Legislature Passes Initial Review of Resource Recycling Act Amendment, Expanding Management to Product Life Cycle
Taiwan''s Legislative Yuan has passed an initial review of an amendment to the ''Resource Recycling and Reuse Act,'' renaming it the ''Resource Circularity Promotion Act.'' This significant revision expands management to the entire product life cycle, from design to recycling, and introduces a ''sandbox mechanism'' for innovation. It emphasizes green design, source reduction, and circular procurement, with a two-year buffer period for implementation.
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Central News Agency (CNA) reporter Lin Ching-yin, Taipei, May 6th – The Legislative Yuan''s Social Welfare and Environmental Hygiene Committee today passed an initial review of the amendment to the ''Resource Recycling and Reuse Act.'' The bill''s name has been revised to the ''Resource Circularity Promotion Act,'' and its scope of management has been expanded to cover the entire product life cycle, from design, production, and use to recycling and reuse. This comprehensive management approach also includes the establishment of a sandbox mechanism.
Following its review session on the 4th, the Legislative Yuan''s Environmental Committee continued today to review the amendment to the ''Resource Recycling and Reuse Act'' submitted by the Executive Yuan. This revision marks the most significant amendment since the law''s enactment. According to the Executive Yuan''s draft amendment, the current law has 31 articles, while the proposed version has 51 articles. After the initial review, 22 new articles were added, and 30 articles were amended.
The key focus of the Executive Yuan''s amendment is to expand the scope of management to the entire product life cycle, encompassing design, production, use, and recycling/reuse. The revised content includes proposing a national overall resource circularity plan, clarifying inter-ministerial division of labor, and introducing green design, source reduction, extended product lifespan, circular procurement, and related incentive mechanisms. This aims to build an institutional environment conducive to industrial transformation and innovative development, and to establish a sandbox mechanism for resource circularity innovation experiments.
Legislators from both ruling and opposition parties supported this amendment, which centers on source reduction and resource circularity. The term ''recycling and reuse'' in the current articles has been uniformly changed to ''circularity,'' and the bill''s name has been revised to the ''Resource Circularity Promotion Act.''
The initially reviewed articles stipulate that the central competent authority shall consult with central industry-specific competent authorities to formulate a national overall resource circularity plan, which shall be reviewed at least once every five years. An annual report on resource circularity promotion achievements shall be compiled and publicly released after approval by the Executive Yuan.
Furthermore, the initially reviewed articles mandate that the central competent authority shall establish a Resource Circularity Promotion Committee, chaired by the Minister of Environment. Committee members will serve a two-year term and comprise representatives from relevant government agencies, academics, experts, and environmental protection groups. Academics, experts, and environmental protection group representatives shall constitute no less than half of the committee, with environmental protection group representatives accounting for no less than one-quarter of the overall committee.
Regarding the principles and guidelines for green design, the initially reviewed articles state that the central competent authority shall plan green design principles for products and construction projects. These principles include six categories of items, such as using single, easily decomposable, disassemblable, or recyclable materials, and using a certain proportion or quantity of recycled granular materials. The central competent authority shall formulate green design guidelines based on the content and items of these green design principles. The central competent authority may designate and announce specific items for green design guidelines, approve compliance with green design guidelines, and issue circularity labels. Businesses voluntarily adhering to green design guidelines may also apply to the central competent authority for approval and issuance of circularity labels.
To foster market circular procurement, in addition to encouraging public sector priority procurement and inclusion in performance evaluations, the initially reviewed articles also stipulate that to promote the development of the resource circularity industry, business investments in research and development, talent cultivation, and equipment purchases for circular utilization and sustainable circular management may be eligible for tax reductions or exemptions according to relevant tax laws, the Statute for Industrial Innovation, or other legal provisions. The central competent authority may coordinate with relevant agencies, financial institutions, and credit guarantee institutions to prioritize financing channels and credit guarantees for business investments in various resource circularity measures under this Act.
Regarding the sandbox mechanism for resource circularity innovation experiments, the initially reviewed articles state that for the purpose of promoting the development of resource circularity technology or digital technology governance, businesses may apply to the central competent authority for approval to conduct resource circularity innovation experiments and shall submit execution results to the central competent authority for record.
For legislators'' demands that the experimental sandbox should have defined boundaries, the initially reviewed articles clearly state that the central competent authority''s approval of innovative experimental projects may include additional conditions such as experimental duration, scope, scale, methods, monitoring, reporting, return incentives or subsidies, deadlines for improvement or cessation of experiments, revocation of approval, and other附款 (additional clauses) as part of the approval. Businesses shall execute according to the approved content.
During the period of an approved innovative experimental project, the application of all or part of this Act and the Waste Disposal Act may be excluded. However, the scope of legal exclusion shall be limited to what is necessary and appropriate to achieve the experimental purpose and shall not exclude mandatory provisions involving human health, public safety, or other significant environmental risks, civil and criminal liabilities, and emergency measures that administrative agencies should take according to law.
Regarding penalties, the initially reviewed articles stipulate that violations such as evading, obstructing, or refusing inspections or providing data, violating regulations concerning transportation, storage methods, facility specifications, or violating prohibitions, restrictions, or permit regulations, shall be subject to a fine of NT2,000 to NT50,000. The violator will be notified to make improvements within a specified period. If improvements are not made by the deadline, penalties may be imposed repeatedly. In severe cases, operations may be suspended for one month to one year.
For severe cases, the initially reviewed articles specify situations such as violating the same regulation twice within one year after being notified to improve, or failing to circularly utilize renewable energy as required, causing severe environmental pollution, or making false declarations, or other situations deemed severe by the competent authority.
