We may only be one month into 2017, but for state legislatures the race is already on to complete their work before the session ends.
By mid-February, Florida and
Louisiana will be the only two states that haven't started their sessions, and
by the time Louisiana gets to business on April 10, 13 states will already have
adjourned. More than 200 bills are already being tracked in ISRI's State Legislative Tracking System with more arriving
every day. We've outlined a few trends below, but if you'd like more
information on a particular bill, pointers on the system, or details on any of
ISRI's other advocacy resources, please contact Danielle Waterfield or Justin Short.
Building
off their success in Tennessee in 2016, the Southeast Chapter has worked with
South Carolina legislators to introduce SB 181, which amends the state's hazardous waste cleanup law to clarify
that a "responsible party" does not include a person excluded from
liability under SREA.
More
than 20 metals theft bills have
already been introduced, with eight (at the time of writing) in New York alone.
Of note, the Gulf Coast Chapter is working with the Texas Senate Natural
Resources Committee to address issues with SB 208 dealing with unexploded
ordinance. Reportedly the bill arose from a problem where areas open to the
public used to be used for military testing, leading to live ordinance being
sold as scrap. However, as drafted the bill's provisions could have unintended
consequences for recyclers attempting to comply.
On
synthetic turf…New York,
Connecticut, and Virginia are the first to the legislative gate this year with
proposals ranging from a six month moratorium, to requiring studies independent
of those already being conducted at the state and federal level, to simply
prohibiting funding of projects. But Connecticut HB 6352 could manage to steal
the spotlight this year as it reintroduces Extended Producer Responsibility
(EPR) requirements for tires. This became a major concern in the 2015 session
as Connecticut and Vermont both introduced EPR bills following a meeting where
the Product Stewardship Institute encouraged state regulators to abandon the
current market-based systems by claiming that EPR would eliminate illegal
dumping and regulatory oversight, despite evidence from Ontario showing
otherwise.
Several
states are considering automated NMVTIS
and lien check systems that would allow - or require - recyclers to check a
vehicle's status. However, legislators in Mississippi have gone a step farther
with the introduction of HB 636, requiring that processors either obtain a copy
of a clear motor vehicle title or a statement from the Department of Revenue (DoR)
that no lien exists or risk being held liable to the lien holder for the total
amount owed on the vehicle. Mississippi SB 2230 would also remove the ability
for processors to purchase late-model vehicles without a title if the owner
signs a statement that the title was either lost or already returned to the
DoR.
While
electronics recycling bills have
largely focused on making changes to existing state programs in recent years,
New Hampshire's HB 547 already received a hearing in late January. The bill
targets computers, monitors, printers, televisions, and devices containing CRTs
under a market-based EPR system. While the problems of CRT management continue
to cause headaches for all parties, right to repair legislation in
Massachusetts, Kansas, Minnesota, Nebraska, and New York could help recyclers
access the information and tools they need to better process new and changing
technology as it comes into the recycling stream.
SPAN Main