113 S2090 IS: Responsible Electronics Recycling Act
U.S. Senate
2014-03-06
text/xml
EN
Pursuant to Title 17 Section 105 of the United States Code, this file is not subject to copyright protection and is in the public domain.
1.
This Act may be cited as the
Responsible Electronics Recycling
Act
.
2.
Electronic waste
export restrictions
(a)
Subtitle
C of the Solid Waste Disposal Act (42 U.S.C. 6921 et seq.) is amended by
adding
at the end the following new section:
3025.
Electronic
waste export restrictions
(a)
Beginning on the date that is 30 months after the date of
enactment of this section, no person shall export restricted
electronic waste
to a country described in subsection (e).
(b)
Definitions;
rule of construction
For purposes of this section:
(1)
The
term consignee means the ultimate repair, refurbishment,
treatment, storage, or disposal facility in a receiving country to
which
restricted electronic waste will be sent.
(2)
Covered
electronic equipment
(A)
The term covered electronic equipment means
the following used items, whole or in fragments, including parts,
components,
or assemblies thereof:
(i)
Computers.
(ii)
Central
processing units.
(iii)
Mobile computers
(including notebooks, netbooks, tablets, and e-book readers).
(iv)
Computer
accessories (including input devices, webcams, speakers, data
storage devices,
servers, and monitors).
(v)
Televisions
(including portable televisions and portable DVD players).
(vi)
Video display
devices (including digital picture frames and portable video
devices).
(vii)
Digital imaging
devices (including printers, copiers, facsimile machines, image
scanners, and
multifunction machines).
(viii)
Television
peripheral devices (including video cassette recorders, DVD
players, video game
systems, game controllers, signal converter boxes, and cable and
satellite
receivers).
(ix)
Digital cameras
and projectors.
(x)
Digital audio
players.
(xi)
Telephones and
electronic communication equipment (including cellular phones and
wireless
Internet communication devices).
(xii)
Networking
devices (including routers, network cards, modems, and hubs).
(xiii)
Audio
equipment.
(xiv)
Portable video
game systems.
(xv)
Personal digital
assistants.
(xvi)
Portable global
positioning system navigation devices.
(xvii)
Other used
electronic products the Administrator determines to be similar
under the
procedures promulgated in accordance with subsection (c).
(B)
The
term covered electronic equipment shall not include parts of a
motor vehicle.
(3)
Restricted
electronic waste
(A)
The term restricted electronic waste
means—
(i)
items of covered
electronic equipment that include, contain, are derived from, or
consist
of—
(I)
cathode ray tubes
or cathode ray tube glass in any form, or cathode ray tube phosphor
residues or
dusts in any form;
(II)
a lamp or other
device containing mercury phosphor;
(III)
batteries
containing—
-
(aa)
lead, cadmium, or
mercury; or
-
(bb)
organic solvents
exhibiting the characteristic of ignitability, as defined in
section 261.21 of
title 40, Code of Federal Regulations;
(IV)
switches or any
other devices containing mercury;
(V)
hexavalent
chromium;
(VI)
other than
batteries described in subclause (III), items containing antimony,
barium,
cadmium, lead, thallium, beryllium, arsenic, or selenium,
including—
-
(aa)
circuit
boards;
-
(bb)
printer
drums;
-
(cc)
liquid crystal
displays;
-
(dd)
flatscreen glass;
and
-
(ee)
light emitting
diodes; or
(ii)
any other covered
electronic equipment, or materials derived therefrom, containing
any other
toxic material, in elemental or compound form, identified by the
Administrator
under subsection (c).
(B)
The
term restricted electronic waste shall not apply to items
described in this subparagraph.
(i)
Covered electronic equipment described in subparagraphs
(A)(i)(VI) and (A)(ii), including separated component streams (such
as plastics
or metals), which does not exceed de minimis levels set by the
Administrator
under subsection (d).
(ii)
Covered
electronic equipment that is—
(I)
tested, pursuant to subsection (i)(1),
prior to export and found to be—
-
(aa)
functional for
the purpose for which the equipment was designed, or, in the case
of
multifunction devices, fully functional for at least one of the
primary
purposes for which the equipment was designed; and
-
(bb)
appropriately
packaged for shipment to prevent the equipment from losing
functionality
due to damage during transit; and
(II)
appropriately
labeled or marked pursuant to subsection (i)(3)(A).
(iii)
Certain
cathode ray tube glass
Furnace-ready cathode ray tube glass
cullet, cleaned of all phosphors, that the competent authority in
the importing
country declares in writing is not waste, to be used as—
(I)
a direct feedstock
in a lead-glass manufacturing furnace; or
(II)
another feedstock
application that does not require further processing or preparation
other than
quality control.
