How do you dispose of a TV?
What each state's own agency says about TVs & e-waste: the page it was read from, the date it was read, and where that state takes it.
Trash
Recycle
Special drop-off
Whether it's trash, recycling, or a special drop-off depends on your state — find yours in the table below.
Don't place computers, monitors and TVs in your trash, recycling bin or place them at the curb — these items require special handling and cannot be collected via your regular curbside service (Oregon DEQ).
The federal baseline
EPA says that "due to the presence of lead located in the funnel glass, CRTs marked for disposal are considered hazardous waste under the Resource Conservation and Recovery Act (RCRA)." The same rule leaves a door open for recycling: "CRT glass and used CRTs that are recycled or exported for recycling are not considered solid or hazardous waste under RCRA if certain conditions are met." In 2006 EPA amended its regulations to encourage recycling and reuse of used CRTs and CRT glass. EPA also warns that "state regulatory requirements for generators may be more stringent than those in the federal program" — which is why the answer for your TV is set by your state, not by Washington.
Read from EPA.
What happens to it
- Municipalities ensure that their residents have a collection site or event that will take covered electronic devices for recycling.
- Households, schools, and small businesses are responsible for bringing their e-waste to that collection site or event; some sites charge a small fee.
- Manufacturers pay for the recycling of televisions, computer monitors, laptops, tablets, and other visual display devices with screens of at least four inches.
- Electronics collected through this system are consolidated and sent for recycling by companies approved by the Department of Environmental Protection.
- Processing meets strict environmental standards and results in the reclamation of all useable materials.
Steps read from Maine DEP.
All 50 states
One row per state, with the sentence its agency page states, the page itself, the date it was read, and where that state says to take it. A state whose name links has a page of its own; for the rest, this row is everything that state says.
| State | Verdict | The rule | Source | Where to take it |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Alabama | Trash | ADEM says household waste is exempt from hazardous waste regulation in Alabama and a municipal landfill is an acceptable method of disposal for CRTs and other electronics — but many landfills will no longer accept them, so call yours first. | Alabama Department of Environmental Management checked 2026-08-19 | County programs |
| Alaska | No statewide rule | Alaska has no statewide e-waste rule — DEC's household disposal guidance is landfill-based; ask your borough, city, or local landfill whether it takes TVs and electronics. | Alaska DEC checked 2026-08-19 | County programs |
| Arizona | No statewide rule | Arizona has no statewide e-waste rule — ADEQ does not run collection; check your city, town, or county recycling and household hazardous waste program for TVs. | Arizona Department of Environmental Quality checked 2026-08-19 | County programs |
| Arkansas | Trash | ADEQ says the legislature's authority to ban e-waste from Arkansas landfills has not been put into place yet, so residents can dispose of e-waste with other household items unless their local landfill restricts it. | Arkansas DEQ checked 2026-08-19 | Drop-off finder |
| California | Special drop-off | California's Covered Electronic Waste Recycling Program covers CRT, LCD, plasma and OLED televisions — DTSC identifies them as hazardous waste when discarded, so take a TV to an e-waste collector, not the curb. | CalRecycle checked 2026-08-19 | Drop-off finder |
| Colorado | Special drop-off | Colorado bans electronics from the landfill — CDPHE says computers and other electronic equipment from residential and non-residential sources cannot be disposed of in solid waste landfills, and expect to pay a recycling fee. | Colorado Department of Public Health and Environment checked 2026-08-19 | Drop-off finder |
| Connecticut | Special drop-off | Connecticut's e-waste law makes every municipality provide a free drop-off location for televisions, computers, monitors and printers — and since January 1, 2011 those covered devices are banned from the trash. | Connecticut DEEP checked 2026-08-19 | Drop-off finder |