Considering that the mandatory control measures and corresponding penalty provisions of the amendment will take time to implement, a two-year buffer period has also been set. The initially reviewed articles stipulate that, except for Articles 14 and Paragraph 1 of Article 38, which shall take effect two years after promulgation, this Act shall take effect on the date of promulgation. (Editor: Lin Ke-lun) 1150506 Choose to stand with facts, every sponsorship you provide is a force to protect press freedom. Download the Central News Agency ''First-hand News'' APP to instantly grasp the latest news. The text, images, and audio-visual content of this website may not be reproduced, publicly broadcast, or publicly transmitted and used without authorization.
Following its review session on the 4th, the Legislative Yuan''s Environmental Committee continued today to review the amendment to the ''Resource Recycling and Reuse Act'' submitted by the Executive Yuan. This revision marks the most significant amendment since the law''s enactment. According to the Executive Yuan''s draft amendment, the current law has 31 articles, while the proposed version has 51 articles. After the initial review, 22 new articles were added, and 30 articles were amended.
The key focus of the Executive Yuan''s amendment is to expand the scope of management to the entire product life cycle, encompassing design, production, use, and recycling/reuse. The revised content includes proposing a national overall resource circularity plan, clarifying inter-ministerial division of labor, and introducing green design, source reduction, extended product lifespan, circular procurement, and related incentive mechanisms. This aims to build an institutional environment conducive to industrial transformation and innovative development, and to establish a sandbox mechanism for resource circularity innovation experiments.
Legislators from both ruling and opposition parties supported this amendment, which centers on source reduction and resource circularity. The term ''recycling and reuse'' in the current articles has been uniformly changed to ''circularity,'' and the bill''s name has been revised to the ''Resource Circularity Promotion Act.''
The initially reviewed articles stipulate that the central competent authority shall consult with central industry-specific competent authorities to formulate a national overall resource circularity plan, which shall be reviewed at least once every five years. An annual report on resource circularity promotion achievements shall be compiled and publicly released after approval by the Executive Yuan.
Furthermore, the initially reviewed articles mandate that the central competent authority shall establish a Resource Circularity Promotion Committee, chaired by the Minister of Environment. Committee members will serve a two-year term and comprise representatives from relevant government agencies, academics, experts, and environmental protection groups. Academics, experts, and environmental protection group representatives shall constitute no less than half of the committee, with environmental protection group representatives accounting for no less than one-quarter of the overall committee.
Regarding the principles and guidelines for green design, the initially reviewed articles state that the central competent authority shall plan green design principles for products and construction projects. These principles include six categories of items, such as using single, easily decomposable, disassemblable, or recyclable materials, and using a certain proportion or quantity of recycled granular materials. The central competent authority shall formulate green design guidelines based on the content and items of these green design principles. The central competent authority may designate and announce specific items for green design guidelines, approve compliance with green design guidelines, and issue circularity labels. Businesses voluntarily adhering to green design guidelines may also apply to the central competent authority for approval and issuance of circularity labels.
To foster market circular procurement, in addition to encouraging public sector priority procurement and inclusion in performance evaluations, the initially reviewed articles also stipulate that to promote the development of the resource circularity industry, business investments in research and development, talent cultivation, and equipment purchases for circular utilization and sustainable circular management may be eligible for tax reductions or exemptions according to relevant tax laws, the Statute for Industrial Innovation, or other legal provisions. The central competent authority may coordinate with relevant agencies, financial institutions, and credit guarantee institutions to prioritize financing channels and credit guarantees for business investments in various resource circularity measures under this Act.
Regarding the sandbox mechanism for resource circularity innovation experiments, the initially reviewed articles state that for the purpose of promoting the development of resource circularity technology or digital technology governance, businesses may apply to the central competent authority for approval to conduct resource circularity innovation experiments and shall submit execution results to the central competent authority for record.
For legislators'' demands that the experimental sandbox should have defined boundaries, the initially reviewed articles clearly state that the central competent authority''s approval of innovative experimental projects may include additional conditions such as experimental duration, scope, scale, methods, monitoring, reporting, return incentives or subsidies, deadlines for improvement or cessation of experiments, revocation of approval, and other附款 (additional clauses) as part of the approval. Businesses shall execute according to the approved content.
During the period of an approved innovative experimental project, the application of all or part of this Act and the Waste Disposal Act may be excluded. However, the scope of legal exclusion shall be limited to what is necessary and appropriate to achieve the experimental purpose and shall not exclude mandatory provisions involving human health, public safety, or other significant environmental risks, civil and criminal liabilities, and emergency measures that administrative agencies should take according to law.
Regarding penalties, the initially reviewed articles stipulate that violations such as evading, obstructing, or refusing inspections or providing data, violating regulations concerning transportation, storage methods, facility specifications, or violating prohibitions, restrictions, or permit regulations, shall be subject to a fine of NT2,000 to NT50,000. The violator will be notified to make improvements within a specified period. If improvements are not made by the deadline, penalties may be imposed repeatedly. In severe cases, operations may be suspended for one month to one year.
For severe cases, the initially reviewed articles specify situations such as violating the same regulation twice within one year after being notified to improve, or failing to circularly utilize renewable energy as required, causing severe environmental pollution, or making false declarations, or other situations deemed severe by the competent authority.
Considering that the mandatory control measures and corresponding penalty provisions of the amendment will take time to implement, a two-year buffer period has also been set. The initially reviewed articles stipulate that, except for Articles 14 and Paragraph 1 of Article 38, which shall take effect two years after promulgation, this Act shall take effect on the date of promulgation. (Editor: Lin Ke-lun) 1150506 Choose to stand with facts, every sponsorship you provide is a force to protect press freedom. Download the Central News Agency ''First-hand News'' APP to instantly grasp the latest news. The text, images, and audio-visual content of this website may not be reproduced, publicly broadcast, or publicly transmitted and used without authorization.