(iv)
Customer
returns, to point of sale, to original equipment manufacturers, or
to
contractual warranty collectors, of recently purchased covered
electronic
equipment—
(I)
that is
either—
-
(aa)
under original
equipment manufacturer warranty to customers; or
-
(bb)
under warranty
from the original design manufacturer or original component
manufacturer to the
original equipment manufacturer, or otherwise returned by the
original
purchaser of the electronic equipment, due to defect or customer
dissatisfaction, and the manufacturer accepts such returns for the
purposes of
repair or replacement in order to return to the customer a
functional working
product or part of the same type and model, except that products
and parts
covered in this item shall not include—
(AA)
covered
electronic equipment accepted for return from individuals or
businesses under
general takeback, recycling, trade-in (for purposes of recycling,
disposal,
sales promotions, or obtaining credit for product purchases or
leases) or
buy-back programs, events, or policies designed to collect used or
waste
electronic equipment;
(BB)
covered
electronic equipment returned at the end of leases to customers; or
(CC)
covered
electronic equipment collected by asset recovery programs; and
(II)
where any export
of such covered electronic equipment is to a country from whose
competent
authority the Administrator receives written consent pursuant to
subsection
(h)(1).
(v)
Recalls
of covered electronic equipment by an original equipment
manufacturer, original
design manufacturer, or original component manufacturer where—
(I)
the covered
electronic equipment is subject to recall notice issued by the
Consumer Product
Safety Commission or other pertinent Federal authority;
(II)
the original
design manufacturer or original component manufacturer requires the
defective
covered electronic equipment to be physically returned to that
manufacturer as
a term of the warranty; and
(III)
any export of
recalled covered electronic equipment is to a country from whose
competent
authority the Administrator receives written consent pursuant to
subsection
(h)(1).
(4)
Rule of
construction regarding chemical elements
Any reference to a
chemical element shall be construed to be a reference to that
element in
compound or elemental form.
(c)
Additional
covered electronic equipment and restricted materials
Not later
than 18 months after the date of enactment of this section, the
Administrator
shall, after notice and opportunity for public comment, and after
consultation
with appropriate Federal and State agencies, develop and promulgate
procedures
for identifying—
(1)
similar electronic
equipment to add to the list of covered electronic equipment under
subsection
(b)(2); and
(2)
additional
restricted toxic materials to add to the list in subsection
(b)(3)(A)(ii), the
presence of which in covered electronic equipment poses a potential
hazard to
human health or the environment.
Such
procedures shall include a method for any interested party to
propose a new
product or material for review by the Administrator.
(d)
Not later than 18 months after the date of enactment of
this section, the Administrator shall, after notice and opportunity
for public
comment, and after consultation with appropriate Federal and State
agencies,
develop and promulgate procedures for identifying de minimis levels
for
restricted electronic waste described in subparagraphs (A)(i)(VI)
and (A)(ii)
of subsection (b)(3), below which such waste is determined by the
Administrator
not to pose a potential hazard to human health or the environment.
(e)
Countries to
which prohibition applies
The countries referred to in subsection
(a) are all countries which are not—
(1)
members of the
Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development or the
European Union;
or
(2)
Liechtenstein.
(f)
(1)
Except as provided in paragraph (2), no person shall
export covered electronic equipment described in subsection
(b)(3)(B) to a
country described in subsection (e) unless, not later than 60 days
before the
initial export shipment, such person transmits to the Administrator
written
notice of an intended export. Such a notification may cover export
activities
extending over a maximum of 12 months for the same type of covered
electronic
equipment, exported to the same facility via the same transit
countries. The
notification shall include the following information:
(A)
The name, mailing
address, telephone number, and if applicable, the Environmental
Protection
Agency or Resource Conservation and Recovery Act identification
number.
(B)
Documentation of
licensing of the exporter under subsection (g).
(C)
The name and site
address of the consignee and any alternate consignee.
(D)
A statement from
the exporter that includes—
(i)
a
description of the type and total quantity of covered electronic
equipment that
will be exported to the consignee;
(ii)
the estimated
frequency or rate at which such covered electronic equipment is to
be exported,
and the period of time over which such covered electronic equipment
is to be
exported;
(iii)
all points of
entry to and departure from each country through which the covered
electronic
equipment will pass in transit;
(iv)
a
description of the means by which each shipment of the covered
electronic
equipment will be transported, including the mode of transportation
and type or
types of container; and
(v)
a
description of the manner in which the covered electronic equipment
will be
treated, stored, or disposed of in the receiving country.
(E)
A list of all
transit countries through which the covered electronic equipment
will be
transported, and a description of the approximate length of time
the covered
electronic equipment will remain in each country and the nature of
its handling
while there.
(2)
The requirements of paragraph (1) shall not
apply with respect to exports of covered electronic equipment
described in
subsection (b)(3)(B)(i), or exports of covered electronic equipment
described
in subsection (b)(3)(B)(ii).
