Extended Producer Responsibility (EPR) laws are now active in seven states: Maine, Oregon, California, Colorado, Minnesota, Maryland, and Washington with pending legislation in additional 11 jurisdictions. With the passage of Maryland and Washington’s EPR programs this year, one in every five Americans now live in a state with a packaging EPR program.

What are EPR laws?

EPR laws extend a product manufacturer’s responsibility for its packaging materials to the end of the product’s life by shifting the cost of waste management to producers. In recent years, states have targeted packaging products, such as single-use paper or plastic packaging. These laws apply to producers, which include brand owners, manufacturers, importers, distributors, or retailers. Generally, these programs require producers to join Producer Responsibility Organizations (PROs), nonprofit organizations that support the implementation and management of EPR programs. These laws also typically require producers to report packaging material sales, reduce the use of nonrecyclable materials, and pay fees based on the type and quantity of these materials. Many state EPR programs set mandatory recycling targets for covered materials. Producers of covered packaging materials must evaluate and monitor their obligations under each state’s program, and, in certain states, producers are beginning to receive enforcement notices raising the possibility of penalties and stop sale orders for potential non-compliance with EPR requirements.

A brief overview is provided below for states with enacted EPR programs. The overview provides details on existing state EPR programs, including their general structure and enforcement, covered materials and producers, and key deadlines.

Maine

In July of 2021, Maine established the Stewardship Program for Packaging (SPP), set to take effect in 2027. Implementation and compliance will be carried out by Stewardship Organizations (SOs), Maine’s equivalent of PROs. The program targets packaging materials used for containment, protection, delivery, distribution, or presentation of consumer packaged goods. The program excludes materials intended for long-term storage (more than five years) of a durable product, beverage containers subject to existing regulations, and containers for architectural paint. Producers subject to SPP requirements include brand owners selling or distributing products that use covered packaging materials in the state. If the brand owner has no physical presence in the United States, the entity that imports a product using covered packaging into the state must comply with the program. Producers are exempt from the program if, in the prior fiscal year, their gross revenues within the state were less than $2 million or if they sold products containing less than one ton of covered packaging materials.

The program requires that producers pay the SOs a fee based on the amount and recyclability of the packaging materials the producer sells or distributes in the state. Producers will have to register with and report to the SOs and pay this fee within 180 days of the effective date of a producer-specific SO agreement.

Oregon

Oregon’s Plastic Pollution and Recycling Modernization Act became effective January 1, 2022. Its recycling program began in July 2025. It authorizes a PRO, the Circular Action Alliance (CAA), to assess fees and assist with the collection of recyclable materials. Fees are based on the quantity and type of each covered product, environmental considerations, and the impacts of each material type on the PRO’s cost obligations. The CAA’s Third Amended Plan is authorized from 2025 through 2027. Oregon’s program will operate under a shared responsibility model where producers and municipalities share collection duties, but only municipalities are reimbursed. The Oregon Department of Environmental Quality will oversee and enforce the program, and most collection responsibilities will be managed by local governments. However, PROs must provide support for hard-to-recycle materials.

The program targets packaging materials such as paper, plastic, glass, or metal used to contain or protect consumer products. Covered materials include, for example, single-use bags, nondurable materials used for storage or shipping, and food serviceware. The program excludes beverage containers subject to existing legislation, bound books, and paper intended for cleaning. Producers are typically the brand-owning manufacturers of the packaged item. If the brand owner confers ownership to a manufacturer via a licensing agreement, the manufacturer would be subject to the program. If neither entity operates in the U.S., the importer or distributor of the packaged item must comply with the state law. A producer is not required to participate if, for all covered products it sells or distributes in the state, another entity in the supply chain has registered with the PRO as the producer responsible for that product. For products sold remotely, both the entity that packages and ships the item for sale and the producer should coordinate their compliance obligations to ensure the reporting of covered products to the PRO.

By July 1, 2025, producers must have:

1. registered with and be a member of a PRO (likely the CAA),
2. paid an annual membership fee to its PRO, and
3. upon request, provided the PRO with additional records or other information.

The largest 25 producers in the state are also required to perform and disclose evaluations of the life cycle impacts of at least 1% of their covered products every two years.

Oregon’s EPR program was recently challenged by the National Association of Wholesaler-Distributors (NAW) in the United States District Court for the District of Oregon. The NAW challenged the statute as unconstitutional pursuant to the nondelegation doctrine, federal dormant commerce clause, and state due process clause. The EPR program has not been stayed pending the resolution of this matter, which is currently subject to briefing.

California

California launched the Plastic Pollution Prevention and Packaging Producer Responsibility Program on June 30, 2022. Like Oregon’s program, it follows a shared responsibility model where only municipalities are reimbursed, but producers and municipalities share collection obligations. CalRecycle, a state agency, is authorized to enforce the program, conduct investigations, issue notices of violation, and assess penalties.

