WashPIRG’s 2025 Legislative Agenda

WashPIRG is prioritizing bills this year to make it easier for Washingtonians to fix their stuff, reduce waste and protect consumers.

Capitol building in Olympia
Ralph Wilfing | Pixabay.com

WashPIRG is an advocate for consumers, advancing solutions to problems that affect our health, our safety and the quality of our lives. Every year, we outline our major program priorities, and the state legislative session provides an opportunity to come together around common sense solutions that will help make that future a reality.

Here are our top priorities for Washington’s 2025 legislative session:

repairing a cell phone
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Right to Repair

When something breaks, you fix it. That’s just common sense. But manufacturers of everything from phones to appliances intentionally make things difficult to repair. We are working to tackle planned obsolescence, and make sure consumers and small businesses have access to the parts, tools and service information they need to repair products so we can keep things in use and reduce waste. 

This summer, we knocked on doors around Washington to build support for the Right to Repair. We know that Washingtonians want to reduce their electronic waste, save money, and have the right to fix their stuff when it breaks. That’s why we’re supporting the Right to Repair for personal electronics and household appliances this 2025 legislative session (HB 1483/SB 5423), championed by Representative Gregerson and Senator Stanford.

Pixabay | Pixabay.com

But these problems don’t just apply to our personal electronics and appliances. When you rely on a powered wheelchair to get around, any delay in repair imposes a burden on your mobility and financial security. It can even become a matter of life and death. Yet, as “Stranded,” a report from U.S. PIRG Education Fund found, a constrained market for wheelchair service and repair in the U.S. makes delays, of weeks or even months, common.

We want to ensure that Washingtonians have uninterrupted access to their primary means of mobility, which is why we support the Right to Repair for wheelchairs. This bill would require manufacturers to provide necessary resources – from parts and tools to embedded software and essential documentation – to both wheelchair owners and independent repair providers.

Ricky Osborne | TPIN
Youth volunteers attending a lobby day in support of reducing waste and establishing producer responsibility for paper and packaging.

Waste less, recycle more

Every day, people throw away tons of plastic “stuff” — packaging, bags, takeout containers, and more. All of this waste clogs our landfills and incinerators, trashes our parks, litters our streets, and washes into our rivers and oceans where it can harm wildlife. It’s time to move beyond single-use plastic, by getting rid of the most harmful waste, and stopping the use of things we truly don’t need. 

  • Recycling Reform Act (formerly, the Re-WRAP Act). Worldwide, we produce almost 400 million tons of plastic waste annually—and nearly half of all plastic produced is intended to be used just once and then thrown away. Washington’s recycling systems haven’t been able to keep up with the influx of plastic and non-recyclable materials, and residents are having to bear the cost.

    WashPIRG supports the Recycling Reform Act, House Bill 1150, which is sponsored by Representative Berry and Senator Lovelett. This bill would hold companies responsible for the waste their products create and incentivize them to reduce and improve their packaging. It would expand curbside recycling to all Washington residents while increasing our reuse and recycling rates.
Rokas Tenys | Shutterstock.com
  • Beverage Deposit (also known as a “Bottle Bill”). Since Oregon passed the first Bottle Bill in 1971, nine other states have passed similar bills to increase recycling rates. It’s no surprise, since these bills are very effective. States with bottle deposit laws see beverage container recycling rates of roughly 60% — more than double the 24% seen in states without them.
    Washington’s proposed Beverage Deposit Bill would add a 10 cent deposit on to the sale of beverage containers sold in Washington state (bottles and cans). In order to get the 10 cents back, customers would have to recycle the empty container at a retailer or redemption center. WashPIRG supports putting deposits on beverage containers to help reduce waste and make sure that bottles and cans get recycled.
Fashion waste landfill
Swapan Photography | Shutterstock.com

Waste is out of fashion

Our clothing has a significant impact on the environment throughout its life cycle–from the fossil fuels required to make synthetic fabrics, to the toxic dyes and chemicals polluting our water, and even at its disposal. The fashion industry is responsible for about 10% of global carbon emissions, which is more than the emissions from international flights and maritime shipping combined.

Due to the lack of transparency and regulation in the fashion industry, we currently do not have access to the information needed to properly mitigate the harmful industry practices. Sponsored by Representative Mena, House Bill 1107 would require fashion producers and retailers in Washington to disclose information about their environmental impacts– including the chemicals used in their products, their waste disposal practices and greenhouse gas emissions. 

Stokkete | Shutterstock.com

Consumer Protection

In some ways it has never been easier to be a consumer. Virtually any product can be viewed online, and is just a few clicks from arriving at our doors. But today’s marketplace is also full of hidden dangers that can threaten our health, safety and financial security. WashPIRG supports policies to get dangerous products off store shelves, end exploitative practices and ensure a level playing field in the marketplace. 

For more information about WashPIRG’s 2025 Legislative Agenda, to request our support for a bill, or to ask questions about our position on a specific issue, please don’t hesitate to reach out. 

 

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Authors

Kathryn Horvath

Zero Waste Campaign Associate, WashPIRG

As the Zero Waste Campaign Associate with WashPIRG, Kathryn is working on our Waste is Out of Fashion campaign. Kathryn lives near her family in Seattle where she enjoys exploring the beautiful Pacific Northwest through skiing, kayaking and practicing her photography.