Small Business and the RRA: How to Prepare Before You Are Asked

What are the five steps, and which ones does the law require?

None of the five steps is itself a legal duty. The table shows what each one rests on. Chapter 70A.208 RCW has no short title. "Recycling Reform Act" (RRA) is the name on Ecology's web pages, and we use it that way. Statements about Ecology and CAA web pages describe those pages as they stood at this article's last verification date.

The producer duties in the statute fall on "a producer". After July 1, 2026, a producer must be a member of a producer responsibility organization (PRO) registered in this state, or register as a PRO that will implement an individual plan (RCW 70A.208.040(1)(a)). A producer must also maintain membership with, and pay fees to, its PRO (RCW 70A.208.040(1)(c)).

Steps 2 and 3 tell you which side of that line you are on, because RCW 70A.208.020(29)(b)(iii) says "producer" does not include de minimis producers.

One rule reaches beyond producers. RCW 70A.208.230(3) says a person may not sell or distribute in or into the state a covered material of a producer that is not participating in a PRO. The same rule covers a producer that is not in compliance with the chapter or its rules. That matters if you resell other companies' goods. The penalties article has the warning and penalty steps.

How do I run the de minimis check every year?

Run the check each time a fiscal year closes, because items (a) and (b) look at the most recent and the prior fiscal year. Compare your figures with each item in RCW 70A.208.020(16) and write down the result. The subsection describes a de minimis producer as a producer that:

• (a) in its most recent fiscal year introduced less than one ton of covered materials;
• (b) has global gross revenue, not including on-premises alcohol sales, for the prior fiscal year of, until January 1, 2031, less than $5,000,000, or, beginning January 1, 2031, less than $5,000,000 as adjusted for inflation; or
• (c) is an agricultural employer, as defined in RCW 19.30.010, wherever it is located, with less than $5,000,000 in gross revenue in Washington from consumer sales of agricultural commodities sold under its brand name, adjusted for inflation as described in (b).

Between the three items, the only conjunction is "or", before item (c). That reads as three alternatives, but the statute does not say so in words. Our own method is to run every item that fits your business. If you meet one item and miss another, treat that as a question for Ecology or a lawyer, not as an answer.

Our suggested routine, a working method:

1. Total the units you sold, offered for sale, distributed or shipped into Washington. Multiply by the packaging and paper weight per unit, and take out exempt materials listed in RCW 70A.208.020(19).
2. Total your global gross revenue for item (b)'s prior fiscal year. Keep on-premises alcohol sales on their own line so they can be left out.
3. If you are an agricultural employer under RCW 19.30.010, work out item (c) too, using Washington consumer sales of agricultural commodities under your own brand.
4. Record each result, the year, and each choice you made where the statute is silent, such as which ton and which fiscal year you used.
5. Repeat the routine when Ecology adopts its rules. RCW 70A.208.060(2)(j) requires rules by 2028 to administer and implement the chapter, and asks Ecology to seek rules harmonized with other states.

Beginning January 1, 2031, the department adjusts the figure in item (b) for inflation each January 1st, using the consumer price index for urban wage earners.

What should your working file hold?

Keep whatever lets you repeat the check. This is our suggestion: RCW 70A.208.020, 70A.208.030, 70A.208.040 and 70A.208.060 do not tell a producer to keep any particular record.

One rule comes close. Under RCW 70A.208.060(7), when Ecology asks for purposes of determining compliance or implementing the chapter, a person must furnish any information the person has or may reasonably obtain.

Ecology's producer page lists reporting data to the PRO on covered products introduced into Washington to consumers among producer obligations. The Circular Action Alliance (CAA) says on its general reporting page that producers determine the relevant information, including sales and packaging weights of the covered materials they supply into the state program.

A useful file holds these items:

• Sales into Washington by product for each fiscal year, in units, in store or shipped.
• Packaging for each product by material, such as paper, plastic, metal or glass, with the weight per unit and its source.
• Who supplies the packaging, with a specification sheet or written weights.
• Who makes each item, whose brand is on it, who imports it, and who packs your online orders. The producer order in RCW 70A.208.020(29)(a) turns on these facts, and for packaging that ships an online order the producer is the person that packages the item (subsection (29)(a)(ii)(B)).
• Revenue for each fiscal year, with on-premises alcohol sales shown separately.
• The exempt material item in RCW 70A.208.020(19) that you relied on, and why.
• Any signed agreement assigning producer responsibility to another company. The producer must give the PRO written certification of it (RCW 70A.208.020(29)(a)(vi)(A)).

Who should I call, and when?

Call Ecology when the statute is silent on a term you need, call CAA once you know you are a producer, and call a lawyer when your result depends on how to read the statute.

Ecology's Recycling Reform Act page lists recyclingreform@ecy.wa.gov. Ask when ton, fiscal year or gross revenue decides your result.

Ecology's producer page says CAA is the PRO representing producers in Washington and the first point of contact for producer reporting guidance. Ecology encourages all potentially obligated producers to register with CAA. CAA's registration form asks the company to confirm it is an obligated producer, and its FAQ says CAA cannot make that determination for you. Finish steps 2 and 3 first.

CAA's Washington guidance document reprints the de minimis definition on a page about small producers and tells producers to consult legal counsel on whether they or their products are covered.

Common questions

Is my small business exempt from the RRA?

The statute has no category called small business. RCW 70A.208.020(29)(b)(iii) says "producer" does not include de minimis producers, and subsection (16) describes them in three items. The answer turns on your own figures and on whether you are the producer at all. Start with the coverage checklist and the de minimis article.

What should a small producer do to prepare?

By small producer we mean a small business the statute names as a producer and the de minimis description does not cover. Its duties in RCW 70A.208.040(1) include membership in a registered PRO or an individual plan, and paying fees to that PRO. Preparing means finding out early whether they apply, then reading the PRO article for the options.

What records should I keep?

Keep sales into Washington by product, packaging weights by material, packaging suppliers, revenue by fiscal year and the result of each check. Note each choice you made where the statute is silent, such as which ton you used. That file also puts the information to hand if Ecology asks under RCW 70A.208.060(7).

Do small businesses pay less?

The statute does not say so. RCW 70A.208.160(2)(a) requires a PRO with an approved plan to collect a fee from each member producer. The fee must vary with the covered materials that producer introduced in the prior year, per ton, per item or another unit. It sets no rate and no small business discount. CAA's Washington page says it will set an early fee structure for initial producer fees and gives no amount in that answer.

When should I start?

The statute gives a small business no start date, so starting the check now is our suggestion. Its dates apply to producers: RCW 70A.208.030(1) says each producer must appoint a PRO by January 1, 2026, and RCW 70A.208.040(1)(a) sets the membership duty after July 1, 2026. Both dates already sit behind this article's verification date. The deadlines article lists the rest.

What to do next

1. Open one folder for your workings. Start with the sales list for your last closed fiscal year.
2. Run the producer check with the coverage checklist. For items you resell, add the first distributor article.
3. Run each de minimis item and write down the result. The de minimis article has the method.
4. If a term the statute does not define decides the result, or the items split, email Ecology at recyclingreform@ecy.wa.gov.
5. If you are a producer, read the PRO and deadlines articles, then contact CAA.
6. Set two reminders: one for when your next fiscal year closes, one for when Ecology adopts its rules.

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 goes through your sales list and packaging records and sorts what the statute answers from what only Ecology can answer.

Get the Washington EPR Compliance Assessment

General information, not legal advice.