HF 1648

1st Engrossment - 86th Legislature (2009 - 2010) Posted on 02/09/2010 01:53am

A bill for an act
relating to solid waste; amending reporting requirements for manufacturers and
retailers of video display devices; limiting the amount of recycled electronics
products that can be applied to future recycling obligations; amending Minnesota
Statutes 2008, sections 115A.1314, subdivision 1; 115A.1316, subdivision 1;
115A.1318, subdivision 3.

BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF MINNESOTA:

Section 1.

Minnesota Statutes 2008, section 115A.1314, subdivision 1, is amended to
read:

Subdivision 1.

Registration fee.

(a) Each manufacturer who registers under section
115A.1312 must, by September 1, 2007, and each year thereafter, pay to the commissioner
of revenue an annual registration fee. The commissioner of revenue must deposit the fee
in the account established in subdivision 2.

(b) The registration fee for the initial program year during which a manufacturer's
video display devices are sold to households is $5,000. Each year thereafter, the
registration fee is equal to a base fee of $2,500, plus a variable recycling fee calculated
according to the formula:

((A x B) - (C + D)) x E, where:

(1) A = the number of pounds of a manufacturer's video display devices sold to
households during the previous program year, as reported to the department under section
115A.1316, subdivision 1;

(2) B = the proportion of sales of video display devices required to be recycled, set at
0.6 for the first program year and 0.8 for the second program year and every year thereafter;

(3) C = the number of pounds of covered electronic devices recycled by a
manufacturer from households during the previous program year, as reported to the
department under section 115A.1316, subdivision 1;

(4) D = the number of recycling credits a manufacturer elects to use to calculate the
variable recycling fee, as reported to the department under section 115A.1316, subdivision
1; and

(5) E = the estimated per-pound cost of recycling, initially set at $0.50 per pound for
manufacturers who recycle less than 50 percent of the product (A x B); $0.40 per pound
for manufacturers who recycle at least 50 percent but less than 90 percent of the product
(A x B); and $0.30 per pound for manufacturers who recycle at least 90 percent but less
than 100 percent of the product (A x B).

(c) If, as specified in paragraph (b), the term C - (A x B) equals a positive number of
pounds, that amount is defined as the manufacturer's recycling credits. A manufacturer
may retain recycling credits to be added, in whole or in part, to the actual value of C, as
reported under section 115A.1316, subdivision 2, during any deleted text begin of the three deleted text end succeeding
program deleted text begin years deleted text end new text begin year, provided that no more than 25 percent of a manufacturer's obligation
(A x B) for any program year may be met with recycling credits generated in a prior
program year new text end . A manufacturer may sell any portion or all of its recycling credits to
another manufacturer, at a price negotiated by the parties, who may use the credits in the
same manner.

(d) For the purpose of calculating a manufacturer's variable recycling fee under
paragraph (b), the weight of covered electronic devices collected from households located
outside the 11-county metropolitan area, as defined in subdivision 2, paragraph (c), is
calculated at 1.5 times their actual weight.

(e) The registration fee for the initial program year and the base registration fee
thereafter for a manufacturer who produces fewer than 100 video display devices for sale
annually to households is $1,250.

Sec. 2.

Minnesota Statutes 2008, section 115A.1316, subdivision 1, is amended to read:

Subdivision 1.

Manufacturer's reporting requirements.

(a) By September 1 of
each year, beginning in 2008, each manufacturer must report to the department:

(1) the total weight of each specific model of its video display devices sold to
households during the previous program year;

(2) the total weight of its video display devices sold to households during the
previous year; or

(3) an estimate of the total weight of its video display devices sold to households
during the previous program year deleted text begin based on national sales data deleted text end new text begin , calculated by multiplying
the weight of its video display devices sold nationally times the quotient of Minnesota's
population divided by the national population new text end .

A manufacturer must submit with the report required under this paragraph a
description of how the information or estimate was calculated.

(b) By September 1 of each year, beginning in 2008, each manufacturer must report
to the department the total weight of covered electronic devices the manufacturer collected
from households and recycled or arranged to have collected and recycled during the
preceding program year. If a manufacturer wishes to receive the variable recycling rate of
1.5 for covered electronic devices it recycles, the manufacturer must report separately the
total weight of covered electronic devices collected from households located in counties
specified in section 115A.1314, subdivision 1, paragraph (d), and those collected from
households located outside those counties.

(c) By September 1 of each year, beginning in 2008, each manufacturer must report
to the department:

(1) the number of recycling credits the manufacturer has purchased and sold during
the preceding program year;

(2) the number of recycling credits possessed by the manufacturer that the
manufacturer elects to use in the calculation of its variable recycling fee under section
115A.1314, subdivision 1; and

(3) the number of recycling credits the manufacturer retains at the beginning of
the current program year.

Sec. 3.

Minnesota Statutes 2008, section 115A.1318, subdivision 3, is amended to read:

Subd. 3.

Retailer's responsibilities.

deleted text begin (a) By July 1 of each year, beginning in 2008,
a retailer must report to a manufacturer the number of video display devices, by video
display device model, labeled with the manufacturer's brand sold to households during the
previous program year.
deleted text end

deleted text begin (b) deleted text end A retailer who sells new video display devices shall provide information to
households describing where and how they may recycle video display devices and
advising them of opportunities and locations for the convenient collection of video display
devices for the purpose of recycling. This requirement may be met by providing to
households the agency's toll-free number and Web site address. Retailers selling through
catalogs or the Internet may meet this requirement by including the information in a
prominent location on the retailer's Web site.

Sec. 4. new text begin EFFECTIVE DATE.
new text end

new text begin Sections 1 to 3 are effective July 1, 2009.
new text end