Bill Pulled Back In North Carolina
A bill that eliminates North Carolina's electronics recycling program and landfill ban was scheduled for a vote in the state's Senate this week, but it was reportedly pulled from consideration at the last minute.
According to a report from the Public News Service, Senate lawmakers were scheduled to vote on House Bill 169 June 7 but decided instead to send it back to a Senate committee for further review.
It is not clear when North Carolina's Generally Assembly will adjourn this year. In years past, the legislative session has gone as late as September but typically runs until July or August,.
HB 169 was passed in July of last year by the state's House and has been under consideration in the Senate ever since. The Associated Press ran a report on the measure last week and E-Scrap News also contributed reporting.
The state's electronics recycling program is funded by manufacturers and provides local collection programs with grants to cover the costs of recycling end-of-life electronics and avoid landfilling. Bill supporters have argued the cost to do so has become too immense, while others, including the local chapter of the Sierra Club, have opposed the legislation on the grounds that the Tar Heel State's electronics recycling program provides environmental benefits..
North Carolina's electronics recycling program has faced extinction once before. Legislation originally calling for the end of the program grabbed support in legislature last year but was revised to instead require a comprehensive program study.
*For more information go to http://resource-recycling.com