In 2008, California Representative Mike Thompson (D) founded the bi-partisan Congressional E-Waste Working Group to work on standardizing national laws for recycling and disposing of discarded electronic and computer equipment. The group created a concept paper (PDF file, 180KB) that describes an electronics producer responsibility model as a means of financing the collection and recycling of discarded electronics and more importantly creates a set of guidelines that would be consistent in all states. Learn more about the concept paper and read government comments from the Product Stewardship Institute. The group also helped initiate Congressional hearings on e-waste management that took place on April 30, 2008.