A new Washington law, supported by State Representative Sharlett Mena, has been launched in an effort to regulate the fast fashion business in order to secure the sector’s future sustainability and transparency.
The terms of the measure explicitly concern apparel companies who operate in the state with an annual worldwide gross income of more than US $ 100,000.
As a result, these corporations would ultimately be held accountable for reporting their ecological due diligence policies, procedures, and outcomes, including both effects and objectives for avoidance and improvement.
Related firms would be forced to provide such information beginning 1st January 2027, as well as knowledge of how they track their objectives, which if not fulfilled might result in penalties levied by the state Department of Ecology.
According to the law, information must be available on a retailer’s website homepage by 1st July 2025, or through written disclosure, with due diligence to include supply chain mapping and impact reporting, in accordance with the United Nations’ governing 21 principles on business and the rights of people.
Targets to include in a company’s report include reductions in the domain of energy, emissions of greenhouse gasses, water and chemical management; yearly quantity of material produced; the replacement of recycled materials relative to expansion goals; and the monitoring of due diligence. Washington’s measure follows similar legislation presented in New York and California, which would force fashion companies to be honest about their social and environmental effects.
