Bill highlight: HB 228 Truth in Labeling

Update: HB 228 was carried over to the 2025 General Assembly session

It feels good to see the chasing arrows recycling symbol on a plastic container and throw it in the recycling bin- avoiding the guilty feeling that comes with throwing harmful single use plastics into the trash. What does not feel good is the truth: recycling symbols do not mean that the item can be recycled. The chasing arrows surrounding a number simply tells us what kind of plastic the item was constructed from.

Recycling symbols on products that are not recyclable leads to “wishcycling”, where people place a questionable item into their recycling bin in hopes it will be recycled. HB 228 works to address this issue. 

HB 228 will prohibit manufactures from using the chasing arrows recycling symbol on products unless it is actually recyclable in that locality or region. The bill will also require Virginia to compile a list of recyclable materials in the Commonwealth.

Why we support HB 228

1. Consumers have the right to know if the products they are using are recyclable or not. However, many plastic manufacturers have been overusing the recycling symbol to make their products seem sustainable even if they’re not. 
2. When consumers place items in the recycling bin, they don’t get much assurance that their products are recycled. Once their items are hauled away, Virginians do not know if those items end up landfilled, recycled into a similar product or shipped overseas to be dealt with elsewhere. 
3. Virginians should be able to look up if a product is recyclable and know where it goes to be processed and recycled.
4. HB 228 is critical in determining what is recyclable in Virginia and provides consumers with assurance that their items are being recycled here in Virginia.
5. Virginia needs to modernize recycling. A critical step in modernizing recycling is knowing what materials are being used, disposed and managed. Consumers currently have no assurance that what they recycle is recycled.

Tell your legislators to vote YES on HB 228 today!