Below is an important member update from Product Care Association (“Product Care”), on changes to the environmental handling fees (“EHF”) for the BC Smoke and Carbon Monoxide Alarm Extended Producer Responsibility (EPR) Program.
The Product Care board of directors has approved the following reductions for the EHF rates for BC smoke and carbon monoxide alarms, effective April 1, 2022. Revised EHF rates are summarized in the chart below.
| EHF prior to April 1st, 2022 | EHF as of April 1, 2022 | |
| BC Smoke alarms (including combination alarms) | $1.20 | $0.50 |
| BC Carbon Monoxide (CO) alarms | $0.60 | $0.50 |
For more information about the BC Smoke and Carbon Monoxide Alarm Program, visit Product Care’s website at www.productcare.org.
Effective Date
The effective date of the fee changes is April 1, 2022, to allow program members sufficient time to update their systems.
Basis for Fee reductions
The BC Smoke and Carbon Monoxide Alarm EPR Program has now been operating for 10 years. The current EHF rates are the original EHF rates established when the program began in October 2011, based on a multi-year budget developed with the information available at the time.
Program revenue is applied to cover all program operational and administrative costs, as well as for initiatives for the continuous improvement of program performance, in terms of both effectiveness and efficiency. As intended, the program has established financial reserves, to enable the program to manage any unexpected fluctuations in revenue or expenses.
The adjusted EHF rates are intended to result in a reduction of the program’s accumulated reserve over a period of several years.
While the costs to manage the two product categories vary because of product characteristics, and the management options available, the variance has decreased over time. Accordingly, the new EHF rates will be the same for both product categories, however the EHF reporting system will continue to require the two categories to be separately reported for program management purposes. Revenue and expenses will continue to be monitored for the two product categories, and in the future, fee rates may be adjusted by product type again.
For more information, contact us at bcalarmrecycle@productcare.org or 1 (877) 592-2972, ext. 401