Electronic Waste Recycling

Collectors, Recyclers, and Refurbishers
of Electronic Waste

Public Act 95-0959 - Electronic Products Recycling & Reuse Act

I.   Introduction

Public Act 95-0959 became the law of the State of Illinois in September 2008. The law establishes a statewide system for recycling and/or reusing computers (including laptops), monitors, televisions, and printers discarded from residences (collectively, "covered electronic devices", or "CEDs"). While electronic equipment discarded from non-residential sources is exempt from this Act, owners of such equipment must follow any applicable regulations if the waste is hazardous.

A complete version of the Act may be viewed on the Illinois General Assembly website.

The purpose of this document is to provide a basic understanding of the Act, as well as the responsibilities of, and opportunities for, CED collectors, recyclers, and refurbishers (collectively, "processors").

Where appropriate, this page differentiates between the responsibilities of the various types of processors.

II.   Definitions of Processors

Several definitions within the Act are relevant for processors. When reviewing each definition, be sure to consider not only which definition(s) best fit your company today, but also which definition(s) might fit your company in the future. In all cases, the term "person" refers to an individual, partnership, corporation, etc. as defined in the Act. The difference between a covered electronic device (CED) and an eligible electronic device (EED) is covered in Section III below.

"Collector" means a person who receives covered electronic devices or eligible electronic devices directly from a residence for recycling or processing for reuse. "Collector" includes, but is not limited to, manufacturers, recyclers, and refurbishers who receive CEDs or EEDs directly from the public.

"Processing for reuse" means any method, technique, or process by which CEDs or EEDs that would otherwise be disposed of or discarded are instead separated, processed, and returned to their original intended purposes or to other useful purposes as electronic devices.

"Recycler" means a person who engages in the recycling of CEDs or EEDs, but does not include telecommunications carriers, telecommunications manufacturers, or commercial mobile service providers with an existing recycling program.

"Recycling" means any method, technique, or process by which CEDs or EEDs that would otherwise be disposed of or discarded are instead collected, separated, or processed and are returned to the economic mainstream in the form of raw materials or products. "Recycling" includes the collection, transportation, dismantling, and shredding of the CEDs or EEDs.

"Refurbisher" means any person who processes CEDs or EEDs for reuse, but does not include telecommunications carriers, telecommunications manufacturers, or commercial mobile service providers with an existing recycling program.

III.   Basic Provisions of the Act

The Act sets forth the following:

• Manufacturers of computers, computer monitors, televisions, and printers (collectively, "covered electronic devices" or "CEDs") must meet an annual recycling/refurbishment goal set for each manufacturer in tons by the Illinois EPA.
• The cost of meeting the annual CED recycling/refurbishment goal is the responsibility of electronics manufacturers. Manufacturers cannot charge residents a fee for recycling.
• Electronics retailers will primarily be responsible for consumer education, using materials provided by the Illinois EPA to inform their customers of the new recycling requirements.
• Each recycler and refurbisher must register with the Agency and remit a registration fee. Only those recyclers and refurbishers that have submitted the registration form and remitted the fee are permitted by the Act to engage in CED or EED recycling in Illinois.
• Pursuant to appropriation, registration fees from recyclers, refurbishers, and manufacturers will be used by the Illinois EPA for its administration of the Act.
• To provide an incentive for the collection of electronic equipment that is not a CED (e.g., DVD players, fax machines, and other equipment listed in the Act), the weight of these "eligible electronic devices" (collectively "EEDs") also counts toward a manufacturer's annual recycling goal. See Definitions in the Act.
• To ensure that electronic recycling is available in all areas of the State, the Act provides "double credit" for the total weight of CEDs recycled or refurbished in "underserved counties" of the state. These are counties in which little electronic recycling infrastructure exist. See Section 30(d)(3) and Section 60 of the Act.
• To provide additional incentive for refurbishing discarded residential equipment, the Act provides "triple credit" for the total weight of CEDs refurbished and then donated to public schools, underprivileged individuals and the disabled through 501(c)3 non-profit organizations. See Section 30(d)(2) of the Act.
• Section 50(d) lists a set of environmental and safety standards with which recyclers and refurbishers must comply. In addition, manufacturers are also required to ensure that their recycling/refurbishment partners comply with the Section 50(d) standards. Please review this section carefully, as these standards include:
  • Minimum wage compliance
  • Occupational and environmental health standards, including an annual audit for compliance with those standards
  • Workers' compensation, employers' liability insurance, commercial liability insurance, and pollution legal liability insurance requirements
  • Proof of resources to cover any environmental costs incurred upon the closure of a recycler's or refurbisher's facility
  • Implementation of an environmental management system
  • Regulations related to e-waste processing
  • Rules regarding the export of e-waste
  • Specific procedures for the destruction of sanitization of data on data storage devices
  • Ban on the use of prison labor
• Section 55 contains a set of requirements specifically for collectors:
  • All collectors must submit a registration to the Agency. No registration fee is required for persons acting only as collectors. Only those collectors that have submitted the registration will be considered eligible by the Illinois EPA to act as a collector for a manufacturer obligated to meet its annual recycling goal. Collectors who register are listed on the Illinois EPA's website. This list is updated as registration forms and fees are received.
  • Recyclers and refurbishers also acting as collectors need not register separately as collectors, but should check the appropriate processor categories on the registration form
  • Annual reporting requirements documenting the amount of e-waste collected, where it was collected, and where it was taken
  • Limit of 10 CEDs or EEDs to be accepted at one time from individual members of the public
  • Notice requirement to county waste agencies regarding collection events
• Beginning January 1, 2012, CEDs are banned from Illinois landfills.
• Penalties for violations of the Act are listed in Sections 95 and 80(f).

