In 2023, Vermont passed Act 58, which requires the manufacturers of household products containing hazardous waste to collect these waste products without charging the public. The Act is an extended producer responsibility (EPR) law, aiming to shift the cost of proper household hazardous waste (HHW) disposal onto manufacturers instead of the government or the public. Manufacturers of nicotine vape devices are “covered” under this new law. Implementation is likely to begin in 2026.

Why This Matters

Nicotine and nicotine salts (excluding FDA-approved nicotine replacement therapy products) are considered an acute hazardous waste under Vermont law¹ (hazardous waste code P075) and under the federal Resource Conservation and Recovery Act (RCRA). The waste is considered “acute” because concentrated nicotine can be fatal to humans in low doses, according to the EPA.

Under both state and federal law, the person or entity that first causes a hazardous material to become waste is viewed as the generator of that waste. Hazardous waste generators can be split into Very Small Quantity Generators (VSQGs), Small Quantity Generators (SQGs), and Large Quantity Generators (LQGs). The type of regulations a waste generator is subject to depends on the category it falls into.

Household-generated waste (so-called HHW), including e-cigarettes and vapes, are usually exempt from hazardous waste requirements under Vermont law.² However, e-cigarettes and vapes generated by non-household entities, including businesses and schools, are subject to hazardous waste regulations. As a result, schools have been burdened with the responsibility and cost of proper disposal, even though they are not responsible for vapes and e-cigarettes being brought to their facilities.

The cost of safely disposing of e-cigarettes can be substantial, and with the volume of vapes collected by schools every year, it can range from thousands to tens of thousands of dollars, depending on the size of the school. Vermont’s HHW EPR law seeks to place that burden back on the vape manufacturers, who so far have benefitted from the proliferation of these hazardous products and have bypassed responsibility for the end-of-life costs of these products.

The goal of Act 58 is to enable households and Very Small Quantity Generators (VSQGs) in every locality in Vermont to have access to safe hazardous waste disposal, at no cost to the local jurisdiction. This means that even though schools are not households, Vermont will allow schools that qualify as VSQGs to participate in free vape disposal through this EPR program.

After decades of providing high-cost household hazardous waste disposal funded by taxpayers and municipalities, Vermont is pursuing a manufacturer-funded strategy that could serve as a model for other states. While schools should still be expected to properly dispose of confiscated vapes and e-cigarettes, the cost should be passed on to the manufacturers, and the waste should be considered that of the users that bring it in.

¹ Vermont Hazardous Waste Management Regulations (VHWMR) § 7-215.
² VHWMR § 7-203(a).

Zohal Khan, Staff Attorney
April 15, 2025