The wave of extending a brand owner’s responsibility from the time of sale to the product’s end of life has a new target: mattresses. We all know that mattresses are hard to deal with when it’s time to replace them—they are bulky, awkward, and heavy. They are also very recyclable; unfortunately, the vast majority are sent to the landfill. A bill intends to provide a solution.

SB 6271, sponsored by Sen. Victoria Hunt (D–Issaquah), would require producers of mattresses to fund a system to collect mattresses and recycle them at the end of their useful life. Each year, more than one million mattresses are landfilled in our state, despite being made of recyclable components—metal, foam, wood, and fabric.

Some cities provide free or low-cost collection and recycling programs as a service to residents and to prevent illegal dumping, which can cost governments up to $50 per mattress. A producer responsibility program can reduce this cost by expanding service and achieving economies of scale. States with mattress stewardship/recycling laws average costs of $16-22 per mattress to fund statewide collection, transportation, outreach, and recycling.

Under SB 6271, there will be more locations across the state to more easily and less expensively recycle mattresses conveniently for all Washingtonians. The bill:

• Saves local governments and residents money by covering costs;
• Supports local economies in the state by investing in recycling businesses;
• Creates local, entry-level jobs for those with barriers to employment;
• Establishes more collection locations across the state that accept mattresses at no cost;
• Reduces illegal dumping of mattresses; and
• Increases mattress recovery, reuse, renovation, and recycling.

Although the bill is scheduled for a public hearing on February 4, it also needs to be voted out of committee that day to meet the cutoff deadline to advance this session.

Dates to remember

SB 6271 will be heard in the Senate Environment, Energy & Technology Committee on Wednesday, February 4, at 8 am.

February 4 is the policy committee cutoff deadline.