Committee approves 3‑year pilot to fund cleanup of abandoned tire piles with 50¢ per‑tire fee; roll call 5‑4

The Senate Health and Welfare Committee voted 5‑4 to send Senate Bill 1089 to the floor with a due‑pass recommendation after testimony from industry representatives, recyclers and local‑government groups advocating for a funded cleanup program for abandoned tire piles.

Sponsor Senator Mark Harris described the issue as a long‑running public‑health and environmental hazard: multiple abandoned tire piles across Idaho are sites for mosquito breeding, fire risk and illegal dumping. He traced Idaho’s statutory history on waste tires, noting the 1991 waste‑tire law and subsequent 2003 amendments, and described the bill as a repeal of the old scheme and replacement with a new three‑year pilot funded by a 50¢ per‑tire fee collected at point of sale.

Under the bill, fees would be deposited in a new state fund administered by the Idaho Department of Environmental Quality (DEQ). DEQ would be authorized, subject to legislative appropriation, to contract directly for cleanup or provide grants to cities and counties to…