

16 necessary and appropriate to carry out this section. 

17 ‘‘(2) INCLUSION.—

18 ‘‘(A) IN GENERAL.—Subject to subpara19 graph (B), the regulations issued under para20 graph (1) shall include—

21 ‘‘(i) requirements for certifying recy22 clers as eligible to recycle qualified elec23 tronic waste, and 

24 ‘‘(ii) requirements to ensure that all 

25 recycling of qualified electronic waste is 
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1 performed in a manner that is safe and en2 vironmentally sound. 

3 ‘‘(B) LIMITATION.—The Secretary shall 

4 not certify a recycler as eligible under this sub5 section unless the recycler is—

6 ‘‘(i) a taxpayer, or 

7 ‘‘(ii) a State or local government. 

8 ‘‘(e) TERMINATION.—This section shall not apply 

9 with respect to any unit of qualified electronic waste which 

10 is recycled after the date which is 3 years after the date 

11 on which the final regulations issued pursuant to sub12 section (d) take effect.’’. 

13 (b) CONFORMING AMENDMENTS.—

14 (1) Section 26(a)(1) of the Internal Revenue 

15 Code of 1986 is amended by striking ‘‘and 25B’’ 

16 and inserting ‘‘25B, and 25C’’. 

17 (2) The table of sections for subpart A of part 

18 IV of subchapter A of chapter 1 of such Code is 

19 amended by inserting after the item relating to sec20 tion 25B the following new item:

‘‘Sec. 25C. Consumer credit for recycling electronic waste.’’.

21 (c) EFFECTIVE DATE.—The amendments made by 

22 this section shall apply with respect to display screens and 

23 system units recycled after the date on which the final 

24 regulations issued pursuant to section 30B of subpart A 

25 of part IV of subchapter A of chapter 1 of the Internal 
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1 Revenue Code of 1986 (as added by this section) take ef2 fect. 

3 SEC. 6. PROHIBITIONS OF DISPOSAL WITHOUT RECYCLING. 

4 (a) DISPLAY SCREEN AND SYSTEM UNIT DISPOSAL

5 BAN.—

6 (1) IN GENERAL.—Effective beginning on the 

7 date that is 3 years after the date of enactment of 

8 this Act, if the Administrator determines that a ma9 jority of households in the United States have suffi10 cient access to a recycling service for display screens 

11 and system units, it shall be unlawful for the oper12 ator of a landfill, incinerator, or any other facility 

13 for the transfer, disposal, or storage of municipal 

14 solid waste to knowingly receive from a consumer a 

15 display screen or system unit, except for the purpose 

16 of recycling or arranging for the recycling of the dis17 play screen or system unit by a recycler certified as 

18 an eligible recycler by the Administrator. 

19 (2) PROCEDURES.—Not later than 180 days 

20 after the date of enactment of this Act, the Adminis21 trator shall develop and issue guidelines covering 

22 waste handlers and waste transfer stations to assist 

23 in developing recycling procedures for display 

24 screens and system units. 
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1 (3) EXEMPTIONS.—As part of the guidelines 

2 issued pursuant to paragraph (2), the Administrator 

3 shall classify display screens and system units as 

4 universal waste and provide for the exemption of dis5 play screens and system units from the requirements 

6 of the Solid Waste Disposal Act (42 U.S.C. 6901 et 

7 seq.) as necessary to facilitate the collection, storage, 

8 and transportation of display screens and system 

9 units for the purpose of recycling. 

10 (b) ENFORCEMENT.—A violation of subsection (a) by 

11 any person or entity shall be subject to enforcement under 

12 applicable provisions of the Solid Waste Disposal Act (42 

13 U.S.C. 6901 et seq.). 

14 SEC. 7. RECYCLING OF DISPLAY SCREENS AND SYSTEM 

15 UNITS PROCURED BY THE FEDERAL GOVERN16 MENT. 

17 (a) DEFINITION OF EXECUTIVE AGENCY.—In this 

18 section, the term ‘‘executive agency’’ has the meaning 

19 given the term in section 11101 of title 40, United States 

20 Code. 

21 (b) REQUIREMENT FOR RECYCLING.—The head of 

22 each executive agency shall ensure that each display 

23 screen and system unit procured by the Federal Govern24 ment—
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1 (1) is recovered upon the termination of the 

2 need of the Federal Government for the display 

3 screen or system unit; and 

4 (2) is recycled by a recycler certified as an eligi5 ble recycler by the Administrator through—

6 (A) a program established after the date of 

7 enactment of this Act by the executive agency, 

8 either alone or in conjunction with 1 or more 

9 other executive agencies; or 

10 (B) any other program for recycling or 

11 reusing display screens and system units. 

12 SEC. 8. NATIONWIDE RECYCLING PROGRAM. 

13 (a) STUDY.—

14 (1) IN GENERAL.—The Administrator, in con15 sultation with appropriate executive agencies (as de16 termined by the Administrator), shall conduct a 

17 study of the feasibility of establishing a nationwide 

18 recycling program for electronic waste that preempts 

19 any State recycling program. 

20 (2) INCLUSIONS.—The study shall include an 

21 analysis of multiple programs, including programs 

22 involving—

23 (A) the collection of an advanced recycling 

24 fee; 

25 (B) the collection of an end-of-life fee; 
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1 (C) producers of electronics assuming the 

2 responsibility and the cost of recycling elec3 tronic waste; and 

4 (D) the extension of a tax credit for recy5 cling electronic waste. 

6 (b) REPORT.—Not later than 1 year after the date 

7 of enactment of this Act, the Administrator shall submit 

8 to Congress a report describing—

9 (1) the results of the study conducted under 

10 subsection (a); 

11 (2) 1 or more prospective nationwide recycling 

12 programs, including—

13 (A) a cost-benefit analysis of each pro14 gram, including—

15 (i) the cost of the program to—

16 (I) consumers; 

17 (II) manufacturers; 

18 (III) retailers; and 

19 (IV) recyclers; and 

20 (ii) the estimated overhead and ad21 ministrative expenses of carrying out and 

22 monitoring the program; and 

23 (B) the quantity of display screens and 

24 system units projected to be recycled under the 

25 program; 
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1 (3)(A) the benefits of establishing a nationwide 

2 take-back provision that would require, as part of 

3 the program, all manufacturers of display screens or 

4 system units for sale in the United States to collect 

5 and recycle, or arrange for the recycling of, display 

6 screens and system units; and 

7 (B) a projection of the quantity of display 

8 screens and system units that would be recycled an9 nually under a nationwide take-back provision; 

10 (4)(A) any emerging electronic waste streams, 

11 such as—

12 (i) cellular telephones; and 

13 (ii) personal digital assistants; and 

14 (B) a cost-benefit analysis of including an 

15 emerging electronic waste stream in a national recy16 cling program; and 

17 (5) the progress of the Administrator in car18 rying out section 6, including—

19 (A) information on enforcement of the pro20 hibition; and 

21 (B) any increase in recycling as a result of 

22 the prohibition.

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