Gravel2Gavel Construction & Real Estate Law Blog
In a closely watched first for state packaging extended producer responsibility (EPR) programs, a federal court has upheld Oregon’s recycling law on the merits. On August 27, 2026, following a five-day bench trial, the U.S. District Court for the District of Oregon held that Oregon’s Plastic Pollution and Recycling Modernization Act (RMA) does not violate the U.S. Constitution’s dormant Commerce Clause or the Fourteenth Amendment’s Due Process Clause. National Association of Wholesaler-Distributors v. Feldon, No. 3:25-cv-01334-SI, Findings of Fact and Conclusions of Law (D. Or. Aug. 27, 2026). The ruling follows a February preliminary injunction that applied to the National Association of Wholesaler-Distributors (NAW) and its members while the case moved to trial. As the first merits decision to uphold a modern state packaging EPR program against these constitutional challenges, the decision is likely to shape both pending litigation in other states and how producers approach compliance as state EPR programs move from design to enforcement. For producers subject to state packaging EPR programs, this decision adds judicial backing to the expanding regulatory framework of mandatory producer accountability, with direct implications for compliance planning, cost allocation, and financial disclosure.