The world's most rapidly emerging waste stream is waste electronic equipment, commonly referred to as e-waste. 1 As the scope of the waste The rate of e-waste growth is three times higher than typical municipal waste stream grows, problems associated with this noxious brand of waste become increasingly apparent. Policymakers are increasingly responding, both domestically and abroad. In the world community, this response has taken shape by single-state action and proposals, particularly in Asian countries, as well as regionally, specifically the European Union (EU). Domestically, there is no federal legal regime aimed at reducing the effects of e-waste. Federal voluntary programs do exist, but the ineffectiveness of these programs is reflected by the fact that U.S. states frequently implement mandatory e-waste laws of their own. There are positive and negative aspects to these particular state actions. It is good that these laws respond to a real problem, and some action is better than none. Also, with each new state that takes notice, a critical mass is developing that will influence federal legislators to take action. A primary reason that federal legislators will be influenced by state action is because of one of the downsides of state action: it creates a patchwork of policies. The incoherence can be difficult to navigate from a business perspective, and it creates burdensome compliance costs which are passed on to consumers. The constitutional basis for Congress to regulate e-waste is unquestioned. The issue of e-waste, like so many others, therefore begs the questions of (1) when is it more prudent for Congress to exercise its Commerce Clause powers rather than to let states drive the issue, and (2) if the wisdom of national legislation is so apparent, what explains congressional reticence? A parallel of the first question applies with equal force with respect to the European Union. In Sections II and III this Note looks at how the European Union and the United States answer the questions raised by the case of e-waste. These sections look at the fragmented policies which once existed or which currently exist, and then look to the unifying response, if any, that has developed as a result of those fragmented policies.