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Senate approves compromise hazardous‑waste fee bill after lengthy floor debate
Summary
After extended floor debate over fiscal impacts and competitiveness with neighboring states, the Utah Senate passed SB 96 revising hazardous‑waste disposal fees. Sponsor Sen. Richard Reese said the measure is a 'middle‑ground' compromise; opponents pressed for clearer fiscal accounting and comparisons of in‑state vs. out‑of‑state tonnage.
The Utah Senate passed Senate Bill 96 on a 23‑to‑4 vote after a day of procedural pauses and sustained floor debate over the bill's fiscal assumptions and competitive effects.
Sponsor Richard Reese, who introduced the fee changes as a compromise, said the bill raises the in‑state portion of the fee to what the sponsor described as a midrange level intended to both fund environmental monitoring and avoid discouraging local industry. "We are not becoming the dumping ground of the West," Reese said during the floor debate, arguing the bill would discourage out‑of‑state waste while preserving in‑state industry.
Opponents repeatedly challenged the fiscal note and asked for state‑by‑state comparisons of fees. Senator McAllister pressed for clarity on the revised fiscal note and the distribution of funds, asking whether adjustments would reduce general‑fund revenue. McAllister and others highlighted concerns that dedicated credits and appropriations could shift funds between agencies; Reese and McAllister later agreed to correct and reissue the fiscal note before the body resumed consideration.
The fiscal revision the sponsor later described on the floor shows the Department of Environmental Quality would continue to receive the bulk of fee revenues but that a $300,000 net reduction in general‑fund receipts (relative to prior accounting) would be offset by dedicated credits for environmental quality and a $200,000 appropriation maintained for public safety. The sponsor told colleagues that, based on DEQ market projections, estimates indicate the program should be "adequate" to pay for itself but cautioned that tonnage and market factors remain estimates.
Several senators raised competitiveness concerns. Multiple members asked for a state‑by‑state fee table to ensure Utah would not undercut neighboring states and thereby become a magnet for out‑of‑state hazardous waste. Senator Hilliard and others said they needed more precise data about the share of waste originating outside Utah and the expected tonnage to assess whether the proposed fee level – discussed on the floor at $28 per ton in amendment form – struck the right balance.
Advocates from industry and local economic development offices were cited by the sponsor in floor remarks. Reese read a letter from the Tooele County Economic Development Corporation urging support and warning that excessive fees would harm local economic development. Senate members also referenced a DEQ director's letter that supported the department's estimates.
The Senate ultimately voted to pass SB 96 and ordered it transmitted to the House for further action.
