Utah Senate approves hazardous- and solid-waste fee overhaul after debate over out‑of‑state dumping

SALT LAKE CITY — The Utah Senate on Feb. 6 approved Substitute Senate Bill 25, a three‑year phased increase in fees for hazardous and solid-waste facilities that supporters say will fund regulatory oversight and opponents say still falls short of fully covering program costs.

Senator Steven Reese, sponsor of the measure, and members of the Senate’s floor debated amendments and figures for more than one day before the chamber voted to pass the substitute bill. The Senate’s final recorded action on the measure showed the bill passed and was referred to the House for action.

Why it matters: Lawmakers said the bill is intended to shift oversight costs away from general‑fund subsidies and onto users of disposal facilities, many of which accept out‑of‑state material. Supporters argued the phased approach gives businesses time to adapt and will provide steady funding for the Division of Environmental Quality; critics pushed for higher fees to avoid any shortfalls in the early years.

What was said: Senator Richards argued for restoring higher fees he had proposed, saying, “I think this is outrageous that we would even think of running a program that encourages other states to ship their garbage and their waste and their hazardous stuff in on top of us, and we pay taxpayers money to underwrite the cost of this operation.” He urged repeal of a prior amendment and restoration of increased per‑ton fees.

Senator Craig Peterson, who opposed raising the fee amendment, said DEQ officials told him the proposed fee schedule would be sufficient over multi‑year averages and offered to move for a committee of the whole so the department director could testify. During that committee of the whole, Ken Alkema, identified as the director of the Department of Environmental Quality, testified that based on recent averages the bill’s phased fee (starting at $1.50 per ton, rising to $2 and $2.50 in later years) should provide enough revenue to fully oversee both radiation and solid‑waste programs and could leave excess for the general fund. Alkema said, “The funding as it’s now in the bill at the dollar and a half and $2 levels will provide an increase that will give us sufficient funds to fully oversee both the radiation and the solid waste programs.”

Members contended with competing tonnage figures during floor debate. Richards and others cited figures showing a first‑year shortfall for certain program lines unless fees were raised further; opponents said those figures used the wrong baseline and that a multi‑year average shows the fund rising to meet oversight needs.

Procedure and outcome: The Senate voted on amendments, took testimony in a committee of the whole and then recorded the final passage of Substitute Senate Bill 25. The Senate clerk recorded the final tally as 26 ayes, 2 nays, 1 absent; the bill was referred to the House.

Next steps: The bill will move to the House for its consideration. If enacted, the fee increases would phase in over a three‑year period, with the stated goal of making the oversight program self‑sustaining and reducing reliance on general‑fund subsidies.

Reporting note: Quotes and vote totals are drawn from the Feb. 6, 1992 Senate floor transcript and represent floor statements, including direct remarks by Senators Richards and Craig Peterson and testimony from DEQ Director Ken Alkema.