
The Fashion Act comes to Washington
WashPIRG kicks off the 2025 Washington legislative session by testifying in support of the Fashion Act, a bill that would require fashion companies to disclose their environmental impacts.

What’s the problem with the fashion industry?
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 as it’s disposed of in our environment. 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.
In recent years, there has been an explosion in the production of clothing. The amount of garments that are produced every year has doubled since the year 2000– now, over 100 billion garments are produced worldwide every single year.
This overproduction of clothing results in an overwhelming amount of waste. Textile waste is now the fastest-growing waste stream in the country, and more than $100 billion dollars worth of materials are wasted each year.
What makes this waste all the more outrageous is that an estimated 30% of all clothes made around the world are never sold– and much of this unsold clothing will end up being destroyed, landfilled or incinerated.
The Fashion Act is a solution
On January 13th, 2025 — the first day of Washington’s legislative session — WashPIRG Campaign Associate Kathryn Horvath testified in the House Environment & Energy Committee public hearing in support of HB1107.
“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 this wasteful practice,” said Horvath.
Sponsored by Representative Sharlett Mena (LD 29), 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.

“Our favorite garment may be at the root of massive environmental harms, including high levels of water use, runoff pollution from the use of agrochemicals and dyes, carbon emissions, industry waste, and hazardous work environments,” said Representative Mena. “This Fashion Act is the first step toward creating a more sustainable industry and establishing resources for a more informed public in Washington.”
HB 1107 is a commonsense first step to addressing the significant negative environmental impacts of clothing production. If you want to see this bill passed, one of the best ways to make your voice heard is to call your legislators. You can use this website to find your district’s legislators and their contact information.
Here is a sample calling script:
“Hello, my name is ___, and I live in district __. I’m calling to urge you to support the Fashion Act, House Bill 1107. This bill would require fashion producers in Washington to disclose their use of toxic chemicals, waste disposal practices, and greenhouse gas emissions. I urge you to support Representative Mena’s Fashion Act bill this session. Thank you.”

See the Campaign

Beyond Plastic
Topics
Updates

The Right to Repair bill clears its first hurdle

Washington’s Right to Repair bill is gaining steam

Energy Conservation & Efficiency
2.3 million families used efficiency tax credit to reduce energy costs in 2023

Energy Conservation & Efficiency
Efficiency tax credits helped 350,000 new homes be more energy efficient in 2023
