Stricken language would be deleted from and underlined language would be added to present law.
Act 676 of the Regular Session
*CRH086* 2/22/2023 2:15:46 PM CRH086
State of Arkansas 1
94th General Assembly A Bill 2
Regular Session, 2023 SENATE BILL 310 3
4
By: Senator M. Johnson 5
6
For An Act To Be Entitled 7
AN ACT TO REPEAL THE ELECTRONI C WASTE COLLECTION, 8
RECYCLING, AND REUSE ACT; AND FOR OTHER P URPOSES. 9
10
11
Subtitle 12
TO REPEAL THE ELECTRONIC WASTE 13
COLLECTION, RECYCLING, AND REUSE ACT. 14
15
16
BE IT ENACTED BY THE GENERAL ASSEMBLY OF THE STATE OF ARKANSAS: 17
18
SECTION 1. Arkansas Code Title 8, Chapter 9, Subchapter 7, is 19
repealed. 20
Subchapter 7 — Electronic Waste Collection, Recycling, and Reuse Act 21
22
8-9-701. Title. 23
This subchapter shall be known and may be cited as the “Electronic 24
Waste Collection, Recycling, and Reuse Act”. 25
26
8-9-702. Legislative intent. 27
The purpose of this subchapter is to: 28
(1) Promote recycling in order to conserve natural resources, 29
conserve energy, and preserve landfill space; 30
(2) Protect the public health and the quality of the state's 31
environment through the establishment of a comprehensive, convenient, 32
efficient, affordable, and environmentally sound electronic waste recycling 33
program for the disposition of consumer electronic items and the potentially 34
hazardous chemicals contained in the consumer electronic items; 35
(3) Standardize and provide criteria for the collection of 36 SB310
2 2/22/2023 2:15:46 PM CRH086
consumer electronic items through local and regional collection points; 1
(4) Recognize outdated, obsolete, malfunctioning, or discarded 2
electronic equipment as consu mer electronic items, referred to as “e -waste”; 3
(5) Require effective and efficient criteria for the collection, 4
transport, recycling, reuse, or disposal of consumer electronic items, thus 5
capturing this part of the waste stream and diverting the consum er electronic 6
items from the state's landfills; 7
(6) Sustain the electronic waste recycling program by 8
encouraging public participation and by requiring participation by certain 9
state-supported entities; and 10
(7) Instill confidence in the operation of the electronic waste 11
recycling program through proper management and accountability, including 12
without limitation public contract administration and reporting to designated 13
state regulators. 14
15
8-9-703. Definitions. 16
As used in this subchapter: 17
(1) “Cathode ray tube” means a vacuum tube composed primarily of 18
glass that is the visual or video display component of an electronic device; 19
(2) “Component” means any part of a consumer electronic item; 20
(3) “Consumer electronic item” means an electronic ite m or other 21
electronic waste containing an intact or broken cathode ray tube, including 22
without limitation a: 23
(A) Television; 24
(B) Computer monitor; 25
(C) Cathode ray tube monitor or display device; 26
(D) Personal computer or computer component; 27
(E) Audio or stereo player; 28
(F) Videocassette recorder or player; 29
(G) Digital videodisc recorder or player; 30
(H) Video camera; 31
(I) Telephone; 32
(J) Facsimile or copying machine; 33
(K) Printer; 34
(L) Cellular telephone; 35
(M) Wireless paging device; 36 SB310
3 2/22/2023 2:15:46 PM CRH086
(N) Video game console; 1
(O) Device containing or requiring a hard drive; or 2
(P) High-capacity self-contained storage device; 3
(4) “Contract administrator” means a public entity that performs 4
supervision, coordination, or a dministration of county, municipal, or state 5
solid waste, recycling, or reuse programs with: 6
(A) Demonstrated experience in the monthly collection of 7
consumer electronic items; and 8
(B) A minimum annual collection of consumer electronic 9
items in excess of two hundred (200) tons; 10
(5) “Contractor” means a person who: 11
(A) Owns or operates a corporate recycling entity with 12
multiple locations in the state; and 13
(B) Has a minimum of three (3) years' experience in the 14
collection, recovery, transpo rt, recycling, refurbishing, marketing, and 15
distribution for reuse of consumer electronic items; 16
(6) “Eligible entity” means an entity located in the state and 17
includes without limitation a: 18
(A) Single-family or multifamily household; 19
(B) Small business or nonprofit corporation with less than 20
five hundred (500) full -time employees; 21
(C) Planning and development district; 22
(D) Regional solid waste management district; and 23
(E) State-supported entity; 24
(7) “State-supported entity” includ es without limitation a 25
department, commission, council, board, committee, institution, legislative 26
