What Packaging and Paper Materials Does Washington's Law Cover?
What counts as a covered material, and what is packaging?
Covered material means packaging and paper products introduced into Washington, other than exempt materials (RCW 70A.208.020(13)). The statute has no short title; Recycling Reform Act (RRA) is Ecology's name for chapter 70A.208 RCW. "Introduce" means to sell, offer for sale, distribute, or ship a product within or into Washington (RCW 70A.208.020(22)).
Packaging is a material, substance or object used to protect, contain, transport, serve, or facilitate delivery of a product. It must also be sold or supplied with the product to the consumer for personal, noncommercial use (RCW 70A.208.020(25)(a)). The statute names no example items, so test each material against its words. This is my method, not the statute's:
- Job. Does the material do one of those five things for the product?
- Reach. Is it sold or supplied with the product to the consumer for personal, noncommercial use?
- Exemption. Does an exempt material description below fit?
A "no" at step 1 or 2 puts the material outside the definition as written. Who owes the duty is a separate question under the producer definition, RCW 70A.208.020(29). See the coverage checklist and the first distributor rule.
RCW 70A.208.020(13) does not mention the statewide collection lists. RCW 70A.208.090(1)(a) has Ecology develop lists of covered materials determined to be recyclable or compostable statewide. They matter for fees: once a plan is approved, membership fees are proportional to costs for covered materials on the lists and discourage the use of those that are not (RCW 70A.208.160(2)(b)). See the eco-modulation article for fees and the deadlines article for list dates.
Which paper products are covered, and which are left out?
Catalogs are named in the paper product definition, so a catalog sold or supplied to a consumer for personal, noncommercial use is a paper product unless an exclusion applies (RCW 70A.208.020(26)). The definition also names flyers, brochures, booklets, magazines and printed paper, and reaches all other paper materials except seven:
| Item | Left out of "paper product" |
|---|---|
| (a) | Bound books |
| (b) | Conservation-grade and archival-grade paper |
| (c) | Newspapers, including supplements or enclosures |
| (d) | Magazines that have a circulation of fewer than 95,000 and that include content derived from primary sources related to news and current events |
| (e) | Copy paper |
| (f) | Paper for use in building construction |
| (g) | Paper that could reasonably be anticipated to become unsafe or unsanitary to handle |
Item (d) joins its two conditions, circulation and news content, with "and". Read as written, a magazine falls under (d) only if it meets both. A magazine with a circulation of fewer than 95,000 that carries no such content therefore stays in the paper product definition. That is how the text reads, not a ruling on any title. RCW 70A.208.020 defines neither circulation nor primary sources.
For magazines, catalogs, telephone directories and similar publications, the producer is the publisher (RCW 70A.208.020(29)(a)(iv)).
Which materials are exempt, and can I petition for an exclusion?
Sixteen items are exempt materials under RCW 70A.208.020(19)(a) through (p), and an exempt material is neither a covered material nor packaging. Items (a) through (f) rely on federal law or on the International Classification of Diseases.
| Item | Exempt material |
|---|---|
| (a) | Packaging for infant formula |
| (b) | Packaging for medical food |
| (c) | Packaging for a fortified oral nutritional supplement used by persons who require supplemental or sole source nutrition to meet nutritional needs due to special dietary needs directly related to cancer, chronic kidney disease, diabetes, malnutrition, or failure to thrive |
| (d) | Packaging for a product the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) regulates as a drug, medical device or dietary supplement, including associated components and consumable medical equipment, or as a biologic or vaccine |
| (e) | Packaging for medical equipment or a product used in medical settings that the FDA regulates, including associated components and consumable medical equipment |
| (f) | Packaging for drugs, biological products, parasiticides, medical devices or in vitro diagnostics used to treat or given to animals and regulated by the FDA and the U.S. Department of Agriculture |
| (g) | Noncompostable film plastic packaging used in direct contact with raw meat |
| (h) | Packaging for products regulated by the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency under the federal insecticide, fungicide, and rodenticide act |
| (i) | Packaging used to contain liquefied petroleum gas and designed to be refilled |
| (j) | Packaging used to contain hazardous or flammable products classified by the 2012 federal Occupational Safety and Health Administration hazard communication standard that prevent the packaging from being reduced or made reusable, recyclable, or compostable, as determined by Ecology |
| (k) | Packaging associated with products managed through a paint stewardship plan approved under chapter 70A.515 RCW |
| (l) | Excluded materials, as determined by Ecology under RCW 70A.208.260 |
| (m) | Materials used to protect or store a durable product for at least five years |
| (n) | Packaging used for bulk construction materials |
| (o) | Covered materials that a producer distributes to another producer, that are then used to contain a product distributed to a commercial or business entity for the production of another product, and that are not introduced to anyone other than the entity that first received the product |
| (p) | Covered materials the producer demonstrates to Ecology meet all four criteria below |
Item (p) requires that the material is:
- not collected through a residential recycling collection service;
- recycled at a responsible market;
- intended to be used and collected within a commercial setting; and
- subject to a rate test, in two parts:
- until December 31, 2029, shown annually to have a state recycling rate, or a producer-managed reuse or recycling rate, of 65 percent for three consecutive years;
- from January 1, 2030, shown every two years to have reached at least 70 percent annually.
