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• Paragraph 36 (1 comments)

HR 2595 IHCommentsClose CommentsPermalink

To restrict certain exports of electronic waste.CommentsClose CommentsPermalink

May 21, 2009CommentsClose CommentsPermalink

Mr. GENE GREEN of Texas (for himself, Mr. THOMPSON of California, Mrs. BONO MACK, Ms. JACKSON-LEE of Texas, and Ms. ESHOO) introduced the following bill; which was referred to the Committee on Energy and CommerceCommentsClose CommentsPermalink

To restrict certain exports of electronic waste.CommentsClose CommentsPermalink

Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives of the United States of America in Congress assembled,CommentsClose CommentsPermalink

SECTION 1. ELECTRONIC WASTE EXPORT RESTRICTIONS.

(a) Amendment- 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:CommentsClose CommentsPermalink

‘SEC. 3024. ELECTRONIC WASTE EXPORT RESTRICTIONS.

‘(a) In General- Beginning 12 months after the date of enactment of this section, except as provided in subsection (e) or (f), no person shall export any restricted electronic waste to a country described in subsection (c).CommentsClose CommentsPermalink





‘(b) Definitions-CommentsClose CommentsPermalink





‘(1) IN GENERAL- For purposes of this section--CommentsClose CommentsPermalink





‘(A) the term ‘covered electronic equipment’ means used personal computers, servers, monitors, televisions, other video display products, printers, copiers, facsimile machines, video cassette recorders, digital video disc players, video game systems, digital audio players, personal digital assistants, telephones, image scanners, and other used electronic products the Administrator determines to be similar; andCommentsClose CommentsPermalink





‘(B) the term ‘restricted electronic waste’ means items of covered electronic equipment, whole or in fragments, that include, contain, or consist of--CommentsClose CommentsPermalink





‘(i) circuit boards, lamps, switches, or other parts, components, assemblies, or materials derived therefrom containing mercury or polychlorinated biphenyls;CommentsClose CommentsPermalink





‘(ii) circuit boards, lamps, switches, or other parts, components, assemblies, or materials derived therefrom containing--CommentsClose CommentsPermalink





‘(I) antimony in concentrations greater than 1.0 mg/L;CommentsClose CommentsPermalink





‘(II) beryllium in concentrations greater than .007 mg/L;CommentsClose CommentsPermalink





‘(III) cadmium, in concentrations greater than 1.0 mg/L;CommentsClose CommentsPermalink





‘(IV) chromium in concentrations greater than 5.0 mg/L; orCommentsClose CommentsPermalink





‘(V) lead in concentrations greater than 5.0 mg/L;CommentsClose CommentsPermalink





‘(iii) circuit boards, lamps, switches, or other parts, components, assemblies, or materials derived therefrom containing any other toxic material identified by the Administrator under paragraph (2);CommentsClose CommentsPermalink





‘(iv) cathode ray tubes or cathode ray tube glass in any form; orCommentsClose CommentsPermalink





‘(v) batteries containing lead, cadmium, mercury, or flammable organic solvents.CommentsClose CommentsPermalink





‘(2) ADDITIONAL RESTRICTED MATERIALS- The Administrator shall establish procedures for identifying additional restricted materials, the presence of which in covered electronic equipment poses a substantial hazard to human health or the environment at the end of the life of the equipment.CommentsClose CommentsPermalink





‘(c) Countries to Which Prohibition Applies- The countries referred to in subsection (a) are all countries which are not--CommentsClose CommentsPermalink





‘(1) members of the Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development or the European Union; orCommentsClose CommentsPermalink





‘(2) Liechtenstein.CommentsClose CommentsPermalink





‘(d) General Exceptions- The prohibition under this section shall not apply to--CommentsClose CommentsPermalink





‘(1) the export of used electronic equipment or parts, for use or reuse, if--CommentsClose CommentsPermalink





‘(A) such export is to a country that the Administrator finds under subsection (e) will permit trade in such equipment or parts; andCommentsClose CommentsPermalink