(g)
In order to export covered electronic
equipment to a country described in subsection (e) under the
exceptions to
restricted electronic waste in subsection (b)(3)(B), an entity
shall obtain a
license for such export that is issued by the Administrator in
accordance with
regulations issued under subsection (i)(2).
(h)
Additional
Export Conditions
(1)
(A)
No person shall export covered electronic equipment to a
country described in subsection (e) under the exceptions to
restricted
electronic waste in subsections (b)(3)(B)(iv) or (v) unless—
(i)
the export is made
by an original equipment manufacturer or its contractual agent to
the original
design manufacturer or original component manufacturer’s site of
last assembly,
or to a company contracted to make warranty repairs, for the
purposes of
business credit to the original equipment manufacturer, repair or
refurbishment
and subsequent reuse, or replacement;
(ii)
the original
equipment manufacturer has a presence and assets in the United
States;
and
(iii)
the person who
exports the covered electronic equipment—
(I)
keeps copies of
normal business records, such as contracts, demonstrating that each
shipment of
exported covered electronic equipment is intended for repair or
refurbishment
and subsequent reuse, or replacement, which documentation shall be
retained for
a period of at least 3 years after the date of export; and
(II)
submits an annual
report to the Administrator on the amount and types of waste
resulting from the
refurbishment or replacement process, and how it was disposed of or
recycled,
which shall include—
-
(aa)
number and weight
of units of products returned by the original equipment
manufacturer for
repair, refurbishment, or replacement listed by category and
country of
destination; and
-
(bb)
the
covered electronic equipment, or materials derived therefrom, sent
onward to
further reuse, disposal, or recycling following repair,
refurbishment, or
replacement, listed by weight, a description of the wastes, and the
ultimate
country destination.
(B)
Acknowledgment
of consent
(i)
No
person shall export covered electronic equipment to a country
described in
subsection (e) under the exceptions to restricted electronic waste
in
subsections (b)(3)(B)(iv) or (v) until the Administrator—
(I)
obtains the
written consent of the competent authority of the receiving
country, and of
each country through which the covered electronic equipment will
pass in
transit; and
(II)
transmits to the
exporter an Acknowledgment of Consent reflecting receipt of each
country’s
consent.
(ii)
In cooperation with other appropriate agencies, the
Administrator shall provide notification in writing of an intended
export
submitted under subsection (f) to the receiving country and any
transit
countries.
(iii)
Consent and
exporter notification
When the receiving country and all transit
countries consent in writing to the receipt or transit of the
covered
electronic equipment, the Administrator shall transmit an
Acknowledgment of
Consent to the exporter. The consent from a receiving or transit
country may be
for a notice of multiple shipments or a specified duration as
described in
subsection (f). The exporter shall attach a copy of the
Acknowledgment of
Consent to the shipping papers or equivalent documents to ensure
that the
Acknowledgment of Consent accompanies the shipment of covered
electronic
equipment.
(C)
Where the receiving country or a transit country objects
to receipt or transit of the covered electronic equipment, or
withdraws a prior
consent, the Administrator shall notify the exporter in writing.
(2)
No
person shall export covered electronic equipment to a country
described in
subsection (e) under the exception to restricted electronic waste
in subsection
(b)(3)(B)(ii) unless such covered electronic equipment is
accompanied by
documentation that is available for review, including—
(A)
documentation of
licensing of the exporter under subsection (g); and
(B)
a declaration signed by an officer or
designated representative of the exporter asserting that such
equipment—
(i)
was tested,
pursuant to subsection (i)(1), after it was removed from service,
or after it
was repaired or refurbished, and is functional in accordance with
the
requirements of subsection (b)(3)(B)(ii); and
(ii)
is being exported
for the purpose of direct reuse, and not for recycling or final
disposal.
(3)
No person shall
export covered electronic equipment described in subsection
(b)(3)(B)(i) unless
such equipment is accompanied by documentation of licensing of the
exporter
under subsection (g).
(4)
In the case of a
routed export transaction of covered electronic equipment under the
exceptions
to restricted electronic waste in subsection (b)(3)(B) where the
exporter of
record is a Foreign Principle Party in Interest (FFPI), then the
U.S. Principle
Party in Interest (USPPI) is responsible for compliance with the
requirements
of this section, including the licensing requirements under
subsection
(g).
(i)
Not
later than 18 months after the date of enactment of this section,
the
Administrator shall issue regulations for carrying out this
section, including
the following:
(1)
Testing
requirements for covered electronic equipment proposed to be
exported pursuant
to the exception to restricted electronic waste in subsection
(b)(3)(B)(ii).
