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E-Recycling Measures Stir Controversy
by Chloe Albanesius and Maureen Sirhal
The debate over how to dispose of electronics products is increasing as state governments explore ways to rid themselves of hazardous materials and private companies resist shouldering the financial and organizational burdens of product disposal.
California lawmakers last year passed a bill that would have imposed a $10 fee on the purchase of electronics, with the money to be used toward a state e-recycling program. Gov. Gray Davis vetoed the bill because he said he could not justify the program's cost in hard economic times. A revamped bill now before the legislature would require private companies to either organize recycling efforts on their own or pay the state to do it. The Senate has approved the measure.
Yet while much of the attention has focused on California, Maine quietly has passed an e-recycling measure. The governor signed the bill, L.D.743, in May. It gives manufacturers that sell electronics materials six months to submit plans on how they will manage waste in the state. Similar bills are before legislative committees in Massachusetts, Minnesota, North Carolina, Rhode Island and Washington.
While people in the private and public sectors appear to agree that action on e-recycling is necessary, the economics of the undertaking have slowed progress. Private companies are not trained to dispose of potentially hazardous waste, said Heather Bowman, director of environmental affairs at the Electronic Industries Alliance, and the bottom line with many of the state plans is that the government "is looking to shift the financial burden."
The state plans essentially call for the creation of new agencies that would result in a "nightmare for local government," Bowman said. Each company would have to submit separate solutions for e-recycling, which would result in "2,500 different plans," she said.
California and seven other states have considered fee-based programs. The plans in Connecticut, New York and South Carolina have been referred to committees, while Florida lawmakers withdrew their plan from discussion in April. Measures in Hawaii, Nebraska, North Carolina and Oregon also have been unsuccessful.
Bryant Hilton, the public-relations manager for Dell Computer, voiced concerns with such plans. "There's no guarantee about how that money will be used ... and fees don't necessarily drive behavior," he said, adding that Dell would be "a little uncomfortable" with being wholly responsible for recycling efforts. He suggested a "shared-responsibility model" instead.
Dell started a recycling program in March. The company picks up old machines from customers' homes for a $15 fee and delivers them to UNICOR, the trade name of Federal Prison Industries. Under the UNICOR e-recycling program, federal prisoners disassemble equipment and salvage usable parts.
How Well Do You Know Your Neighbors?
Massachusetts Gov. Mitt Romney last week proposed a system that would permit the online posting of images and information about convicted sex offenders in response to a state court ruling that ruled the practice illegal.
"Families in Massachusetts have the right to know where sex offenders live and work so they can protect their children," Romney said in a statement. "Posting the information on the Internet will allow people to easily access the most up-to-date information in their own homes."
Romney's plan would implement an executive order that he issued in April instructing a state board to post to the Internet information on high-risk sex offenders, including their names, home addresses, work addresses and photos. A state superior court had ruled that existing state laws on sex offenders did not allow such a step, so Romney proposed legislation to make it legal.
Meanwhile, California Attorney General Bill Lockyer said this week that his state's database of registered sex offenders will be publicly available at the San Diego County Fair until July 6.
Currently, information contained in the database is only accessible to individuals who call California's Justice Department or visit a local sheriff's or police station. To remedy that problem, the attorney general's office routinely makes the registry available at fairs and conferences to inform families about the locations of sex offenders.
People at fairs "have discovered that acquaintances or others in positions of trust were convicted sex offenders -- and they quickly took steps to ensure the safety of their children," Lockyer said in a statement. He supports posting sex-offender information online and is backing legislative efforts to do so. But until such a measure becomes law, he said his office will continue to make the registry available at public events.
In related news, authorities in the Texas attorney general's office this week arrested an Austin man after he tried to arrange a sexual encounter with an undercover investigator who purported to be a 13-year-old girl. Srinath Audityan, an engineer at the mobile-phone maker Motorola, was arrested when he appeared for the rendezvous with the "girl" he met online, who was actually an officer with the attorney general's Internet Bureau. Authorities charged Audityan with attempted aggravated sexual assault of a child.
Maine Lawmakers Pass E-Commerce Bills
Maine's state legislature passed two e-commerce measures that would curtail online sales of cigarettes and create new rules for sending unsolicited commercial e-mails, or spam. Gov. John Baldacci signed both measures into law.
The Bangor News reported this week that legislators passed a bill, L.D. 1236, that bans the sale of cigarettes and other tobacco products online in the state without a special license.
Lawmakers also passed a measure, L.D. 255 that seeks to reduce the flood of spam to state residents. Under the legislation, unsolicited commercial messages must be labeled with the abbreviation "ADV" to signal that they are advertisements, and messages with adult content must bear the label "ADV ADLT."
The measure also mandates that online promotions contain valid return e-mail addresses so recipients can reply and opt out of receiving further solicitations.
Nevada Gets Aid For 'First Responders'
Nevada's emergency-management agency will receive nearly $18 million from the Homeland Security Department in order to enhance domestic terrorism preparedness.
"These funds will help to ensure that those on the front lines of security services are well-equipped and well-trained to perform their duties," Sen. Harry Reid, D-Nev., said in a Wednesday statement. "It will allow them to work more efficiently, to detect, prevent and respond to terrorist threats and help to keep our communities safe."
The grant can be used to pay for training and to purchase new equipment for "first responders" to emergencies. The funds also may be used to reimburse state and local agencies for increasing security during the U.S.-led war against Iraq.
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