HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES
H.B. NO.
1924
THIRTY-THIRD LEGISLATURE, 2026
H.D. 1
STATE OF HAWAII
A BILL FOR AN ACT
RELATING TO RECYCLING.
BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF HAWAII:
SECTION 1. The legislature finds that discarded mattresses and box springs present a persistent and growing challenge to Hawaii's solid waste management system. Each year, tens of thousands of bulky mattresses are landfilled or illegally dumped along roadsides, in gulches, and near streams, creating public health hazards, fire risks, and visual blight.
Because mattresses are large, difficult to compact, and often contain recyclable materials such as steel, foam, and fiber, they take up disproportionate landfill space and increase disposal costs for counties and taxpayers. The transportation of bulky waste to landfills also increases greenhouse gas emissions and strains already limited county budgets.
The legislature further finds that mattress materials can be recovered and reused through recycling or renovation, reducing the need for virgin materials, supporting local recycling enterprises, and creating green-sector jobs. Other states, including California, Connecticut, Oregon, and Rhode Island, have established extended producer responsibility programs that have diverted millions of mattresses from landfills, reduced illegal dumping, and provided stable funding through modest, transparent per-unit fees.
Accordingly, the purpose of this Act is to establish a mattress stewardship working group to develop a program to ensure the collection, reuse, and recycling of mattresses, box springs, and mattress foundations.
SECTION 2. (a) There is established within the department of health a mattress stewardship working group to develop a program to ensure the collection, reuse, and recycling of mattresses, box springs, and mattress foundations.
(b) The working group may consider developing a program that:
(1) Requires producers of mattresses, box springs, and mattress foundations to designate stewardship organizations to implement mattress stewardship plans;
(2) Establishes a mattress stewardship fee to be collected at the time of sale of a mattress, box spring, or mattress foundation;
(3) Establishes a mattress stewardship special fund;
(4) Includes retailer take-back opportunities in which retailers offer to remove discarded mattresses or box springs; and
(5) Includes reporting requirements and penalties for noncompliance.
(c) The working group shall consist of:
(1) The director of health, or the director's designee, who shall serve as chair;
(2) The chief of the refuse division of the department of environmental services of the city and county of Honolulu, or the chief's designee;
(3) The chief of the solid waste division of the department of public works of the county of Kauai, or the chief's designee;
(4) The chief of the solid waste division of the department of environmental management of the county of Maui, or the chief's designee;
(5) The chief of the solid waste division of the department of environmental management of the county of Hawaii, or the chief's designee;
(6) One representative from a mattress stewardship organization, to be invited by the chair of the working group;
(7) One representative from the mattress manufacturing industry, to be invited by the chair of the working group;
(8) One representative from the mattress retail industry, to be invited by the chair of the working group;
(9) One representative from an organization that accepts mattress donations, to be invited by the chair of the working group;
(10) One representative from a repair and reuse company, to be invited by the chair of the working group;
(11) One representative from a recycling company, to be invited by the chair of the working group;
(12) One representative from an in-state waste-to-energy company, to be invited by the chair of the working group; and
(13) Other members as invited by the chair.
(d) The working group shall submit a report of its findings and recommendations, including any proposed legislation, to the legislature no later than twenty days prior to the convening of the regular session of 2028.
(e) The working group shall cease to exist on July 31, 2028.
SECTION 3. This Act shall take effect on July 1, 3000.
Report Title:
Mattress Stewardship Working Group; Mattresses; Box Springs; Mattress Foundations; DOH; Collection; Recycling
Description:
Establishes a mattress stewardship working group within the Department of Health to develop a program to ensure the collection, reuse, and recycling of mattresses, box springs, and mattress foundations. Effective 7/1/3000. (HD1)
The summary description of legislation appearing on this page is for informational purposes only and is not legislation or evidence of legislative intent.