The
Maryland General Assembly convened last week and a number of relevant bills have begun to pop up on the MRN Legislative Committee’s radar screen. Here's a list with brief summaries of each bill.
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HB 9 Food System Resiliency Council - Adds “Healthy food" priority areas (predominately lower-income areas with limited access to retail outlets that sell affordable healthy foods) and a definition of “wasted food” to the legislation that created the Food System Resiliency Council.
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HB 42/SB134 Solid Waste Disposal Surcharge and Wasted Food Reduction and Diversion Fund and Grant Programs - Creates a $2 per ton surcharge on final disposal of solid waste in refuse disposal systems in the state (unclear if this applies to transfer stations for out-of-state
- Update 1/16: It has been confirmed by the Institute for Local Self-Reliance that the surcharge does apply to transfer stations for waste being moved out of state).
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HB 69 Environment – Plastic Products – Postconsumer Recycled Content Program - Sets minimum recycled content requirements for plastic containers. Note: This is a complicated bill with standards that may not be achievable and potentially discriminates against non-packaging use of recycled content such as piping for cHDPE packages and fiber for PET.
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HB 83 Environment – Tire Recycling Fee - Requires MDE instead of the Board of Public Works to impose the $1 per tire recycling fee on the first sale of a new tire in Maryland. The fee will provide additional funds to MDE needed to manage the tire recycling program & update the tire tracking system for accuracy.
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HB 220/SB 10 Renewable Energy Portfolio Standard - Eligible Sources - Strips Tier 1 status from waste-to-energy facilities therefore making them not eligible for inclusion in the renewable energy portfolio standard.
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HB 232 Maryland Beverage Container Recycling Refund and Litter Reduction Program - Creates a 10-15 cent deposit on glass, metal and plastic beverage containers as an anti-litter tool, and a 10 cent deposit for containers with a volume of 24 fluid ounces or less. Compensation for lost revenue to MRFs and higher consequent costs to local governments remains an issue.
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HB 277 Water Bottle Filling Stations - Requires water bottle filling stations to be installed for new construction or renovations.
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HB 338 State Buildings & State Highways – Collection & Disposal of Yard Waste - Requires yard waste collected on State building or State highway grounds placed in a reusable container that will not be discarded with the yard waste or in a compostable paper bag. The bill is similar to
HB0173 which was unanimously passed by the House last year.
The Legislative Committee is actively reviewing the details of all these bills to determine MRN’s position on each. Bills addressing mattress and electronics recycling are also expected.
MRN board members have also been active on the EPR Advisory Council, Lithium-Ion Battery Commission and Maryland Tire Law Workgroup.
Stay tuned for more information via your email and/or by visiting our
Legislative/Regulatory page.