Are you the producer? How packaging EPR laws decide

The short answer

If you own the brand on the package and you're based in the US, you are usually the producer for that product's packaging, unless a licensee makes and sells it under your brand, or you qualify for a small-producer exemption. Don't assume your co-packer, distributor or retailer is reporting it for you.

Beyond that, it depends on three questions. Who makes the product, and under whose brand? Is that company in the US (or, in California, in the state)? How does the product reach the customer: off a shelf, or in a box you ship?

Why it matters

Seven states have enacted packaging EPR laws: Oregon, Colorado, California, Maine, Minnesota, Maryland and Washington.^1–7 Each one requires the producer of covered packaging to join a producer responsibility organization (PRO), report how much packaging it sold into the state by material and weight, and pay fees on it.

The laws are built so that each package has exactly one producer. If that's you and you haven't registered, nobody else is reporting that packaging for you. The cost of getting it wrong is real. Oregon's penalties run up to $25,000 a day,⁸ and in April 2026 Oregon published its first list of producers that had been flagged as non-compliant and hadn't corrected it.⁹ Colorado has barred non-participating producers from selling covered products in the state since July 1, 2025.¹⁰

The good news: the rules are more consistent across states than most people expect. Once you understand the ladder below, most products answer the question in a few minutes.

The ladder

Every state uses a ranked list. You start at the top and stop at the first company that fits. Washington, Minnesota, Maine and Maryland all use essentially this five-step version for products sold in stores:^4–7

1
Manufacturer, selling under its own brandor in packaging that shows no brand at all.
2
Licenseea company licensed to make and sell the product under someone else's brand.
3
Brand ownerthe company that owns the brand on the package.
4
US importeronly if none of the companies above is in the United States.
5
First distributor into the statethe backstop if nobody else qualifies.

Oregon and Colorado use a shorter ladder, and California's works differently. The table under State by state covers each one. Three points are true almost everywhere:

Contract manufacturing isn't the same as licensing. A co-packer that makes your product to your spec, and sells it only to you, is generally not the "licensee." In those states, the obligation lands on you as the brand owner. Oregon says it outright: a "manufacturer" includes whoever directs the manufacturing, including setting the packaging specifications.¹¹
The importer step only applies when nobody above it is in the US. If a foreign brand has a US subsidiary that licenses or owns the brand here, that subsidiary is usually the producer, not the importer.
Unbranded products go to the manufacturer first, not the seller.

Six common situations

1. You own the brand and use a co-packer

Usually: you're the producer. In Washington, Minnesota, Maine and Maryland, a co-packer that isn't licensed to sell under your brand drops out, and the obligation falls to you as brand owner. Colorado's rule puts the brand owner that directs or performs the manufacturing first in line.¹² Oregon treats you as the "manufacturer" because you direct the manufacturing.¹¹ California's rules name an in-state brand owner as the producer when the manufacturer doesn't own or license the brand.¹³

2. You import a foreign brand

You may be the producer, often without knowing it. If the manufacturer, licensee and brand owner are all outside the US, the obligation moves to the company that imports the product into the US. Washington, Minnesota, Maine and Maryland name the importer of record. Oregon and Colorado name the person that imports the product into the US for sale in the state.^8,14

California is different. Its laws look for a qualifying company in California, meaning subject to California's courts. If there isn't one, the obligation falls to whoever sells or distributes the product in or into the state. An out-of-state brand owner can volunteer to take it on by registering and consenting to California jurisdiction.¹³

3. You sell online and ship to customers

There can be two producers for one order. The packaging that holds the product (the bottle, the pouch, the carton) follows the normal ladder. The shipping packaging (the mailer, the box, the void fill) belongs to whoever packs the order:

Oregon: "the person that packages and ships the item to the consumer."⁸
Colorado: "the person that packages or ships the product to the consumer." Colorado's rule calls these two "equally obligated" producers.^12,14
Washington, Minnesota and Maryland: "the person that packages the item to be shipped." Maine: "a person that packages the item for delivery."^4–7
California: whoever adds the packaging is the producer of that packaging. Carriers that only transport a parcel are not producers.¹³

If an outside fulfilment provider packs your orders, check how each state treats that arrangement before assuming it carries the obligation.