body, agency, government corporation, educational institution, or office of 27
the executive, legislative, or judicial branch of the government of this 28
state; 29
(8) “Used, broken cathode ray tube” means a cathode ray tube 30
with glass removed from its housing or casing whose vacuum has been released; 31
and 32
(9) “Used, intact cathode ray tube” means a cathode ray tube 33
whose vacuum has not been released. 34
35
8-9-704. Consumer electronic items recovery plan. 36 SB310
4 2/22/2023 2:15:46 PM CRH086
(a) Before a program for the collection, recovery, transport, 1
recycling, refurbishing, and marketing and distribution for reuse of consumer 2
electronic items may be established, a contract administrator shall: 3
(1) Develop a recovery plan; and 4
(2) Submit the recovery plan to the Division of Environmental 5
Quality. 6
(b)(1) The recovery plan required under subsection (a) of this section 7
shall be updated every five (5) years from the start date of the initial 8
approval of the recovery plan. 9
(2) At a minimum, the recovery plan shall include a: 10
(A) Prohibition of a recycling fee at the retail point of 11
purchase or point of sale of a consumer electronic item; 12
(B) Reasonable and convenient access to recovery and 13
collection options for an eligible entity, including local and regional 14
collection options; 15
(C) Comprehensive, convenient, and environmentally and 16
economically sound collection system operated by a contractor and supervised 17
and administered by a c ontract administrator that may include specific 18
logistical criteria including without limitation the location, size, and 19
number of eligible entities; 20
(D) Plan for marketing and distribution of collected 21
consumer electronic items or components for indiv idual, business, 22
educational, or other use; 23
(E) Sustainability plan ensuring appropriate public or 24
private funding of the program, which may include grants, appropriations, 25
donations, or fees-for-service; 26
(F) Communications and promotion program in forming an 27
eligible entity on how and where consumer electronic items may be collected 28
and recovered for recycling and reuse in compliance with Arkansas law, 29
including a website that the general public and eligible entities may access 30
to be informed how an d where to return consumer electronic items for 31
recovery, recycling, refurbishing, and marketing and distribution for reuse; 32
and 33
(G) Condition or requirement as may be required by the 34
contract administrator. 35
36 SB310
5 2/22/2023 2:15:46 PM CRH086
8-9-705. Contractor services and experien ce. 1
(a) Collection and recovery services provided by a contractor and 2
managed by a contract administrator may use existing collection 3
infrastructure for handling consumer electronic items. 4
(b) A contractor providing collection and recovery services and 5
managed by a contract administrator shall: 6
(1) Own or operate multiple locations in the state; 7
(2) Have a minimum of three (3) years' experience in collecting 8
and processing consumer electronic items for recycling and reuse; and 9
(3) Be certified or accredited by national and international 10
electronic and environmental standards and practices organizations, including 11
without limitation the following: 12
(A) e-Stewards Standard for Ethical and Responsible Reuse, 13
Recycling, and Disposition of Electro nic Equipment and Information 14
Technology; 15
(B) ISO 14001:2015 Environmental management systems; or 16
(C) ISO 45001:2018 Occupational health and safety 17
management systems. 18
19
8-9-706. Collection logistics. 20
Collection and recovery services and collecti on points: 21
(1) Shall be designated by the contract administrator to further 22
the promotion of recycling in order to conserve natural resources, conserve 23
energy, and preserve landfill space; and 24
(2) May be limited to areas of the state identified by the 25
contract administrator through specific criteria, including without 26
limitation: 27
(A) Residential population density; 28
(B) Contiguousness of counties or municipalities in the 29
state; 30
(C) State and federal highways; and 31
(D) Existing collecti on infrastructure and location and 32
size and number of eligible entities. 33
34
8-9-707. Collection and participation. 35
(a) An effective and sustainable collection, recovery, transport, 36 SB310
6 2/22/2023 2:15:46 PM CRH086
recycling, refurbishing, and marketing and distribution for reuse of cons umer 1
electronic items program protecting the environmental quality of this state 2
shall require no less than two (2) levels of participation by eligible 3
entities. 4
(b) A contractor, managed by a contract administrator, may provide 5