RCW 70A.208.020(19)(p)(v) says that if only a portion of the material meets the first criterion, the residential collection one, only that portion is exempt and the rest stays covered. It names that criterion only. Ecology's page also says recyclable or compostable packaging is not exempt.
Item (l) points to the petition process in RCW 70A.208.260. A producer, group of producers or producer responsibility organization may petition Ecology, one year before a plan is submitted, for the temporary exclusion of packaging for reasons of public health or safety. The petition can cover packaging used to contain three categories of products, their subcategories or individual products:
- raw meat products demonstrated to transfer pathogens to direct contact packaging;
- products regulated under the poison prevention packaging act of 1970; and
- products under federal-law requirements that make inclusion infeasible or inadvisable.
The petition must cover technical feasibility, public health and safety risks, and producer progress on reducing packaging, recycled content and reuse, composting or recycling. Ecology must decide and notify the petitioner within 90 days of receipt. At this article's last check, Ecology's page set October 1, 2027 for petitions, by email. The statute does not say how long an exclusion lasts.
Does the law cover packaging for business customers?
The definitions are written around material sold or supplied to a consumer for personal, noncommercial use. Ecology's page opens by saying producers of packaging and paper products sold to Washington consumers for noncommercial use are required to participate. Item (o) refers to a commercial or business entity, item (p) to a commercial setting, and item (n) to packaging used for bulk construction materials.
RCW 70A.208.020 defines neither "consumer" nor "personal, noncommercial use", so a sale that falls between household and business use is not settled by the text. Ask Ecology before you rely on either reading.
Common questions
What is a covered material under the RRA?
A covered material is packaging or a paper product introduced into Washington, other than an exempt material (RCW 70A.208.020(13)). Introduce means to sell, offer for sale, distribute, or ship a product within or into the state. The statewide collection lists are not part of the definition.
What counts as packaging under the law?
Packaging is a material, substance or object used to protect, contain, transport, serve, or facilitate delivery of a product. It must also be sold or supplied with the product to the consumer for personal, noncommercial use (RCW 70A.208.020(25)). Exempt materials are not packaging.
Are catalogs and other paper products covered?
Catalogs are named in the paper product definition, RCW 70A.208.020(26), when sold or supplied to a consumer for personal, noncommercial use. So are flyers and brochures. Seven exclusions apply, including bound books, newspapers, copy paper and magazines that meet both conditions in item (d).
Which materials are exempt?
Sixteen items are exempt under RCW 70A.208.020(19)(a) through (p), including packaging for infant formula and medical food, refillable liquefied petroleum gas packaging and bulk construction packaging. Several items carry conditions. Ecology can temporarily exclude packaging after a petition under RCW 70A.208.260.
Does the law cover packaging for business customers?
The definitions are written around consumers and personal, noncommercial use, and the statute does not define "consumer". Item (o) refers to a commercial or business entity and item (p) to a commercial setting, each with conditions. Bring edge cases to Ecology.
What to do next
- List your products and the packaging and paper that goes with each.
- Run the three-step check on each material.
- Check every paper item against the seven exclusions. For a magazine, record both conditions in item (d).
- Test the exempt list. Items (j) and (p) depend on Ecology's determination or the producer's demonstration.
- Decide on a petition if a public health or safety exclusion might fit. At this article's last check, Ecology's page set October 1, 2027 for petitions, and Ecology must decide within 90 days of receipt.
- Confirm you are the producer. Read the de minimis test.
I am a Distinguished Committee Member of the SWANA Sustainable Materials Management Technical Division and a juror for the NYSAR3 Recycling Leadership Awards, both since 2023.
The Washington EPR Compliance Assessment takes your packaging and paper lines through these definitions and lists what to confirm with Ecology.
Get the Washington EPR Compliance Assessment
General information, not legal advice.