The state of Maine's request for proposals (RFP) for the contract to administer its packaging EPR program closed August 18 with no submissions.
Aug. 24, 2026 (Resource Recycling) - Maine received no proposals for the contract to administer its packaging EPR program, the state Department of Environmental Protection (DEP) said on August 20.
This setback leaves the country's first statewide packaging stewardship law without a path to implementation.
The state's request for proposals (RFP) closed August 18 with no submissions. DEP said it is "assessing all options" and will share more in a future newsletter. The department did not specify what those options include.
The result follows a decision this week by producer responsibility organization (PRO) Circular Action Alliance (CAA) not to bid.
CAA cited a lack of alignment between the RFP's scope and the organization's "operational practices, systems and data stewardship standards" as the reason, while stopping short of ruling out a future solicitation.
CAA is the sole PRO implementing packaging EPR groundwork for California, Colorado, Maryland, Minnesota, Oregon and Washington, leaving Maine as the only state with an enacted packaging EPR law and no organization in place.
The complete article is available at Resource Recycling: No Bidders Respond to Maine's EPR RFP.
SOURCE: Resource Recycling