4. You license a brand from someone else

If you make and sell under the licence, you're usually the producer, ahead of the brand owner. That holds in Oregon, Colorado, Washington, Minnesota, Maine and Maryland. In California, a manufacturer that owns or licenses the brand is first in line. Where the brand owner isn't in the state, the exclusive licensee is next.¹³

5. You sell a private-label or store brand

This is the least settled area. None of the statutes uses the term "private label." A retailer that owns the store brand and sets the specifications generally looks like the brand owner, or, in Oregon, the "manufacturer." The supplier that makes it generally isn't a licensee. Agencies haven't addressed every arrangement directly, so get the analysis for your specific contracts in writing.

6. You're a franchise

The franchisor is generally the producer, not the individual franchisees. Washington, Minnesota, Maine and Maryland say this expressly when the franchisor has franchisees in the state.^4–7 Colorado applies it to service packaging such as takeout containers.¹² In California, a party that got its brand rights through a franchise or sublicense from someone in the state is not the producer; that other party is.¹³

State by state

Where each law defines "producer," who comes first, who it falls to when the brand owner isn't in the US, and where each program stands.

State	Definition	First in line	No US brand owner or maker	Status
Oregon	ORS 459A.866; OAR 340-090-0860	Manufacturer under its own brand (includes whoever directs manufacturing), then licensee	US importer, then first distributor	Live. PRO membership required since July 1, 2025.
Colorado	C.R.S. 25-17-703; 6 CCR 1007-2 §18	Brand owner directing or performing manufacturing, then licensee, then manufacturer of unbranded goods	US importer	Live. Participation required to sell since July 1, 2025. Statewide program launched 2026.
California	Pub. Res. Code §42041(w); 14 CCR §18980.1.1	In-state manufacturer that owns or licenses the brand, then in-state brand owner or exclusive licensee	Whoever sells or distributes in or into California	Regulations effective May 1, 2026. PRO participation required to sell from January 1, 2027, or on plan approval if sooner.
Maine	38 M.R.S. §2146(1)(O)	Manufacturer under own brand, then licensee, then brand owner	US importer of record, then first distributor	No stewardship organization yet. A 2026 solicitation drew no bids, and the state plans to reissue it.
Minnesota	Minn. Stat. §115A.1441, subd. 26	Manufacturer under own brand, then licensee, then brand owner	US importer of record, then first distributor	PRO membership required since July 1, 2025. Needs assessment due end of 2026.
Maryland	Md. Code, Envir. §9-2501 (as amended by 2025 Md. Laws ch. 431)	Manufacturer under own brand, then licensee, then brand owner	US importer, then first distributor	Rules effective May 2026. Producer registration from July 1, 2026. Plans due 2028.
Washington	RCW 70A.208.020(29)	Manufacturer under own brand, then licensee, then brand owner	US importer of record, then first distributor	PRO membership required after July 1, 2026. Program rolls out 2030.

Simplified. Each law has separate rules for paper products, publications, and some sectors. See the sources below for the full text.

Small-producer exemptions

Every state exempts small producers, but the thresholds differ and are easy to misread. In most states you are exempt if you meet either test, but you still have to know where you stand each year. Some states measure revenue globally, not just in-state.

State	Revenue test	Volume test	Worth knowing
Oregon	Under $5M gross revenue (global, per DEQ)	Under 1 metric ton into Oregon	Affiliated companies can be combined when applying the test.¹¹
Colorado	Under $5M gross revenue, adjusted annually for inflation	Under 1 ton into Colorado	The dollar threshold rises each July.¹⁵
California	Under $1M gross sales in California	None	You must apply for the exemption. Some requirements still apply.¹⁶
Maine	Under $2M gross revenue (rising to $5M for a period after the program starts)	Under 1 ton	Producers with 1–15 tons pay a capped flat fee.⁴
Minnesota	Under $2M global gross revenue⁵	Under 1 ton	—
Maryland	Under $2M global gross revenue	Under 1 ton	Additional exclusions for some single-store retailers and restaurants.⁶
Washington	Under $5M global gross revenue⁷	Under 1 ton	—

Can you hand the obligation to someone else?

