2015 -- H 6095

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     STATE OF RHODE ISLAND

IN GENERAL ASSEMBLY

JANUARY SESSION, A.D. 2015

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A N   A C T

RELATING TO HEALTH AND SAFETY - SUSTAINABLE PACKAGING

     Introduced By: Representatives Blazejewski, Maldonado, Fogarty, Carson, and Tanzi

     Date Introduced: April 16, 2015

     Referred To: House Environment and Natural Resources

     It is enacted by the General Assembly as follows:

     SECTION 1. Title 23 of the General Laws entitled "HEALTH AND SAFETY" is hereby

amended by adding thereto the following chapter:

CHAPTER 19.16

PACKAGING WASTE AND LITTER

     23-19.16-1. Definitions. -- The following terms as used in this chapter shall have the

following meanings:

     (1) "Brand" means a name, symbol, word or mark that identifies a product and attributes

it to a producer as the owner of the brand.

     (2) "Household" means a single detached dwelling unit or a single unit of a multiple

dwelling unit located in this state.

     (3) "Packaging" means any package or container, or any part of a package or container,

that includes material that is used for the containment, protection, handling, delivery and

presentation of goods sold, offered for sale, delivered, or distributed to households in the state.

Packaging for the purposes of this chapter does not include a package or container used solely for

the transportation, display, or storage of products and that would not customarily find its way into

households.

     (4) "Packaging material type" means the type of raw material used in the manufacturing

of packaging. Material types include, but are not limited to, metal, glass, plastic, and paper.

     (5) "Producer" means a person that:

     (i) Has legal ownership of the brand, brand-name or co-brand of a product or material

sold, offered for sale, delivered or distributed in the state that results in waste packaging, whether

or not the producer is located in the state;

     (ii) Makes an unbranded product that is sold, offered for sale or distributed in the state

that results in waste packaging; or

     (iii) Sells packaging at retail, does not have legal ownership of the brand, and elects to

fulfill the responsibilities of the producer for that product.

     (6) "Recycling" means the use of materials contained in previously manufactured goods

as feedstock for new products. Recycling does not include use of materials for energy recovery or

energy generation by combustion.

     (7) "Recycling rate" means the percentage of packaging sold, offered for sale, delivered,

or distributed to households that is collected, processed, and delivered for use in manufacturing

processes or for recycling of usable materials.

     (8) "Retailer" means a person that offers packaging for sale at retail through any means,

including remote offerings such as sales outlets, catalogues, or the Internet. For purposes of this

subsection, "sale at retail" does not include a sale that is a wholesale transaction with a distributor

or a retailer.

     (9) "RIRRC" means the Rhode Island resource recovery corporation.

     (10) "The trust" means the sustainable packaging trust established pursuant to § 23-

19.16-2.

     23-19.16-2. Sustainable packaging trust established. -- There shall be established

within the Rhode Island resource recovery corporation ("RIRRC") a special fund to be known as

the sustainable packaging trust ("the trust"). The following revenue shall be deposited into the

trust:

     (1) All revenues raised by covered producers, pursuant to §§ 23-29.16-4 through 23-

29.16-6;

     (2) Any other revenue appropriated or transferred to the account by the general assembly;

and

     (3) Repayment of low interest loans.

     23-19.16-3. Sustainable packaging advisory council established. -- (a) The council is

hereby established as a public body corporate and politic, constituting an instrument of the

RIRRC and exercising essential governmental functions.

     (b) The council shall act as a business management organization within the RIRRC, on

behalf of the citizens of the state, to manage the trust to boost the collection and recycling or

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composting of packaging sold in or into the state.

     (c) Goal. The council shall act to achieve a recycling rate of seventy-five percent (75%)

by weight for all household packaging by June 1, 2021. Goals by material type and commodity

shall be included in the integrated recycling plan as described in § 23-19.16-4.

      (d) Governance. Governance of the council shall be as follows:

      (1) Membership. All producers of materials, products or product packaging subject to

this chapter sold in or into the state shall be members of the council subject to its rules,

regulations and bylaws and obliged to pay a share of the council's annual costs based on the

market shares of the materials, products and product packaging that each annually sells in or sells

into the state.

