I
106TH CONGRESS
1ST SESSION
H. R. 1270
To authorize States and political subdivisions of States to control the manage-
ment of municipal solid waste generated within their jurisdictions, and
to exempt States and political subdivisions of States from civil liability
with respect to the good faith passage, implementation, and enforcement
of flow control ordinances.
IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES
MARCH 24, 1999
Mr. MINGE introduced the following bill; which was referred to the Committee
on Commerce
A BILL
To authorize States and political subdivisions of States to
control the management of municipal solid waste gen-
erated within their jurisdictions, and to exempt States
and political subdivisions of States from civil liability
with respect to the good faith passage, implementation,
and enforcement of flow control ordinances.
Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representa-
tives of the United States of America in Congress assembled,
SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE.
This Act may be cited as the ‘‘Taxpayer Relief
Through Municipal Waste Control Act of 1999’’.
SEC. 2. AUTHORIZATION FOR STATES AND POLITICAL SUB-
DIVISIONS TO CONTROL MOVEMENT OF MU-
NICIPAL SOLID WASTE.
(a) AUTHORITY.—Subject to subsection (b), a State
or political subdivision of a State may require, by law, or-
dinance, or regulation, that all or any portion of the mu-
nicipal solid waste generated within its jurisdiction be
processed, composted, disposed of, or otherwise managed
at a facility designated by the State or political subdivision
for that purpose.
(b) LIMITATION.—The authority provided by sub-
section (a) may be exercised only if the designated waste
management facility is in compliance with all applicable
Federal and State environmental laws and regulations.
(c) MATERIALS SEPARATED FOR RECYCLING NOT
COVERED.—Nothing in this section shall be interpreted,
construed, or applied to authorize a State or political sub-
division of a State to require materials that have been sep-
arated or diverted from municipal solid waste, for the pur-
pose of recycling or composting, to be processed,
composted, disposed of, or otherwise managed at a facility
designated by the State or political subdivision of the
State.
(d) DEFINITION.—For purposes of this Act, the term
‘‘municipal solid waste’’ means garbage and refuse that
is discarded as solid wastes from residential, commercial,
and institutional sources and community activities, includ-
ing residue remaining after recyclable materials have been
separated. The term does not include—
(1) any waste identified or listed as hazardous
waste under section 3001 of the Solid Waste Dis-
posal Act (42 U.S.C. 6921) other than any such
hazardous waste that is contained in household
waste from single and multiple dwellings, and other
residential sources; and
(2) materials and products returned from a dis-
penser or distributor to the manufacturer for credit,
evaluation, and possible reuse.
SEC. 3. LIABILITY EXEMPTION.
(a) DEFINITIONS.—For purposes of this section—
(1) the term ‘‘State or local government’’
means—
(A) a State, city, county, parish, town,
township, village, or any other general function
governmental unit established by State law; or
(B) a solid waste management district or
any other special function governmental unit es-
tablished by State law in 1 or more States for
the purpose of managing or regulating solid
waste disposal; and
(2) the term ‘‘flow control authority’’ means the
authority to control the movement of municipal solid
waste or voluntarily relinquished recyclable material
and direct such waste or material to a waste man-
agement facility or facility for recyclable material.
(b) PROHIBITION.—No damages, interest on dam-
ages, costs, or attorneys’ fees may be recovered in any
claim against any State or local government, or official
or employee thereof, based on the exercise of flow control
authority as described in section 2.
(c) RETROACTIVITY.—Subsection (b) shall apply to
cases commenced on or after the date of enactment of this
Act, and shall apply to cases commenced before such date
except cases in which a final judgment no longer subject
to judicial review has been rendered.
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