The Massachusetts Joint Committee on Environment and Natural Resources has scheduled a May 6 hearing to discuss multiple bills focused on recycling and solid waste. This includes ISPA’s model mattress recycling legislation (MA H 1023), which would require the mattress industry to establish a statewide mattress recycling program in the style of existing states based on MRC’s ten years of experience. In addition, two mattress recycling bills that ISPA opposes (MA H 3985 //MA S 614) will be considered. These bills stray from effective and proven extended producer responsibility (EPR) programs for mattresses by requiring the Massachusetts Department of Environmental Protection (DEP) to run and administer the program as opposed to mattress producers. ISPA will testify in support of H 1023 and explain how H 3985 and S 614 differ drastically from successful mattress recycling programs and the basic principles of EPR generally.

In addition to the May 6 hearing, ISPA will present the Mattress Recycling Council’s program and our model mattress recycling legislation at the June 18 meeting of Extended Producer Responsibility Commission convened by the Massachusetts DEP. As ISPA previously reported, the purpose of this commission is to recommend extended producer responsibility (EPR) policies to the Massachusetts state legislature. Please contact ISPA’s GA Team (Alison Keane, Grant Johnson, and Marty Salamone) if you have any questions about ISPA’s efforts in Massachusetts.