     (2) Board of directors. The council shall be governed by a board of directors. The board

shall consist of eleven (11) members appointed by the governor including: the director of the

department of environmental management or designee; the director of RIRRC or designee; three

(3) representatives of producers subject to the fee; one representative of the solid waste

management and recycling industries; one representative of an end-user of recycled materials;

two (2) representatives of statewide environmental organizations; and two (2) representatives of

municipal solid waste programs. The board shall develop its own bylaws in accordance with the

laws of the state. The members of the board shall serve without compensation but are entitled to

reimbursement, solely from the funds of the council, for expenses incurred in the discharge of

their duties.

     23-19.16-4. Integrated recycling and litter prevention plan. -- The council shall plan

and implement a statewide integrated recycling and litter prevention plan for post-consumer

packaging, including composting where applicable, maximizing recovery and litter prevention of

all product packaging sold in or into the state. The plan must include:

     (1) Proposed annual interim recycling goals for 2018, 2019 and 2020;

     (2) Recycling goals for all commodities arising from waste packaging including, but not

limited to: steel cans; aluminum beverage containers; aluminum not used for beverages;

polyethylene terephthalate (PET) beverage containers; PET not used for beverages; high density

polyethylene (HDPE); polyvinyl chloride (PVC); low density polyethylene (LDPE);

polypropylene (PP); polystyrene (PS); plastic bags and film plastic, including flexible film

packaging; beverage container glass; glass containers not used for beverages; aseptic packaging,

cardboard and poly-coated paper packaging; and

     (3) Litter prevention and mitigation targets.

     23-19.16-5. Sustainable packaging trust administration. -- The trust shall be used by

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the council and RIRRC for the exclusive purpose of funding specific activities designed to

achieve the goal pursuant to the goal of achieving a seventy-five percent (75%) recycling rate by

weight for all household packaging and preventing and/or mitigating litter. The trust may be

expended only:

     (1) To fund the development of the integrated recycling plan to achieve the recycling goal

and guide the council's actions;

     (2) To fund pro-rated costs incurred by municipalities to collect packaging waste and

manage it for recycling and reuse, covered in this chapter;

     (3) To fund statewide litter prevention and mitigation efforts;

     (4) To fund statewide outreach and education efforts aimed at increasing recycling and

litter prevention across the state;

     (5) To fund capital improvements to the local waste handling infrastructure for the

collection and recycling of packaging waste, including, but not limited to:

     (i) Investments in materials recovery and compost facilities to compost, recover and

recycle more packaging;

     (ii) Away-from-home recycling; and

     (iii) Market development for packaging material types which currently don't have robust

markets;

     (6) To pay the limited and reasonable cost of the RIRRC and the council to study,

evaluate and report on the status and potential for recycling various components of the packaging

waste stream; and

     (7) To pay the department's and RIRRC's limited and reasonable costs for administering

its responsibilities under this chapter.

     23-19.16-6. Duties of the council and RIRRC. -- (a) Fee-setting. The council shall

determine the annual fees to be paid by each producer of packaging subject to this chapter, and

shall collect fees due, and disperse monies to its contractors and suppliers, and to the RIRRC for

oversight and enforcement as required by this chapter. RIRRC shall charge producers according

to the market share of materials, products and product packaging each sells or sells into the state.

Packaging of any type used to protect, contain or affixed to materials or products prior retail sale

shall be the responsibility of the producer or product brand owner. Among the variables to be

considered in creating the fee structure shall be the following:

     (1) Fees that reward the use of postconsumer material content;

     (2) Fees that reward higher recycling rates for marketable commodity types;

     (3) Fees that reward materials that have higher postconsumer material value;

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     (4) Fees that reward materials with lower relative processing costs; and

     (5) Fees that reward the use of reusable or refillable packaging.

     (b) Outreach and education. From the trust, RIRRC shall spend one dollar ($1.00) per

state resident per year of operation, for public education, advertising and promotion of waste

prevention, reuse and recycling.

     (c) Database of recycling and disposal quantities and costs. RIRRC shall establish a

database of recycling and disposal quantities and costs and the charges and obligations of its

producer members.

