U.S. Congress Introduces Legislation to Ban E-Waste Exports to China

SEATTLE (Scrap Monster): A group of Congressmen introduced a legislation to prohibit export of electronic waste to China. The passage of Secure E-Waste Export and Recycling Act (SEERA) would stop the flow of electronic waste from the U.S. to China. The legislation is being re-introduced with the support of the Coalition for American Electronics Recycling (CAER).

As per provisions of the bill, exports of export of untested, non-working electronic scrap will be restricted, by adding it to the list of items restricted under the Export Control Reform Act of 2018. According to bill sponsors, the e-waste exported to China is used in counterfeit electronics, which are exported back to the U.S. as various products including critical military equipment, posing threat to national security.

The introduction of the bill would make it necessary to recycle all untested and nonworking electronics domestically, which in turn would result in creation of thousands of new jobs in the country.

Meantime, the legislation excludes items including tested, working used electronics, shredded or de-manufactured e-scrap and recalled electronics, on the ground that they are unlikely to be used by counterfeiters.