The program defines covered materials as single-use packaging that is typically recycled, disposed of, or discarded, and not refilled or reused after consumer use. The program excludes packaging for medical devices, insecticides, hazardous products, beverage containers subject to existing legislation, and packaging materials intended for storage of at least five years. Producers include manufacturers who are also brand owners of products packaged with covered materials. Where there is no such owner in the state, the producer of the material is the owner or the exclusive licensee of the brand. Alternatively, if there is no manufacturer or brand owner present in California, the entity that sells or distributes the covered materials is considered a producer under the program. Producers, retailers, or wholesalers with less than $1 million in gross sales are exempt from the program. 

The state-approved PRO will publish recycling rates for each covered product category by January 1, 2026. Producers must register with and participate in a state-approved PRO by January 1, 2027, with producer fees due in 2027. Otherwise, producers cannot sell, offer to sell, import, or distribute covered products in the state.

Colorado

On June 3, 2022, Colorado passed the Producer Responsibility Program for Statewide Recycling Act. It requires producers to fund and manage a statewide recycling program. The program targets packaging materials intended for single or short-term containment, protection, handling, or delivery. Paper products (flyers, brochures, magazines, etc.) are also covered. The program excludes packaging intended for storage of a duration of at least five years, paper products that may become unsanitary, packaging materials exclusive to industrial or manufacturing processes, drug and medical device packaging, and paper for print publications, among others. Similar to Oregon and California, Colorado defines producers as the brand owner, licensee, or importer of a product sold in the state that is packaged with covered materials. Businesses with less than $5 million in gross total revenue are exempt, as well as businesses that use less than one ton of covered materials. 

Producers must have formed or joined an existing PRO (likely CAA) by July 1, 2025, and must meet mandatory packaging reporting requirements. Participating producers will be required to pay dues to PROs on or before January 1, 2026.

Minnesota

In early 2024, Minnesota passed the Packaging Waste and Cost Reduction Act (PWCRA), which created an EPR packaging program. The Minnesota Pollution Control Agency (MPCA) will oversee the program and enforce its requirements. CAA (the state-approved PRO) and MPCA are tasked with developing an implementation plan. Implementation of the program is expected to begin in 2029.

Materials covered by the program generally include packaging components, food packaging, and paper products sold, offered for sale, distributed, or used to ship products within or into Minnesota (including online purchases and shipments). Its exemptions are similar to those of other states. For instance, the PWCRA excludes packaging for infant formula, drug or medical devices, and hazardous materials. Producers of covered materials are, like in other states, brand or product manufacturers, brand licensees, importers, or distributors of the product. The PWCRA further designates as producers those who sell products remotely and who use packaging materials to protect or contain an item or to ship the item. Entities that produced less than one ton of covered material in the state or that earned less than $2 million in global gross revenues in the prior fiscal year are exempt.

The law requires that producers join the authorized PRO by July 1, 2025.

Maryland

Maryland recently enacted the Packaging and Paper Products Producer Responsibility Plans Act on May 13, 2025. Covered materials include packaging products intended for consumers and service packaging designed and intended to be filled at the point of sale (i.e., carry-out bags, take-out and home delivery food packaging, and certain beverage containers). Paper products made from wood pulp or other cellulosic fibers are also included. Maryland defines producers much like Minnesota. Exempted producers include entities that produced less than one ton of covered materials in the state or that earned less than $2 million in gross revenues in the prior fiscal year, mills that use any virgin wood fiber, entities that own or operate a single retail establishment, and certain businesses licensed under Title 2 of the Alcoholic Beverages and Cannabis Article.

By July 1, 2026, the PRO must file a registration form with the Maryland Department of the Environment listing participating producers and their covered materials.

Washington

The latest state to pass an EPR bill is Washington. On May 17, 2025, Governor Bob Ferguson signed the Recycling Reform Act. It created an EPR program that targets packaging materials used to protect, contain, transport, serve, or deliver a product to consumers for personal or noncommercial use. Covered materials include, for example, paper products and prepackaged beverage containers. The program excludes packaging for infant formula, drugs and medical devices, insecticides, hazardous materials, film plastic in direct contact with raw meat, and packaging intended for long-term storage. The program defines the term producer like Minnesota and Maryland, and excludes producers that introduced less than one ton of covered material into the state or that had less than $5 million in global gross revenue in the prior fiscal year.

Producers are required to join or form a PRO by July 1, 2026. Full implementation of the program is expected by January 1, 2030.

Pending EPR Legislation

Eleven states have introduced EPR legislation: Connecticut, Delaware, Hawaii, Illinois, Massachusetts, Nebraska, New Jersey, New York, North Carolina, Rhode Island, and Tennessee. More states are expected to follow this trend with their own EPR programs soon to come.

Conclusion

Given the varying deadlines, product-by-product analysis, and potentially harsh penalties, it is critical that businesses assess their EPR obligations and plan for compliance as soon as possible. Please reach out to any member of our Environmental Practice or your Cozen O’Connor attorney if you have any questions.