IV.   Sampling, Reporting, and Labeling Requirements of the Act

• Section 30(e) of the Act requires manufacturers, either individually or as a group, to hire a third-party auditor once per calendar quarter during the program year. The auditor's task is to perform statistically significant return share samplings at recyclers' or refurbishers' facilities, which can also include collection locations. This requirement applies to all electronics manufacturers that received a recycling/refurbishment goal based either entirely, or in part, on information technology product return share data. A manufacturer that received a goal based solely on television market share is not required to follow this sampling requirement.
  • A report of each sampling day is to be submitted to the Illinois EPA within 30 days after the calendar quarter in which the sampling day(s) took place. The data to be included in the report are summarized in Section 30(e).
  • The Illinois EPA is to be advised 30 days prior to each sampling day, of where and when the sampling will occur. Please do this by sending an e-mail to EPA.E-Recycling@illinois.gov.
  • Should a manufacturer instead wish to track all CEDs and EEDs returned for recycling per the requirements in Section 30(e), this is in effect a 100% return share sampling activity and is permitted. Manufacturers choosing this option must hire an auditor to perform a once-a-quarter inspection of a sampling day per the requirements in Section 30(e).
  • Please note that a manufacturer achieving its annual goal by purchasing the rights to CEDs and EEDs collected by another manufacturer and/or its recycler/refurbisher/collector, must ensure that the pounds purchased have been sampled per the requirements in Section 30(e) and can provide the required documentation to the Illinois EPA.
• Section 30(i) and 30(j) prescribe reporting requirements for television and information technology manufacturers, respectively, for program year 2010.
  • Manufacturers of both televisions and IT CEDs may submit one report by September 1, 2010 containing all the required data listed in both Section 30(i) and 30(j), and summarized below.
  • For television manufacturers, the first report is due September 1, 2010, and covers the period January 1, 2010 through June 30, 2010. This report must include:
  • The total weight of televisions sold to residential customers in Illinois between 1/1/10-6/30/10, per the retailer requirement in Section 40(d). This report can be identical in format to the sales-by-weight report submitted in summer 2009 for the period 10/1/08-3/31/09.
  • The total weight of televisions, the total weight of computers, the total weight of monitors, and the total weight of printers recycled or processed for reuse. The total weight of each product type should be listed separately. There is no requirement to break down CEDs by brand.
  • The total weight of EEDs, as a group. There is no requirement to break down EEDs by brand, product type, or other category.
  • For IT manufacturers, the first report is due August 15, 2010 and covers the period January 1, 2010 through June 30, 2010. This report must include:
  • The total weight of televisions, the total weight of computers, the total weight of monitors, and the total weight of printers recycled or processed for reuse. The total weight of each product type should be listed separately. There is no requirement to break down CEDs by brand.
  • The total weight of EEDs, as a group. There is no requirement to break down EEDs by brand, product type, or other category.
• Section 55(c) prescribes reporting requirements for collectors.
  • The first report is due August 15, 2010, and covers the period January 1, 2010 through June 30, 2010.
  • This report must include:
  • The total weight of televisions, the total weight of computers, the total weight of monitors, and the total weight of printers collected or received for each manufacturer with which the collector is receiving CEDs and/or EEDs. The total weight of each product type should be listed separately. There is no requirement to break down CEDs by brand.
  • The total weight of EEDs, as a group. There is no requirement to break down EEDs by brand, product type, or other category.
  • The phrase "collected or received for each manufacturer" means the manufacturer for which the collector is receiving material to help that manufacturer achieve its annual recycling/refurbishment goal.
  • To clarify, assume a collector is receiving CEDs and EEDs for two manufacturers. The report should break down the CEDs and EEDs as noted above for each of those two manufacturers so the Illinois EPA can calculate how well each of the two manufacturers is achieving its annual goal.
• Section 19(c) requires the Illinois EPA to use the greater of the two volumes reported by manufacturers or collectors in its calculations of the overall statewide goal for the following program year.
• Sections 30(n) and (o) state that starting January 1, 2010:
• No manufacturer may sell a computer, monitor, television, or printer to residential customers in Illinois without having registered with the Illinois EPA and remitted the registration fee.
• No manufacturer may sell a computer, monitor, television, or printer to residential customers in Illinois unless the manufacturer's brand name is permanently affixed to, and is readily visible on, the computer, monitor, television, or printer.
• To make future recycling more efficient, the Illinois EPA recommends that manufacturers begin including in this label the weight of the product. This is not a requirement, however.

V.   What Processors Should Do Now

The $2,018 registration fee should be payable to the Illinois Environmental Protection Agency, Electronics Recycling Fund and mailed to:

Illinois Environmental Protection Agency
Electronics Recycling Fund
1021 N. Grand Avenue East
Springfield, IL 62794-9276
Attn: Michelle Bentley