| Delaware | No statewide rule | Delaware has no statewide household e-waste rule — DNREC says the Delaware Solid Waste Authority accepts electronics for recycling at several locations across the state and at scheduled collection events. | Delaware DNREC checked 2026-08-19 | Drop-off finder |
| Florida | No statewide rule | Florida has no statewide e-waste rule — DEP says the state has no specific laws or regulations that apply to discarded electronic products, and strongly recommends recycling televisions and computers instead. | Florida DEP checked 2026-08-19 | County programs |
| Georgia | No statewide rule | Georgia has no statewide e-waste rule — EPD's recycling resources page sends residents to a zip-code guide to local recycling centers and to the National Center for Electronics Recycling; check your city or county program. | Georgia EPD checked 2026-08-19 | County programs |
| Hawaii | Recycle | Hawaii's Electronic Device Recycling and Recovery Law makes manufacturers run recycling programs for televisions with a screen nine inches or larger — the Health Department lists the recycling options by county. | Hawaii Department of Health checked 2026-08-19 | Drop-off finder |
| Idaho | No statewide rule | Idaho has no statewide e-waste rule — DEQ says you may be able to dispose of old equipment in a local landfill with the landfill's permission, and to contact your county, public health district, or landfill operator first. | Idaho DEQ checked 2026-08-19 | County programs |
| Illinois | Special drop-off | Illinois makes it illegal to throw covered electronics — televisions included — in the trash, and the Consumer Electronics Recycling Act sets a minimum number of collection locations in each participating county. | Illinois EPA checked 2026-08-19 | Drop-off finder |
| Indiana | Special drop-off | Indiana E-Cycle makes TV manufacturers pay to collect and recycle video display devices, and Indiana households may not put televisions out with municipal waste bound for a landfill or incinerator. | Indiana Department of Environmental Management checked 2026-08-19 | Drop-off finder |
| Iowa | No statewide rule | Iowa has no statewide e-waste rule — DNR groups TVs and computers as "brown goods" it wants kept out of landfills, and points you to your local recycling program on its recycling map. | Iowa DNR checked 2026-08-19 | County programs |
| Kansas | No statewide rule | Kansas has no e-waste disposal law — KDHE policy says state laws and regulations do not specifically address e-waste, and lists landfill disposal in permitted municipal solid waste landfills as an approved method after reuse and recycling. | Kansas Department of Health and Environment checked 2026-08-19 | County programs |
| Kentucky | No statewide rule | Kentucky has no statewide household e-waste rule — the state's recycling contract for e-scrap covers state government and local agencies, not households; ask your county solid waste coordinator where to take a TV. | Kentucky Energy and Environment Cabinet checked 2026-08-19 | County programs |
| Louisiana | No statewide rule | Louisiana has no statewide e-waste rule — LDEQ's recycling pages list parish and city collection programs, and it keeps a statewide list of electronic recycling drop-off locations and what each one accepts. | Louisiana DEQ checked 2026-08-19 | Drop-off finder |
| Maine | Special drop-off | Maine's product stewardship program has manufacturers pay to recycle televisions, and every municipality must give residents a collection site or event — it is illegal to throw away cathode ray tubes and LCD screens in Maine. | Maine DEP checked 2026-08-19 | Drop-off finder |
| Maryland | Recycle | Maryland's Statewide Electronics Recycling Program makes covered device manufacturers register with MDE and offer free takeback — and MDE lists permanent county collection sites that take televisions. | Maryland Department of the Environment checked 2026-08-19 | Drop-off finder |
| Massachusetts | Special drop-off | Massachusetts bans cathode ray tubes — the picture tubes in older TVs and monitors — from disposal or transport for disposal statewide; take them to your city or town's collection program. | Massachusetts DEP checked 2026-08-19 | County programs |
