Waste reduction, recycling, and litter control account

How the money is spent  

The litter tax currently generates about $18 million per year for WRRLCA, which is split three ways, according to statute:  

• 40 percent supports litter pickup and prevention.
• 40 percent funds waste reduction and recycling.
• 20 percent goes to local government grants for litter pickup and illegal dump clean up.

Background 

In 1971, the Washington Legislature passed the Model Litter Control Act to address the complex solid waste management problems in the state. This act was amended in 1979 to add recycling to its mission. Waste reduction was added to the law’s purpose in 1992. The Legislature recognized at that time the growing need to accomplish waste reduction — the state’s highest waste management priority — and  updated the law and its name to the Waste Reduction, Recycling, and Model Litter Control Act.

This law includes a 0.015-percent tax on 13 product categories commonly found in litter when the law was passed in 1971 – such as food and beverage packaging and cigarettes. Manufacturers, wholesalers, and retailers provided broad support for this tax on frequently littered consumer products. Revenue from the litter tax is deposited into the Waste Reduction, Recycling, and Litter Control Account (WRRLCA).

Persistent funding challenges 

WRRLCA funds are periodically diverted by the Legislature from their intended purposes of funding litter clean up and waste reduction and recycling activities. Starting in 2008 and continuing until 2019, WRRLCA funds were reallocated to the general fund and to Washington State Parks maintenance and operations. This led Ecology to reduce funding for crucial litter and waste reduction work.   

When the WRRLCA funding was restored, Ecology  began work on a comprehensive litter prevention strategy, and a litter generation and composition study.  

In 2025 and 2026, the Legislature diverted another $7 million in WRRLCA funds to be used for other state budget purposes. Threats to WRRLCA funding remain a substantial challenge to addressing litter and waste reduction in Washington.

Litter pickup and prevention 

The most visible use of WRRLCA funding is our litter pick up programs. In 2024, Ecology-funded programs picked up more than 5.2 million pounds of litter and cleaned over 18 thousand miles of road. 

We operate Ecology’s Litter Corps, manage contracted litter crews, and provide litter pick up and enforcement funding to other state agencies, including the departments of Natural Resources,  Fish and Wildlife, and Washington State Parks.

The Ecology Litter Corps works on state highways, removing roadside litter and cleaning up illegal dumps. Ecology also contracts the cleaning of medians and high-traffic areas, statewide.

Studies and campaigns 

We implement a litter prevention campaign and conduct statewide litter studies on the types, amounts, and sources of litter, evaluating and measuring success.

Enforcement 

WRRLCA also funds Washington State Patrol emphasis patrols that support enforcement and unsecured load and litter laws.

Recycling and waste reduction  

In addition to addressing litter, WRRLCA supports recycling and waste reduction. In partnership with the Washington Department of Commerce, the Recycling Market Development Center works to improve markets for materials not commonly recycled in Washington.

WRRLCA also provides grants to schools, local governments, and non-profit organizations. These grants support programs to reduce waste from single-use items like plastic bags and prevent more durable items that can be repaired and reused from going straight to a landfill. These grants also help address the growing concern about plastics in our waste stream and the environment.

Other recycling and waste reduction funded activities include: 

• Research and data analysis on waste categories and amounts including a statewide waste characterization study.  
• Food waste reduction campaigns to prevent food waste and increase organic waste recycling. 
• The Recycle Right campaign to decrease contamination in curbside residential curbside bins.   
• The NextCycle Washington accelerator program that provides technical assistance to business and community organizations for reuse, repair, and recycle projects.  
• The 1-800-RECYCLE hotline and database.

Local government grants  

Twenty percent of WRRLCA funds local government grants. We provide grants to local governments to increase the amount of litter they collect, help clean up illegal dumps, and support education and outreach efforts. The grant programs include:  

• Community Litter Cleanup Program 
• Ramp Litter Cleanup Program

The litter tax after 50 years  

The litter tax, which funds WRRLCA, has not been updated since 1971. The types of litter and the amount of litter in Washington have grown substantially since then. The 2022 statewide litter study found that 26 of the 94 material types identified in the litter stream are not covered by the current tax.

As a result, about 47 percent of litter by weight and 25 percent of litter by piece, an estimated 17.9 million pounds and 1.7 billion items of litter, respectively, are from products not subject to Washington’s litter tax. Although the litter tax funds clean up all litter types, it only supports removal of roughly 20 percent of the litter accumulating each year.