Green IT Legislation

Federal:
The Federal government is just starting to take notice of electronic waste issues. By and large these initiatives seek to either better regulate electronic waste through the EPA or create tax incentives to encourage recycling. House Resolution 1165 establishes the National Computer Recycling Act that requires the EPA to administer a fee program to assist electronics manufactures in recovering electronic waste (not unlike glass bottle redemption programs).

The most current e-waste legislation was proposed in January 2005, HR 425 the National Computer Recycling Act, basically a grant and fee program to encourage recycling. HR 320 the Tax Incentives to Encourage Recycling Act (TIER) encourages manufactures of electronic equipment to provide recycling resources for their customers.

These initiatives have more or less been stuck in committees on Capital Hill over the past four years. But, the times appear to be changing (roughly over the past 100 days). On April 17 2009 the EPA declared greenhouse gases harmful to humans and is in the process of regulating these environmentally damaging substances. No one yet knows what this will mean in terms of enforcement or regulation exactly; nonetheless it is a significant step toward meaningful environmental protections.

Additionally, Representative Henry Waxman's Cap and Trade bill is gaining momentum in the House and heavily favored by the president. Albeit, the president has turned his attention to health care initiatives, but no one would believe that some form of this bill will not pass within the next 3 years.


State:
The leaders in electronic waste legislation among the states are California, Maine, Maryland, and Washington. With the Electronic Waste Recycling act, California became the first state to impose an advance recovery fee (ARF) on the sale of electronic products, as well as, strictly controling the disposal of electronic equipment. Presently, it is illegal for Californians to dispose of regulated electronic equipment in landfills. All e-waste must be disposed of by a California authorized recycling center.

There is similar legislation in Maine, Maryland, and Washington.

Simple landfill bans that prohibit disposal of e-waste in landfills have been passed in Arkansas, Hawaii, Maine, Massachusetts, Minnesota, and North Carolina.

International:
International legislation is far more toothsome than our own. Among international governments, the European Union (EU) is far and away the leader in strictly addressing the issue of e-waste. More specifically, there are two directives that control e-waste; the Waste Electrical and Electronic Equipment (WEEE) Directive and the Restriction of Hazardous Substances (RoHS) Directive.