Overview
This bill establishes a comprehensive battery stewardship and recycling program in Indiana, creating a producer responsibility framework for covered batteries. The legislation aims to reduce environmental harm from improper battery disposal by requiring battery producers to participate in approved stewardship organizations that manage collection, recycling, and proper disposal of batteries. The bill creates a regulatory structure overseen by the Indiana Department of Environmental Management, establishes funding mechanisms through annual fees, and sets progressive implementation deadlines extending through 2030. The program mandates that producers bear financial and operational responsibility for end-of-life battery management, shifting costs from municipalities and taxpayers to the entities that introduce batteries into the commerce stream.
Core Provisions
The bill amends Indiana Code Title 13 to create a new chapter 13-20.7 dedicated to battery stewardship. It establishes critical definitions including 'producer' as the entity responsible for batteries sold in Indiana, 'covered battery' as rechargeable batteries subject to the program, 'battery stewardship organization' as the approved entities managing compliance, and 'recycling' with specific performance standards. The legislation prohibits the sale of covered batteries unless the producer has joined an approved battery stewardship organization and the battery is included in an approved stewardship plan, effective January 1, 2030. Battery stewardship organizations must submit comprehensive plans to the Department that include producer lists, collection rate goals, recycling efficiency targets, education programs, safety standards, and financial plans demonstrating adequate funding for program operations. The bill creates the Battery Stewardship Fund as a dedicated, non-reverting fund to support Department oversight activities, funded through annual fees of one hundred thousand dollars assessed on each battery stewardship organization. Beginning January 1, 2029, the legislation prohibits placement of covered batteries in non-hazardous solid waste facilities, creating a disposal ban that drives batteries toward the stewardship collection system.
Key Points
- Prohibition on covered battery sales unless producer participates in approved stewardship organization (effective January 1, 2030)
- Mandatory battery stewardship plan requirements including collection goals, recycling efficiency targets, and financial sustainability
- Creation of Battery Stewardship Fund with $100,000 annual fee per stewardship organization
- Ban on disposal of covered batteries in non-hazardous waste facilities (effective January 1, 2029)
- Battery labeling requirements to facilitate proper identification and sorting
- Annual progress reporting obligations for battery stewardship organizations
Legal References
- IC 13-11-2-171.5 (Producer definition)
- IC 13-11-2-178.3 (Rechargeable battery definition)
- IC 13-11-2-47.3 (Covered battery definition)
- IC 13-11-2-17.5 (Battery stewardship organization definition)
- IC 13-11-2-180 (Recycling definition)
- IC 13-20.7-2-1 (Sale prohibition)
- IC 13-20.7-3-2 (Stewardship plan requirements)
- IC 13-20.7-3-7 (Annual fee provision)
- IC 13-20.7-4-1 (Battery Stewardship Fund)
Implementation
The Indiana Department of Environmental Management serves as the primary regulatory authority responsible for approving battery stewardship plans, monitoring compliance, and enforcing program requirements. The Department must review submitted stewardship plans for completeness and adequacy, ensuring they meet statutory requirements for collection infrastructure, recycling performance, consumer education, and financial viability. Battery stewardship organizations bear responsibility for submitting annual progress reports documenting collection volumes, recycling rates, geographic coverage, and program expenditures. The Department must publish approved plans and organization information on its website to provide transparency and enable retailer and consumer compliance. The Battery Stewardship Fund provides dedicated financing for Department oversight activities, funded through mandatory annual fees of one hundred thousand dollars per stewardship organization, supplemented by legislative appropriations, gifts, and donations. Retailers face compliance obligations to verify that batteries they sell are covered under approved stewardship plans, creating a market enforcement mechanism that incentivizes producer participation. The phased implementation timeline provides stakeholders with transition periods: the overall framework becomes effective July 1, 2026, the disposal ban takes effect January 1, 2029, and full producer participation and labeling requirements commence January 1, 2030.