| Michigan | Recycle | Michigan's Electronic Waste Take Back Program makes manufacturers of covered devices — televisions included — run a free takeback program for consumers; EGLE keeps the list of manufacturer programs. | Michigan EGLE checked 2026-08-19 | Drop-off finder |
| Minnesota | Special drop-off | Minnesota banned CRT devices from mixed municipal solid waste in 2006 and added recycling requirements for video display devices — televisions included — in 2007; county and city programs run most collection. | Minnesota Pollution Control Agency checked 2026-08-19 | County programs |
| Mississippi | No statewide rule | Mississippi has no statewide e-waste rule — MDEQ's Electronics Waste Program is informational, and it keeps a list of local government electronics recycling programs and certified recyclers. | Mississippi DEQ checked 2026-08-19 | County programs |
| Missouri | Trash | Missouri DNR says most electronics from residences can legally be discarded with household trash, but recommends reusing, donating or recycling instead — the state's manufacturer recovery rule covers computer equipment, not televisions. | Missouri DNR checked 2026-08-19 | County programs |
| Montana | No statewide rule | Montana DEQ says the state does not have legislation requiring electronic equipment be recycled or banning electronics from landfills — check your local solid waste and recycling facility, or your county for collection events. | Montana DEQ checked 2026-08-19 | County programs |
| Nebraska | Trash | Nebraska's guidance says electronics from households are not regulated as hazardous waste and may be disposed of in a permitted municipal solid waste landfill or recycled — televisions and CRT monitors included. | Nebraska Department of Water, Energy, and Environment checked 2026-08-19 | County programs |
| Nevada | No statewide rule | Nevada has no statewide e-waste rule — NDEP lists what recycling and waste services each county offers and notes that services differ county by county; check yours before hauling a TV. | Nevada Division of Environmental Protection checked 2026-08-19 | County programs |
| New Hampshire | Special drop-off | New Hampshire bans video display devices — TVs, projectors, and anything with a cathode ray tube — from disposal in landfills and incinerators; NHDES keeps a list of computer and electronics recycling vendors. | New Hampshire Department of Environmental Services checked 2026-08-19 | Drop-off finder |
| New Jersey | Special drop-off | New Jersey's E-Waste Law bans disposal of covered electronic devices, televisions included, and DEP publishes a list of collection sites where consumers drop them off for free. | New Jersey DEP checked 2026-08-19 | Drop-off finder |
| New Mexico | No statewide rule | New Mexico has no statewide e-waste rule — the Environment Department says used electronic devices may be accepted at retail locations or in community recycling programs, and to contact your municipal, county, solid waste authority, or tribal program. | New Mexico Environment Department checked 2026-08-19 | County programs |
| New York | Special drop-off | New York's Electronic Equipment Recycling and Reuse Act makes TV recycling free for consumers — and since January 1, 2015 you cannot put covered electronics in the trash, at the curb, or in a landfill. | New York State DEC checked 2026-08-19 | Drop-off finder |
| North Carolina | Special drop-off | North Carolina's Discarded Computer Equipment and Television Management law bans televisions, computers, monitors and printers from landfill disposal and funds a statewide recycling infrastructure. | North Carolina DEQ checked 2026-08-19 | Drop-off finder |
| North Dakota | No statewide rule | North Dakota has no statewide e-waste rule — DEQ says recycling electronics is encouraged and collection sites are provided at many retail sellers; DEQ keeps a list of electronic recycling facilities. | North Dakota DEQ checked 2026-08-19 | Drop-off finder |
| Ohio | No statewide rule | Ohio has no statewide e-waste ban — Ohio EPA counts home electronics as household hazardous waste and points you to its recycling directory or your county solid waste management district for a TV. | Ohio EPA checked 2026-08-19 | County programs |
| Oklahoma | No statewide rule | Oklahoma has no statewide TV rule — DEQ's Computer Equipment Recovery Act covers computers and monitors, and its own definition says a covered device "does not include a television"; ask your city or county about electronics collection. | Oklahoma DEQ checked 2026-08-19 | County programs |
