Industry Pushes Back on EU Plan to Tax E-Waste to Fund Budget

The European Commission’s idea for a €2 ($2.30) levy on each kilogram of unrecycled phones, laptops, and refrigerators to help fund its next budget would burden the economy without reducing electric and electronic waste, industry groups said.

Although the e-waste tax would be paid by country governments, businesses argue that the burden would inevitably fall on them, with a patchwork of national rules just as the EU should be cutting red tape for competitiveness. And it’s based on fatally inadequate data, they say.

“We believe this measure is poorly designed and unlikely ...