Rapid growth in the use of computers and the incorporation of electronic features in a wide array of consumer products have been among the most important driving forces of the nation’s economy during the last decade; but they also pose major potential environmental problems. Rapid improvements in technology have produced better products, but also growing volumes of obsolete products to be managed as waste. According to the National Safety Council, which undertook the first major effort to gather quantitative information on electronic product recycling, 55.4 million personal computers will become obsolete in the United States in 2002. At an average weight of 70 pounds, obsolete PCs weighing 3.878 billion pounds will be added to the supply of waste needing management by the recycling and waste disposal industries in the current year alone. Management of these products as waste has become an issue of environmental concern. A computer monitor or television set, for example, generally contains 4-10 pounds of lead. Mercury, cadmium, and other heavy metals are also commonly used in such equipment. In an incinerator or landfill, these metals can be released to the environment, contaminating air, ash, and ground water. The presence of such materials suggests to many that electronic equipment should be managed separately from the municipal waste stream, and recycled whenever possible. The United States has done little to address this problem. Unless disposed in large quantities, used computers and other electronic products may be managed as municipal solid waste (i.e., the same as ordinary household trash) in most states. In many locations, used computers have been collected for recycling on special voluntary collection days, but few jurisdictions offer frequent, comprehensive recycling opportunities for electronic waste. The exceptions are California and Massachusetts, where disposal of cathode ray tubes (i.e., television sets and computer monitors) has been banned – essentially requiring their separate collection for recycling. Collection for recycling does not guarantee environmentally responsible management, however; recent reports suggest that large volumes of electronic waste separated for recycling are being shipped to China and other developing countries, where primitive recycling methods threaten human health and the environment. Numerous interested parties, including environmental groups, solid waste management officials, electronics manufacturers, and retailers, have begun to develop alternative approaches on a voluntary basis; and elsewhere in the world, notably in Japan and the European Union, regulations are under development that would force manufacturers and importers to take back end of life products for recycling and waste management separate from the municipal waste stream. This report provides background, discusses some of the initiatives undertaken by these groups, and identifies options that Congress might consider if it were to address this issue.