‘(B) such equipment or parts are tested prior to export and found to be functional for at least one of the primary purposes for which the equipment or parts were designed, and are being sold to a customer who will reuse such equipment or parts without further repairs;CommentsClose CommentsPermalink





‘(2) furnace-ready cathode ray tube glass cullet, cleaned of all phosphors, to be used as a direct feedstock in a lead-glass manufacturing furnace without further processing or preparation required other than quality control, which the competent authority in the importing country has stated in writing is not waste;CommentsClose CommentsPermalink





‘(3) returns of used electronic equipment under warranty by consumers or other contractual warranty collectors to the original equipment manufacturer or its contractual agent for purposes of warranty repair or refurbishment; orCommentsClose CommentsPermalink





‘(4) the export of used electronic equipment or parts for repair or refurbishment in the importing country, with the intention of subsequent reuse, if--CommentsClose CommentsPermalink





‘(A) such export is to a country that the Administrator finds under subsection (e) will permit trade in such equipment or parts;CommentsClose CommentsPermalink





‘(B) the export is made by an original equipment manufacturer or its contractual agent, or an entity that meets an independent standard as identified by the Administrator; andCommentsClose CommentsPermalink





‘(C) the person who exports the equipment or parts--CommentsClose CommentsPermalink





‘(i) prior to shipment to any receiving facility, submits an annual notification to the Administrator, which includes--CommentsClose CommentsPermalink





‘(I) a statement that the notifier plans to export used electronic equipment or parts for refurbishment or repair with the intention of subsequent reuse;CommentsClose CommentsPermalink





‘(II) the notifier’s name, address, and Environmental Protection Agency ID number (if applicable);CommentsClose CommentsPermalink





‘(III) the name and phone number of a contact person;CommentsClose CommentsPermalink





‘(IV) the type of used electronic equipment or parts that will be shipped; andCommentsClose CommentsPermalink





‘(V) the name, address, and contact information of the receiving facility; andCommentsClose CommentsPermalink





‘(ii) keeps copies of normal business records, such as contracts, demonstrating that each shipment of exported used electronic equipment or parts is intended for repair or refurbishment and subsequent reuse, which documentation shall be retained for a period of at least 3 years after the date the used electronic equipment or parts were exported.CommentsClose CommentsPermalink





‘(e) Foreign Markets- Not later than 12 months after the date of enactment of this section, and annually thereafter, the Administrator shall identify for each country whether such country’s laws and policies permit trade in such equipment or parts, by requesting written confirmation from the competent authority of the importing country.CommentsClose CommentsPermalink





‘(f) Regulations- Not later than 12 months after the date of enactment of this section, the Administrator shall issue regulations for carrying out this section, including--CommentsClose CommentsPermalink





‘(1) testing requirements for verifying that used covered electronic equipment or parts proposed to be exported under this section are functional for the purposes for which they were designed, including requirements for proper packaging to prevent such equipment or parts from losing functionality due to damage during transit; andCommentsClose CommentsPermalink





‘(2) in consultation with the appropriate Federal agency or agencies, provisions for an efficient export control regime to identify exports covered by this section and provide for enforcement in coordination with other enforcement procedures administered by United States Customs and Border Protection.’.CommentsClose CommentsPermalink





(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 3023 the following new item:CommentsClose CommentsPermalink





‘3024. Electronic waste export restrictions.’.CommentsClose CommentsPermalink

SEC. 2. CRIMINAL PENALTIES.

Section 3008(d) of the Solid Waste Disposal Act (42 U.S.C. 6928(d)) is amended--CommentsClose CommentsPermalink





(1) by striking ‘or’ at the end of paragraph (6);CommentsClose CommentsPermalink





(2) by inserting ‘or’ at the end of paragraph (7); andCommentsClose CommentsPermalink





(3) by inserting after paragraph (7) the following new paragraph:CommentsClose CommentsPermalink





‘(8) knowingly exports restricted electronic waste in violation of section 3024;’.CommentsClose CommentsPermalink