SAINT PAUL, Minn. - Yesterday, the Minnesota House Environment Committee held a public hearing for HF 3566, chief-authored by Representative Athena Hollins (DFL-Saint Paul). Under HF 3566, all electronics would be considered hazardous waste, and recycling them would be free for everyone in the state. To cover the cost, a small fee (3.2%) would be added to the price of new electronics. Stores could choose to pass this fee on to customers.
“Today, e-waste is the fastest-growing waste stream in the world by a rate of three to five percent globally,” said Rep. Hollins. “Right now, we are only collecting about 20% of our electronic waste. Everything else is either incinerated, landfilled, or sits in our closets and basements. There just are not enough collection sites that are across the entire state of Minnesota. By passing this bill, we can save our state money by extending the life of our landfills, preventing structure fires created by lithium-ion batteries in our waste stream, and preventing lead and heavy metal pollution from dumped e-waste.”
The committee approved the bill on a unanimous vote and will be referred to the Commerce Finance and Policy Committee.
Additional information and documents from the hearing are available on the committee webpage.
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