Political Quotes

“I am pleased that the managers of the bill will be able to accept my amendment clarifying what constitutes out-of-State municipal solid waste, cosponsored by Senator Abraham. S. 534, as reported by the committee, in title I, section (f)(3) on page 49, defines out-of-State municipal solid waste as municipal solid waste [MSW] generated outside of the State. That is pretty clear and unambiguous. There should not be court battles over that definition. If MSW generated in Ohio comes to Michigan for disposal it should be treated as out-of-State MSW, and vice versa. If MSW generated in Canada or any other country comes to Michigan for disposal, it should be treated as out-of-State MSW. That seems pretty clear, too. But, unfortunately, the bill goes further and muddies the clarity of the definition. The next sentence suggests that waste generated outside the country should somehow be treated differently, in a special category. It suggests that out-of-country waste is only included in the definition of out-of-State municipal solid waste if the President makes a determination that including it will be consistent with NAFTA and GATT. So, if this bill became law, it would seem to require an affirmative determination of consistency by the President before Michigan, and other States receiving out-of-country waste, could actually control this MSW generated outside of their States. This amendment reverses the presumption in the bill.”