Sometimes, but only on paper and only in some states. A supplier saying "we've got it covered" is not enough.

Washington, Minnesota and Maine allow a signed agreement that assigns responsibility to another company. The other company must join the PRO (in Maine, register with the stewardship organization), and the original producer must give written certification of the agreement.^4,5,7
Maryland excludes a producer that has an agreement under which another entity assumes responsibility by written certification.⁶
Oregon has no formal assignment clause. However, a producer owes no fees for a product if another company has registered with the PRO as that product's producer.¹⁷ Oregon DEQ is writing rules on obligation assignments in its 2026 rulemaking.¹⁸
Colorado and California: we found no general provision for transferring the obligation by contract. California's rules allow brand owners to agree which brand on a multi-brand product counts.¹³

How to work out your answer

List every product and the brand on its packaging. Note any product with more than one brand, or none.
For each, record who makes it and on what terms. Your own facility, a co-packer to your spec, a licensee, or a third-party product you resell.
Note where each company sits. In the US or not; in California or not.
Split by sales channel. Shelf sales and shipped orders can carry different obligations, especially for shipping packaging.
Run each state's ladder and exemption tests. Do it state by state, because the answer can differ.
Put the conclusion in writing, with the rule you relied on, and revisit it when your supply chain or the rules change.

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Sources

Oregon Revised Statutes ch. 459A (Plastic Pollution and Recycling Modernization Act). oregonlegislature.gov
Colorado Revised Statutes §25-17-701 et seq. (Producer Responsibility Program for Statewide Recycling). cdphe.colorado.gov
California Public Resources Code §42040 et seq. (SB 54, 2022) and 14 CCR §§18980–18981. calrecycle.ca.gov
Maine Revised Statutes tit. 38, §2146, as amended by P.L. 2025, c. 383; Maine DEP program page. legislature.maine.gov · maine.gov/dep
Minnesota Statutes §§115A.144–115A.1463 (Packaging Waste and Cost Reduction Act), incl. §115A.1441 subd. 13 and 26. revisor.mn.gov
Maryland 2025 Laws ch. 431 (SB 901), amending Environment Article §9-2501 et seq.; COMAR 26.04.14. mgaleg.maryland.gov · mde.maryland.gov
Revised Code of Washington §70A.208.020 (2025 c 316, Recycling Reform Act). app.leg.wa.gov
ORS 459A.866 (producer) and Oregon DEQ, Producers of covered products. oregon.gov/deq
Recycling Modernization Act Producer Status List, as of April 9, 2026 (ORS 459A.869). PDF
C.R.S. 25-17-708. colorado.public.law
OAR 340-090-0860 (producer identification; small producers). law.cornell.edu
6 CCR 1007-2, Part 1, Section 18 (Order of Obligation). law.cornell.edu
Cal. Pub. Res. Code §42041(w); 14 CCR §18980.1.1 (producer identification). calrecycle.ca.gov
C.R.S. 25-17-703 (definitions). colorado.public.law
C.R.S. 25-17-713 (exemptions). colorado.public.law
Cal. Pub. Res. Code §42060; CalRecycle, Exemptions and exclusions. calrecycle.ca.gov
ORS 459A.869(3)–(4). oregonlegislature.gov
Oregon DEQ, Recycling Modernization Act 2026 rulemaking. oregon.gov/deq

General information, not legal advice. This explainer summarizes state laws and rules as we read them on the review date above. These programs change often, and how a law applies depends on your contracts and facts. For a formal opinion, consult counsel. Producer Desk is not a law firm.