North Carolina Governor Mike Easley recently signed into law a bill that will allow printer users the right to refill any cartridge, voiding contracts or purchase agreements that ban cartridges from being remanufactured. The law takes effect Oct. 1, 2003.
"I think the issues are extremely simple. Does the OEM have the right to tell us as a matter of public policy that their product cannot be remanufactured and therefore it must go into the landfills?" said Ed Swartz, CEO of Static Control Components. "I am glad that the legislature intervened to protect the jobs of North Carolinians and our environment."
In the legislature's statement examining the financial impact of the new law, they pointed out that state agencies use remanufactured cartridges and explained about the recent Lexmark v. Static Control lawsuit. The North Carolina Fiscal Research Division concluded, "If Lexmark is successful in its legal action, Static Control and other companies that remanufacture cartridges, could be negatively impacted in that they will not be able to remanufacture cartridges. If the availability of remanufactured cartridges is limited and (if) the State has to purchase new cartridges, the State could lose the savings it currently realizes from the use of remanufactured cartridges."
Despite that, the bill states, "This act becomes effective October 1, 2003, and applies to agreements or contracts entered into on or after that date. This act does not apply to or affect any litigation pending before that date."
Lexmark's official comment on the legislation is as follows:
"Over the course of the past several months, Lexmark representatives have explained to legislators that the company's cartridge return programs offer more customer choices and environmental benefits than are available from any other printer company. Lexmark does not believe the legislation will impact the environmentally friendly Lexmark Return Program for toner cartridges, and many North Carolina legislators with whom the company has spoken about this legislation agreed with that conclusion. Lexmark's Return Program facilitates toner cartridge remanufacturing by giving customers a significant incentive to return the empty cartridge only to Lexmark for remanufacturing and recycling. Therefore, Lexmark will remain focused on providing to North Carolina customers the best printing solutions on the market."
To help get the bill passed, Static Control Components launched a massive grassroots effort, using jobs and the environment as its platforms. The company is the largest employer in the area, with more than 1,200 employees in 14 counties. Those employees were encouraged to write to their legislators, as were the company’s customers and end users.
Static Control also enlisted seven lobbyists to assist in the campaign, including a former lieutenant governor of the state of North Carolina.
Initially introduced on April 16, the toner cartridge bill stemmed from a battle with North Carolina-based Static Control Components and Lexington, Ky.-based Lexmark International. Static Control Components supplies remanufacturers with parts to refurbish depleted cartridges. Lexmark International, the second largest printer manufacturer in the world, has consistently attempted to protect its own cartridge chain by using return programs.
For Swartz, the bill was about fighting for the industry’s survival.
"We took scarce financial resources and we devoted them to this and, frankly, we have the moral high ground and we just simply didn’t misrepresent anything," said Swartz. "We just simply told it the way it was and legislators, after having listened to both sides, agreed with our policy that this was in the public interest in the state of North Carolina."
The bill originally passed in the House and was improved in the Senate Commerce Committee, where it received unanimous support.
The Senate approved the committee substitute, with a 39-5 vote, and sent it back to the House for concurrence. The House agreed with the Senate, delivering a decisive 80-32 vote that sent the bill to the governor, who signed it on Aug. 7.
For more information on the history of the bill, see the North Carolina legislature site.
Contact Static Control in the United States at (800) 488-2426 or (919) 774-3808, the European corporate offices at + 44 0 118 923 8800, the Belgium sales office at + 00 32 8 172 1700 or visit www.scc-inc.com.
