H. B. 3245
(By Delegates Iaquinta, Cann, Talbott, Stephens,
Martin, Fragale, Webster, Barker, Perdue and Miley)
[Introduced March 25, 2005; referred to the
Committee on the Judiciary then Finance.]
A BILL to amend and reenact §17-24-4 of the Code of West Virginia,
1931, as amended, relating to requiring the Division of
Highways to remediate any waste tire pile in the state
consisting of more than twenty-five tires.
Be it enacted by the Legislature of West Virginia:
That §17-24-4 of the Code of West Virginia, 1931, as amended,
be amended and reenacted to read as follows:
ARTICLE 24. WASTE TIRE REMEDIATION.
§17-24-4. Division of Highways to administer funds for waste tire
remediation; rules authorized; duties of
Commissioner.
(a) The Division of Highways shall administer all funds made
available to the Division for remediation of waste tire piles and
for the proper disposal of waste tires removed from waste tire
piles. The Commissioner of the Division of Highways may: (i) Propose for legislative promulgation in accordance with article
three, chapter twenty-nine-a of this code emergency and legislative
rules necessary to implement the provisions of this article; and
(ii) administer all funds appropriated by the Legislature to carry
out the requirements of this article and any other funds from
whatever source, including, but not limited to, federal, state or
private grants.
(b) The Commissioner also has the following powers:
(1) To apply and carry out the provisions of this article and
the rules promulgated under this article.
(2) To investigate, from time to time, the operation and
effect of this article and of the rules promulgated under this
article and to report his or her findings and recommendations to
the Legislature and the Governor.
(c) The provisions of articles two-a and four of this chapter
and the policy, rules, practices and procedures under those
articles shall be followed by the Commissioner in carrying out the
purposes of this article.
(d) On or before the first day of June, two thousand one, the
Commissioner shall determine the location, approximate size and
potential risk to the public of all waste tire piles in the state
and establish, in descending order, a waste tire remediation list:
Provided, That the Division may remediate any waste tire pile
consisting of more than twenty-five tires, provided the tire pile meets all other requirements of this code.
(e) The Commissioner may contract with the Department of
Health and Human Resources or the Division of Corrections, or both,
to remediate or assist in remediation of waste tire piles
throughout the state. Use of available Department of Health and
Human Resources and the Division of Corrections work programs shall
be given priority status in the contract process so long as such
programs prove a cost-effective method of remediating waste tire
piles.
(f) Waste tire remediation shall be stopped and the Division
of Environmental Protection notified upon the discovery of any
potentially hazardous material at a remediation site. The Division
of Environmental Protection shall respond to the notification in
accordance with the provisions of article eighteen, chapter
twenty-two of this code.
(g) The Commissioner may establish a tire disposal program
within the Division to provide for a cost effective and efficient
method to accept passenger car and light truck waste tires at such
Division of Highways county headquarters as have sufficient space
for temporary storage of waste tires and personnel to accept and
handle waste tires. The Commissioner may pay a fee for each tire
an individual West Virginia resident or West Virginia business
brings to the Division. The Commissioner may establish a limit on
the number of tires an individual or business may be paid for during any calendar month. The Commissioner may in his or her
discretion authorize commercial businesses to participate in the
collection program:
Provided, That no person or business who has
a waste tire pile subject to remediation under this article may
participate in this program.
(h) The Commissioner may pledge not more than two and one-half
million dollars annually of the moneys appropriated, deposited or
accrued in the A. James Manchin fund created by section six of this
article, to the payment of debt service, including the funding of
reasonable reserves, on bonds issued by the water development
authority pursuant to section seventeen-a, article fifteen-a,
chapter thirty-one of this code to finance infrastructure projects
relating to waste tire processing facilities located in this state:
Provided, That a waste tire processing facility shall be determined
by the solid waste management board, established pursuant to the
provisions of article three, chapter twenty-two-c of this code, to
meet all applicable federal and state environmental laws and rules
and regulations and to aid the state in efforts to promote and
encourage recycling and use of constituent component parts of waste
tires in an environmentally sound manner:
Provided, however, That
the waste tire processing facility shall have a capital cost of not
less than three hundred million dollars, and the council for
community and economic development shall determine that the waste
tire processing facility is a viable economic development project of benefit to the state's economy.
NOTE: The purpose of this bill is to require the Division of
Highways to remediate any waste tire pile in the state consisting
of more than twenty-five tires.
Strike-throughs indicate language that would be stricken from
the present law, and underscoring indicates new language that would
be added.