Dive Brief:
- The National Association of Wholesaler-Distributors announced it filed a notice of appeal in the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit on Thursday, challenging an Aug. 27 ruling by Judge Michael H. Simon that upheld Oregon’s extended producer responsibility for packaging law.
- NAW originally filed a lawsuit last summer when the program launched. The case against Oregon Department of Environmental Quality Director Leah Feldon was heard in a first-of-its-kind trial in July 2026.
- NAW again argued the law violates the dormant Commerce Clause, noting disruptions to nationally integrated supply chains, as well as the Due Process Clause, citing issues with producer responsibility organization Circular Action Alliance’s operations. NAW still has ongoing lawsuits challenging packaging EPR laws in California and Colorado.
Dive Insight:
NAW has largely led the charge against state packaging EPR laws and had some early success with a preliminary injunction in the Oregon case in February this year. But the Oregon judge ultimately ruled that Oregon’s law is in fact constitutional. An appeal was widely anticipated.
“The district court reached the wrong legal conclusions, and we’re asking the Ninth Circuit to correct them,” NAW President and CEO Eric Hoplin said in a statement.
NAW describes itself as “the national voice of the $8.7 trillion wholesale distribution industry.” Distributors are left with “three terrible options,” NAW Chief Government Relations Officer Brian Wild said in the announcement. “They can absorb fees they can’t afford on their already slim 3–5% margins, they can pass costs on to customers, or they can just stop selling into EPR states.”
A related case in Oregon is hinging on progress in NAW’s lawsuit. Lollicup USA launched a class action lawsuit this summer, also against Feldon. In a September court filing, both the plaintiff and the defendant said they were awaiting a potential appeal by NAW to determine whether Lollicup would move for a preliminary injunction or whether Feldon would seek to have the case dismissed. A joint status report is now due Oct. 16.
