PCRC – Washington

Effective January 1, 2023, WA’s Post Consumer Recycled Plastic law requires producers of most single-use plastics to include a minimum percentage of recycled materials for plastic beverage containers including 187 ml bottles, trash bags, and household cleaning and personal care product containers.

All producers that offer for sale, sell, or distribute covered products in or into Washington are required to register with the Washington Department of Ecology (Ecology) annually.

The law requires that Ecology estimate the costs to implement, administer, and enforce the law and fees are based on each producer’s total weight of plastic resin sold or brought into Washington, as submitted during annual registration or reporting.

Resources: 

• Ecology website information on Plastic producer registration – Washington State Department of Ecology
• Technical guidance document for the Post-Consumer Recycled Law prepared by the WA Department of Ecology  2307056.pdf (wa.gov)
• WA Plastic Producer List Plastic Producer Registrations – WasteReduction_APPS

Producer means the following person responsible for compliance with minimum postconsumer recycled content requirements under this chapter for a covered product sold, offered for sale, or distributed in or into this state:

• (i) If the covered product is sold under the manufacturer’s own brand or lacks identification of a brand, the producer is the person who manufactures the covered product;
• (ii) If the covered product is manufactured by a person other than the brand owner, the producer is the person who is the licensee of a brand or trademark under which a covered product is sold, offered for sale, or distributed in or into this state, whether or not the trademark is registered in this state, unless the manufacturer or brand owner of the covered product has agreed to accept responsibility under this chapter; or
• (iii) If there is no person described in (a)(i) and (ii) of this subsection over whom the state can constitutionally exercise jurisdiction, the producer is the person who imports or distributes the covered product in or into the state.

Ecology will assume the brand owner is the manufacturer absent anyone else coming forward to accept that role or any documentary evidence to the contrary.

• Manufacturers are required to begin registering as of April 1, 2022 and annually thereafter.
• Starting Jan. 1, 2024, specific covered product categories must submit annual reports based on a specified timeline indicating the quantity of PCRC used in their products. Annual reports are due by April 1. During reporting, registration must also be submitted.

Registration:

• on or before April 1st of each year

Registration and annual fee payment are required regardless of the date products are required to begin meeting recycled-content minimums.

Resources:

• Plastic producer registration – Washington State Department of Ecology

Products Required to meet recycled content minimums

Plastic wine containers covered under the Act include:

• Plastic wine containers are bottles and other rigid containers made of one or more plastic resins.
• Plastic wine containers are limited in size to only 187-milliliter containers.
• Only sealed plastic wine containers must meet the requirements.

Plastic wine containers NOT covered under the Act:

• Plastic wine containers that are refillable and function in a system of reuse.
• Plastic beverage bladders or pouches.
• Liners, caps, corks, closures, and labels.

De minimis producer means a person that annually sells, offers for sale, distributes, or imports in or into the country for sale in or into Washington state –

1. Less than one ton in aggregate of a single category of covered product each calendar year; or
2. A single category of a covered product that in aggregate generates less than $1,000,000 each calendar year in gross revenue from sales of covered products into Washington state.

The de minimis exemption applies to producers who annually sell, offer for sale, distribute or import into the country for sale in Washington. Meeting the qualifications of de minimis producer in one single category of covered products does not preclude a producer from meeting requirements for other covered product categories for which they are above the de minimis threshold.

De minimis producers will not be required to meet PCRC requirements or pay annual fees. However, they must still create a Secure Access Washington (SAW) account to submit their notification of de minimis status. De minimis producers may still complete the resin and tonnage questions if desired to decrease the chance of audit by Ecology.  De minimis producers will be named as compliant on the registered producer list. Registration by de minimis producers lets Ecology and the public know they aren’t delinquent or out of compliance.

This law also does not apply to producers of the following rigid plastic containers or other related items used for the following:

• Prescription or non-prescription drugs as defined in RCW 18.64.011(14) and regulated by the United States Food and Drug Administration.
• Dietary supplements.
• Medical devices or medical products required to be sterile, as regulated by the United States Food and Drug Administration under 21 C.F.R., Parts 200, 300, and 800.
• Aerosols in plastic containers that are subject to 49 C.F.R. § 178.33b.
• Plastic trash bags used for biomedical waste.
• Products in containers sufficiently durable for multiple rotations of their original or similar purpose and are intended to function in a system of reuse.

Plastic Wine container (187 mls) must attain the following percentage of post-consumer recycled plastic by date:

• 15% by 1/1/28
• 25% by 1/1/31
• 50% by 1/1/36

A producer may be found non-compliant for two types of violation, each associated with different means of assessing penalties. Penalties issued for either type of violation under this section are appealable to the Pollution Control Hearings Board established in Chapter 43.21B RCW.

Type 1: Failure to register, label, or report

• If a producer fails to register or report by the April 1 deadline:
• Producers will receive two written notices (Notices of Violation).
• Producers in continued violation of the registration, reporting, or labeling requirements are subject to a civil penalty for each day of violation in an amount not to exceed $1,000.
• Penalty revenue goes to the Recycling Enhancement Account to support local governments through Local Solid Waste and Financial Assistance programs.

Type 2: Failure to meet PCRC requirements

• Penalties for failure to meet PCRC minimum requirements will be calculated June 1, based on PCRC requirements established in the prior year.