collection and recovery s ervices for consumer electronic items from eligible 6
entities in accordance with the recovery plan. 7
(c)(1) An eligible state -supported entity shall participate in the 8
program. 9
(2) The Marketing and Redistribution Section, or any state -10
supported entity that oversees the redistribution and sale of state surplus 11
property, shall assist in the facilitation of participation in the program. 12
(d) An eligible entity other than a state -supported entity using 13
consumer electronic items may: 14
(1) Be encouraged an d incentivized to participate in collection 15
contracts and permanent and temporary collection points; and 16
(2) Participate through a fee -for-service collection program. 17
18
8-9-708. Compliance with law. 19
All consumer electronic items recovered and collecte d under this 20
subchapter shall be recycled or otherwise disposed of in a manner that 21
complies with federal, state, and local law. 22
23
8-9-709. Disposal. 24
Contractors shall only dispose of consumer electronic items or 25
components that: 26
(1) Cannot be refurbi shed or recycled for reuse in a manner 27
consistent with their original use; or 28
(2) Have no other beneficial use. 29
30
8-9-710. Hazardous waste and hazardous substances. 31
Hazardous waste and hazardous substances, including without limitation 32
mercury, lead, cadmium, beryllium, and similar substances found in consumer 33
electronic items or components, shall be managed, recycled, and disposed of 34
in accordance with local, state, and federal law. 35
36 SB310
7 2/22/2023 2:15:46 PM CRH086
8-9-711. Transparency. 1
(a) A contractor and contract administrat or shall conduct and 2
administer respectively a program for the collection, recovery, transport, 3
recycling, refurbishing, and marketing and distribution for reuse of consumer 4
electronic items that is fiscally transparent and sustainable. 5
(b)(1) The contractor shall report the total monthly weight in pounds 6
of consumer electronic items collected to the contract administrator no later 7
than the tenth day of the month following the month in which the consumer 8
electronic items were collected. 9
(2) The contract administrator shall verify each monthly report 10
required by subdivision (b)(1) of this section. 11
(c) The report shall include the location of collection, consumer 12
electronic items collected, and per -pound accounting for each category of 13
consumer electronic items collected. 14
(d) Within sixty (60) calendar days of submission of the final monthly 15
report for a calendar year, the contract administrator and the contractor 16
shall prepare and publish an annual report based on the monthly reports. 17
18
8-9-712. Contractor and contract administrator selection and funding. 19
(a) Within thirty (30) days of July 28, 2021, the Secretary of the 20
Department of Energy and Environment shall issue a request for qualifications 21
for a contract administrator. 22
(b) Within thirty (30) days of being selected by the secretary, the 23
contract administrator shall issue a request for qualifications for a 24
contractor. 25
(c) The contractor's responsibilities for collection, recovery, 26
transport, recycling, refurbishing, and marketing and distribution for reuse 27
of consumer electronic items shall be funded: 28
(1) Based on sales of recycled or refurbished consumer 29
electronic items or components or other materials recovered; and 30
(2) On fee-for-service. 31
(d) The contract administrator's re sponsibilities for management, 32
accountability, reporting, education, communication, and promotion of the 33
electronic waste recycling program shall be funded by the contractor based 34
on: 35
(1) An amount not less than fifteen percent (15%) of the gross 36 SB310
8 2/22/2023 2:15:46 PM CRH086
amount collected by the contractor for any fee -for-service from an eligible 1
entity; and 2
(2) A specific amount agreed to on an annual basis between the 3
contractor and the contract administrator based on a cents -per-pound 4
calculation for consumer electronic ite ms collected by the contractor and 5
reported to the contract administrator on a monthly basis. 6
7
8-9-713. Responsibility and liability. 8
The contractor shall be responsible for all collection logistics, 9
handling, transporting, recycling, refurbishing, and disposal of consumer 10
electronic items, including without limitation contractual agreements with 11
existing or future regional solid waste management districts in the state, 12
and shall hold harmless from all liability the contract administrator and the 13
State of Arkansas. 14
15
16
APPROVED: 4/11/23 17
18
19
20
21
22
23
24
25
26
27
28
29
30
31
32
33
34
35
36