Nevada legislators and waste management companies introduce bill

Nevada legislators and a group of four waste management companies put together a bill designed to allow fairer competition in the state’s solid waste industry, a report by the Las Vegas Review-Journal says. Senate Bill 315 was created by state Sens. Patricia Farley, Mo Denis and Yvanna Cancela, along with Assemblyman Edgar Flores, A Track Out Solution and Lunas Construction Clean-up, both based in Las Vegas, Nevada Recycling And Salvage and Green Solutions Recycling, both based in Reno.

If passed, the legislation would limit the amount a franchise may charge for the disposal of construction and demolition (C&D) debris, mandate that certain counties divert at least 25 percent of their waste to recycling or composting facilities and prevent a single company from managing a whole municipality’s commercial recycling, the report says.

The local waste companies say Phoenix-based Republic Services, which serves southern Nevada, and Houston-based Waste Management, which serves northern Nevada, use their exclusive franchise agreements to curb competition, according to the news item. Both companies also own and operate the municipal solid waste (MSW) landfills in those areas, allowing them to charge any price to competitors that are dumping waste in their landfills, the article adds. 

If the bill passes, the franchises would be required to file their effective average dumping fee monthly with the state Environmental Commission, the report says. The commission would then make sure the rates stayed at the same levels, regardless of the company that is dumping the waste.

The recycling mandate included in the bill is designed to boost recycling and hold the state accountable for its 25 percent recycling goal, set in 1991, the report says.

If the bill passes, the Nevada Department of Environmental Protection would have the authority to require counties to report their recycling numbers and form the regulations needed to enforce the mandate. It would also raise the state’s diversion goal from 25 percent to 35 percent.

The bill needs approval from both chambers before it passes, and a hearing is scheduled for the bill within the week.