To tackle specific problems related to waste electrical and electronic equipment, the EU has developed specific legislation on WEEE. The first WEEE Directive (2002/96/EC) came into force in February 2003. The Directive provided for the creation of collection programs where consumers return their WEEE free of charge. These programs aim to increase the recycling of WEEE and/or re-use. In December 2008, the European Commission proposed to revise the Directive in order to tackle the increasing of this waste stream. The new WEEE Directive (2012/19/EU) became effective on 14 February 2014.