NAW Seeks Stay on Oregon EPR Fees During Appeal

The National Association of Wholesaler-Distributors (NAW) has asked a federal court in Oregon to temporarily suspend its ruling on the state’s packaging extended producer responsibility (EPR) law while the association’s appeal proceeds before the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit.

Filed on October 17, 2026, the motion seeks to restore protections that had shielded NAW members from enforcement of Oregon’s Plastic Pollution and Recycling Modernization Act since February 2026. A district court ruling in August upheld the law and lifted the preliminary injunction previously granted to the association’s members.

The timing is significant because Circular Action Alliance (CAA), Oregon’s designated producer responsibility organization, is expected to issue its next round of invoices to NAW members in January 2027. Businesses that pay the fees could struggle to recover those payments if the law is ultimately ruled unconstitutional. Those that withhold payment, meanwhile, could face accumulating late fees and enforcement action by the Oregon Department of Environmental Quality (DEQ).

NAW argues that members should not have to bear these financial risks while the appeal is pending. The association also maintains that the legal questions raised in its challenge, including the dormant Commerce Clause and the Due Process Clause of the U.S. Constitution, warrant further review by the appeals court.

A central issue in the dispute concerns how Oregon’s EPR program affects businesses operating across state lines. NAW contends that wholesalers and distributors may be charged fees for packaging decisions and product destinations they do not control. The association also challenges Oregon’s delegation of program administration and fee-setting responsibilities to CAA, a private organization.

For distributors, the financial implications extend beyond the fees themselves. Companies may need to absorb additional costs, pass them on to customers or reconsider supplying markets with EPR requirements. These potential responses have raised concerns about the effect of state-level packaging regulations on national distribution networks and interstate commerce.

NAW filed its notice of appeal in September. The association is also involved in ongoing legal challenges to packaging EPR laws in California and Colorado, making the Oregon case part of a broader debate over the legal framework for producer responsibility programs in the United States.

The latest motion does not overturn Oregon’s law or automatically suspend fee collection. The court must grant the requested stay for the previous protections to be restored while the appeal moves forward.

Source: NAW 

SUNSHINE Spotlight: NAW has asked a federal court to suspend enforcement of Oregon’s packaging EPR law against its members while a constitutional challenge proceeds in the Ninth Circuit. With CAA’s next round of invoices expected in January 2027, the dispute highlights the financial and compliance challenges that state-level EPR requirements can create for wholesalers and distributors operating across multiple markets.