     (d) Payments to cities, towns and commission franchisees. RIRRC shall pay cities,

counties, commission franchisees and commercial-sector recycling collectors for the tonnage of

materials, products and product packaging subject to this chapter recycled by each jurisdiction or

entity according to the following schedule, where the recycling rate is the overall municipal solid

waste recycling rate, including reuse and composting, for all materials products and product

packaging achieved by a city or town, or that achieved in a commission franchise area, and

RIRRC's payment is the percentage of the recycling cost to be paid. The recycling rate for any

jurisdiction shall be calculated by the city, town or commission franchisee no less frequently than

every two (2) years.

     Recycling rate Council's payment

     Less than 25% 0%

     25% to 29.99% 5%

     30% to 34.99% 10%

     35% to 39.99% 20%

     40% to 44.99% 30%

     45% to 49.99% 40%

     50% to 54.99% 50%

     55% to 59.99% 60%

     60% to 64.99% 70%

     65% to 69.99% 80%

     70% to 74.99% 90%

     75% and above 100%

     (e) Eligibility for payment. Receiving entities must be held to full cost accounting

practices and demonstrate efficiencies in collection practices to be able to receive funds. One can

achieve high recycling rates with very expensive recovery programs and the council should

develop guidelines to prevent excessive costs.

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     23-19.16-7. Producer responsibility. -- (a) Each producer, group of producers or

producer responsibility organization shall:

     (1) Registration. Producers seeking to sell in or into the state any materials, products and

associated product packaging subject to this chapter on its effective date or as it may be amended

in the future must register with the RIRRC and comply with all the requirements of this chapter

and any rules which later may be developed by the department. Registration and payment of

required fees entitles covered producers to membership in the council;

     (2) Sales reporting. Producers subject to this chapter on its effective date or as it may be

amended in the future shall report to the authority annually by March 31 of each year:

     (i) The total quantities in tons or other agreed-upon measure convertible into tons of all

materials, products and associated product packaging each sold or sold into the state in the

previous calendar year;

     (ii) RIRRC shall use the data producers supply to develop the annual charges due from

each producer.

     (b) Deminimus exemption. The requirements of this chapter do not apply to a producer of

packaging with gross sales in the state of less than one million dollars ($1,000,000).

     23-19.16-8. RIRRC powers and responsibilities. -- (a) RIRRC shall determine whether

the integrated recycling plan and producer program plans and plan updates meet the requirements

of this chapter and notify the applicant in writing of its determination.

     (b) By January 1, 2021, and annually thereafter, RIRRC shall submit a progress report to

the general assembly.

     (c) RIRRC may participate in the establishment of a regional multistate organization or

compact to assist in carrying out the requirements of this chapter and promote uniformity in

administration of packaging requirements in other states.

     23-19.16-9. Existing contracts. -- This chapter shall not void any existing contracts

among municipalities, collectors, transporters and recycling facilities for recycling collection or

processing services.

     23-19.16-10. Prohibition. -- On and after the effective date of a program plan approved

by RIRRC, no person may sell, offer for sale, barter, exchange, give or distribute a product in the

state that results in waste packaging unless the producer of the product or product packaging is a

member of the council with all charges paid.

     23-19.16-11. Enforcement. -- RIRRC may enforce this chapter under the enforcement

granted to it in § 23-19-10.

     23-19.16-12. Private right of action. -- A producer injured by a violation of the

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requirements of this chapter by another producer unable to achieve redress through the actions of

the council or RIRRC shall have a private right of action in the superior court.

     SECTION 2. This act shall take effect upon passage.

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EXPLANATION

BY THE LEGISLATIVE COUNCIL

OF

A N   A C T

RELATING TO HEALTH AND SAFETY - SUSTAINABLE PACKAGING

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     This act would create the sustainable packaging advisory council within the Rhode Island

resource recovery corporation to reduce packaging waste and litter through shared responsibility

for recycling. The act would also establish a sustainable packaging trust. The council would

manage the trust and use its funds to promote the collection, recycling, and composting of

packaging materials sold in or into the state. The resource recovery corporation and the council

would collect fees from products of packaging and pay to municipalities and others from the

tonnage of materials recycled by each entity.

     This act would take effect upon passage.

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