Frequently Asked Questions

  • EPR means Extended Producer Responsibility, it is a policy that holds producers responsible for the packaging they create.

  • Producer responsibility organization, which is a collection of companies that produce packaging.

  • Yes, the industry does support this legislation including companies in Tennessee as well as companies outside of the state because

    1) they need the materials

    2) they are consistent with their sustainability goals and practices

    3) they realize they are putting massive amounts of packaging into an economy that can’t support the waste that is generated and want to pay into making the infrastructure better at collecting and sorting these materials to be used again. 

    Some examples of mega industry partners that support this legislation are: Mars, Unilever, Danone

    Businesses that make 2 million or more in revenue annually will be required to join the PRO

  • With the passage of this bill, counties with a population greater than 200,000 persons will operate under a PRO plan as a service provider. Any county under 200,000 persons will have the option to join but will not be required. Through extended producer responsibility, every household in counties that opt-in will have curbside recycling service.

  • Global corporations are driving this legislation in the United States because they have sustainability requirements they need to meet in other countries, and because of this they are willing to pay to bring recycling to states like Tennessee (which is 48th in the country for recycling) and is estimated to being roughly 300 Million in revenue for Tennessee.

    1. While we prioritize Tennesee, it's not limited to Tennessee. 

    2. Tennessee corporations: We already have Tennessee corporations that want these materials, which is why we have gained so much support for the bill. 

    3. Packaging Producers:  The producers of the packaging also want these materials back.

    4. Consumer: in the products that are made with recycled content

  • TDEC will be the oversight mechanism for everything. They are the regulatory body that will make sure that the policies enacted by the PRO benefit Tennesseans.

    1. California, Oregon, Maine, Maryland, Minnesota, Colorado

    2. Tennessee will be the first red state to pass EPR legislation.

  • No. Over time, as producers reduce their packaging and the accessibility of recycling infrastructure improves, it will help reduce costs to taxpayers and consumers.