The Environmental Handling Charge (EHC) Policy has been revised to reflect guidance provided by the Washington State Department of Ecology regarding retail sales of mercury-containing lights and updated information regarding retail sales made by distributors.
The changes to the EHC Policy are summarized below:
Section 3 – Retail Sales
- Clarification added regarding what constitutes a retail sale.
- Examples of retail sales added.
- Examples of sales that would not be considered retail sales added.
- Statement regarding distributors who conduct a small portion of retail sales added, advising that they must add the EHC to those retail sales, and ensure the EHC is remitted to the program to help ensure a fair competitive landscape.
Section 4 – EHC Remittance Obligation and Retailer/Distributor Remittance Option
- Information added regarding distributors:
- Distributor as Producer: Information added regarding distributors who remit to the program as producers.
- Distributor as Remitting Retailer: Information added regarding distributors who remit to the program as remitting retailers.
Other EHC Policy changes:
- Minor changes have been made throughout the EHC Policy to update references or verb tenses.
- No other significant changes to the EHC Policy have been made other than those listed in Sections 3 and 4 above.
Please review and familiarize yourself with the revised EHC Policy. If you sell to distributors who may conduct retail sales, please advise them of the EHC Policy change to ensure they are aware of their potential obligations for participating in the LightRecycle Washington program. Distributors who conduct retail sales will be actively recruited to join the program and charge EHCs on mercury-containing lights sold at retail in an effort to ensure a fair competitive landscape.
For updates from the Washington State Department of Ecology regarding mercury-containing lights, subscribe to their “Listserv” email list.