Casey Reintroduces TRASH Act: States Better Able To Manage Own Solid Waste Plans
Washington, D.C. - Today, U.S. Senator Bob Casey (D-PA) announced that he has reintroduced legislation, the Trash Reduction And Sensible Handling (TRASH) Act, to restrict the flow of out-of-state trash into Pennsylvania. The legislation would give states the ability to leverage their own solid waste management plans to create higher standards thereby restricting interstate waste imports. The bill would also allow states to impose higher fees on out of state waste.
Trash Reduction And Sensible Handling (TRASH) Act
The TRASH Act would affect interstate shipment of municipal solid waste by:
- Allowing a State, through its State solid waste management plan, to restrict interstate waste imports by setting higher standards for waste handling within the State.
- For example, if a State or local municipality requires certain amounts of recycling, composting, or waste reduction measures, that State would be able to restrict out-of-State waste unless the exporting State complies with the same or higher standards.
- Allowing a State, through its State solid waste management plan, to impose a higher fee on out-of-State waste (regardless of the exporter’s compliance with in-State waste handling and reduction measures). The fee would be called a community benefit fee, which a State may provide to an affected community. States would be allowed to differentiate the fee on waste disposed of at a landfill versus at an incinerator or waste-to-energy facility.
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