| Oregon | Special drop-off | Oregon's disposal ban, in effect since January 2010, makes it illegal to put computers, monitors and TVs in the garbage or at a landfill, incinerator or transfer station — Oregon E-Cycles recycles up to seven at a time for free. | Oregon DEQ checked 2026-08-19 | Drop-off finder |
| Pennsylvania | Special drop-off | Pennsylvania's Covered Device Recycling Act keeps televisions and computers out of municipal waste facilities — counties, municipalities and haulers run the drop-off sites and events, and DEP lists them. | Pennsylvania DEP checked 2026-08-19 | Drop-off finder |
| Rhode Island | Special drop-off | Rhode Island has banned all televisions and computers from the landfill since 2009 — DEM lists the permanent e-waste drop-off locations, and manufacturers fund take-back through the Resource Recovery Corporation. | Rhode Island DEM checked 2026-08-19 | Drop-off finder |
| South Carolina | Special drop-off | South Carolina law says residents may not knowingly discard a television, computer, monitor or printer in any waste stream headed for a solid waste landfill — all 46 counties run collection programs or events. | South Carolina Department of Environmental Services checked 2026-08-19 | County programs |
| South Dakota | No statewide rule | South Dakota has no statewide e-waste rule — DANR's recycling guide points to manufacturer and retailer recycling programs for computers and electronics, and to its statewide recycler map. | South Dakota Department of Agriculture and Natural Resources checked 2026-08-19 | Drop-off finder |
| Tennessee | No statewide rule | Tennessee has no statewide e-waste rule — TDEC's BOPAE program says county and city convenience centers across the state collect electronics for recycling or disposal; check which items yours takes. | Tennessee Department of Environment and Conservation checked 2026-08-19 | County programs |
| Texas | Recycle | Texas Recycles TVs makes television manufacturers offer a program to collect and recycle used TVs — TCEQ lists the brands and their recycling pages, and notes some household hazardous waste programs take televisions too. | Texas Commission on Environmental Quality checked 2026-08-19 | Drop-off finder |
| Utah | No statewide rule | Utah has no statewide e-waste rule — DEQ says to recycle old electronics at hazardous waste facilities, county recycling centers, community hazardous waste collections, or the retail locations that take them. | Utah DEQ checked 2026-08-19 | County programs |
| Vermont | Special drop-off | Vermont bans electronics from the landfill and Vermont E-Cycles recycles computers, monitors, TVs and printers free at locations across the state for residents, charities, schools and small businesses. | Vermont DEC checked 2026-08-19 | Drop-off finder |
| Virginia | No statewide rule | Virginia has no statewide TV rule — DEQ's Computer Recovery and Recycling Act covers computer manufacturers only, and DEQ says to contact your local recycling program manager about electronics collection events. | Virginia DEQ checked 2026-08-19 | County programs |
| Washington | Recycle | E-Cycle Washington recycles televisions free for Washington households, small businesses, schools and charities — Ecology warns some sites may reject badly damaged TVs with broken cathode ray tubes, so call ahead. | Washington Department of Ecology checked 2026-08-19 | Drop-off finder |
| West Virginia | Trash | West Virginia lifted its covered electronic device landfill ban under House Bill 4540 — WVDEP says West Virginians can again dispose of CEDs, including CRT televisions, at their local landfill, though the landfill may charge and Berkeley County still bans them. | West Virginia DEP checked 2026-08-19 | County programs |
| Wisconsin | Special drop-off | Wisconsin's electronics recycling law keeps TVs out of the trash, landfills and incinerators, and E-Cycle Wisconsin is the manufacturer-funded program that collects them from households and K-12 schools. | Wisconsin DNR checked 2026-08-19 | Drop-off finder |
| Wyoming | No statewide rule | Wyoming has no statewide e-waste rule — DEQ says state law requires all solid waste be disposed of, treated or recycled at facilities approved by the division and the local county, city or town; ask yours about TVs. | Wyoming DEQ checked 2026-08-19 | County programs |