(2)
Establishing a
process for licensing entities under subsection (g), including
requirements
that entities proposing to export covered electronic equipment
under the
exceptions to restricted electronic waste in subsection (b)(3)(B)
must meet to
obtain a license, including documentation that—
(A)
the exporter has an adequate physical
presence in the United States, as determined by the Administrator,
in order to
be able to physically manage the equipment being exported; and
(B)
with respect to
covered electronic equipment that is being exported for reuse
pursuant to the
exception to restricted electronic waste in subsection
(b)(3)(B)(ii), the
exporter has procedures and controls in place to ensure that
adequate testing,
pursuant to paragraph (1), will occur to determine the
functionality of such
equipment, in accordance with the requirements of such subsection
(b)(3)(B)(ii).
(3)
In consultation
with the appropriate Federal agency or agencies, provisions for an
efficient
export control regime which will allow for—
(A)
requiring a person
exporting under this section to use appropriate labeling or
marking,
distinguishing among—
(i)
covered electronic
equipment as permitted under this section;
(ii)
restricted
electronic waste described in this section; and
(iii)
tested working
covered electronic equipment as permitted under this section; and
(B)
enforcement
mechanisms, tests, and procedures in coordination with enforcement
procedures
administered by other appropriate Federal agencies, including—
(i)
procedures to ensure that exports of
covered electronic equipment under the exception to restricted
electronic waste
in subsection (b)(3)(B)(ii) without proper documentation required
under
subsection (h)(2) shall not proceed out of the port; and
(ii)
procedures
whereby entities who obtain a license for export under subsection
(g) will
forfeit such license for violation of this section.
(4)
Establishing a
registry of violators, whereby any person or entity found to be
exporting
restricted electronic waste in violation of this section shall be
listed on a
public registry on a website maintained by the Administrator for a
period of 5
years after each
violation.
.
(b)
Table of
contents amendment
The table of contents for the Solid Waste
Disposal Act is amended by adding after the item relating to section 3024
the
following new item:
Sec. 3025. Electronic waste export
restrictions.
.
3.
(a)
Section 3008(d) of the Solid Waste Disposal Act (42
U.S.C. 6928(d)) is amended—
(1)
by striking
or
at the end of paragraph (6);
(2)
by inserting
or
at the end of paragraph (7)(B); and
(3)
by inserting after
paragraph (7) the following new paragraph:
(8)
knowingly exports
restricted electronic waste in violation of section
3025;
.
(b)
Section
3007(a) of the Solid Waste Disposal Act (42 U.S.C. 6927(a)) is amended—
(1)
by inserting
or restricted electronic wastes
after or has handled
hazardous wastes
; and
(2)
by inserting
or restricted electronic wastes
after or other place
where hazardous wastes
.
4.
Critical minerals
and rare earth elements recycling research
(a)
In
this section:
(1)
The
term Administrator means the Administrator of the Environmental
Protection Agency.
(2)
The term critical mineral means any of the
following chemical elements in any physical form or chemical
combination:
(A)
Antimony.
(B)
Beryllium.
(C)
Cobalt.
(D)
Fluorspar.
(E)
Gallium.
(F)
Germanium.
(G)
Graphite.
(H)
Indium.
(I)
Magnesium.
(J)
Niobium.
(K)
Platinum group
metals (PGMs).
(L)
Tantalum.
(M)
Tungsten.
(N)
Other elements
identified by the Secretary as in critical supply.
(3)
The term rare earth element means any of
the following chemical elements in any physical form or chemical
combination:
(A)
Scandium.
(B)
Yttrium.
(C)
Lanthanum.
(D)
Cerium.
(E)
Praseodymium.
(F)
Neodymium.
(G)
Promethium.
(H)
Samarium.
(I)
Europium.
(J)
Gadolinium.
(K)
Terbium.
(L)
Dysprosium.
(M)
Holmium.
(N)
Erbium.
(O)
Thulium.
(P)
Ytterbium.
(Q)
Lutetium.
(4)
The
term Secretary means the Secretary of Energy.
(b)
Research on
critical minerals and rare earth elements in electronic
devices
The Secretary, in consultation with the Administrator and
the heads of other appropriate Federal agencies, shall assist in, and
coordinate the development of, research in the recovering and recycling of
critical minerals and rare earth elements found in electronic devices.
(c)
Not
later than 120 days after the date of enactment of this Act, the Secretary
shall establish a competitive research application program under which the
Secretary shall provide grants to applicants to conduct research on one or
more
of the following activities:
(1)
The safe removal,
separation, and recycling of critical minerals and rare earth elements
from
electronics.
(2)
Technology,
component, and material design of electronics more suitable for
disassembly and
recycling of critical minerals and rare earth elements.
(3)
Collection,
logistics, and reverse supply chain optimization as related to recycling
critical minerals and rare earth elements from electronics.
(d)
The Secretary shall issue requirements for applying
for grants under subsection (c).