Key Points
- Indiana Department of Environmental Management: plan approval, compliance monitoring, enforcement
- Battery stewardship organizations: plan submission, annual reporting, fee payment
- Producers: organization membership, battery registration, labeling compliance
- Retailers: verification of battery compliance status before sale
- Funding through $100,000 annual fees, appropriations, gifts, and donations
Impact
The primary beneficiaries of this legislation include Indiana residents who gain access to convenient battery recycling infrastructure, reducing exposure to hazardous materials in landfills and the environment. Municipalities and waste management facilities benefit from reduced contamination of waste streams and decreased costs associated with hazardous material handling. The environment benefits through increased battery recycling rates, recovery of valuable materials, and prevention of toxic substances from entering soil and water systems. Producers face new compliance costs including stewardship organization membership fees, proportional shares of collection and recycling infrastructure expenses, and administrative costs for plan development and reporting. The Department incurs administrative burden for plan review, compliance monitoring, and enforcement activities, though the Battery Stewardship Fund provides dedicated revenue to offset these costs. Retailers experience modest compliance burden in verifying battery eligibility before sale, though the Department's public website listing approved batteries facilitates this verification. The program expects to achieve progressive increases in battery collection and recycling rates through the establishment of convenient collection points, consumer education campaigns, and the disposal ban that channels batteries toward proper management. Long-term outcomes include development of battery recycling infrastructure within or serving Indiana, job creation in the recycling sector, and reduced environmental contamination from battery disposal.
Key Points
- Direct beneficiaries: Indiana residents, municipalities, environment
- Producer costs: membership fees, infrastructure costs, administrative expenses
- Department costs: plan review, monitoring, enforcement (offset by Battery Stewardship Fund)
- Expected outcomes: increased collection rates, improved recycling efficiency, reduced environmental contamination
- Economic impacts: recycling infrastructure development, job creation in recycling sector
Legal Framework
The bill operates under Indiana's constitutional police power to protect public health, safety, and welfare through environmental regulation. The legislation amends Indiana Code Title 13, the state's environmental management statute, establishing the Department's authority to regulate battery management as part of its broader solid waste and hazardous materials jurisdiction. The program creates a producer responsibility framework consistent with extended producer responsibility principles recognized in environmental law, placing end-of-life management obligations on entities that introduce products into commerce. The statutory scheme establishes clear regulatory authority for the Department to approve or reject stewardship plans, monitor compliance, and enforce requirements against producers, stewardship organizations, and potentially retailers. The prohibition on battery sales creates a market-based enforcement mechanism that leverages commercial incentives to drive producer participation without requiring direct government enforcement against every producer. The legislation does not explicitly preempt local government authority to establish additional battery collection programs or requirements, though the statewide framework may create practical preemption by establishing uniform standards. The bill does not contain explicit judicial review provisions, meaning challenges to Department decisions would proceed under Indiana's general administrative law framework governing review of agency actions.
Legal References
- Indiana Code Title 13 (Environmental Management)
- IC 13-20.7 (Battery Stewardship chapter created by this bill)
- Indiana Constitution police power provisions
Critical Issues
The legislation faces potential constitutional challenges under the dormant Commerce Clause if the producer definition or compliance requirements are interpreted to discriminate against out-of-state battery manufacturers or impose undue burdens on interstate commerce, though producer responsibility programs have generally survived such challenges when applied evenhandedly. Implementation challenges include ensuring adequate producer participation, particularly for small or foreign manufacturers who may lack awareness of Indiana requirements or attempt to avoid compliance. The Department faces resource constraints in identifying non-compliant producers and enforcing requirements against entities without physical presence in Indiana. The one hundred thousand dollar annual fee may prove insufficient to fund comprehensive Department oversight if multiple stewardship organizations form, or excessive if only one organization emerges, creating funding instability. Retailers face practical difficulties verifying battery compliance, particularly for batteries sold online or through complex supply chains where producer identity is unclear. The recycling efficiency and collection rate goals lack specific numerical targets in the statutory text, potentially allowing stewardship organizations to propose inadequate performance standards. The program may create unintended consequences including increased battery costs passed to consumers, competitive disadvantages for compliant retailers against non-compliant online sellers, and potential market consolidation if compliance costs favor large producers. Opposition arguments emphasize regulatory burden on businesses, increased consumer costs, adequacy of existing battery recycling infrastructure, and concerns about creating bureaucratic oversight structures. The disposal ban effective January 1, 2029 precedes full producer participation requirements by one year, potentially creating a gap where batteries cannot legally be disposed in waste facilities but collection infrastructure remains incomplete.
Key Points
- Constitutional concerns: dormant Commerce Clause challenges, though producer responsibility programs generally upheld
- Enforcement challenges: identifying non-compliant producers, particularly out-of-state and foreign manufacturers
- Funding adequacy: $100,000 annual fee may be insufficient or excessive depending on number of stewardship organizations
- Retailer compliance burden: difficulty verifying battery compliance status, particularly for online sales
- Performance standards: lack of specific numerical targets for collection and recycling rates
- Timing gap: disposal ban (2029) precedes producer participation requirements (2030)
- Cost impacts: compliance costs passed to consumers, competitive disadvantages for compliant sellers