HB 1759 — An Act providing for disposal of waste tires, trash and debris, for rules and regulations and for penalties.

PRINTER'S NO.   2167

                     THE GENERAL ASSEMBLY OF PENNSYLVANIA



                         HOUSE BILL
                         No. 1759
                                               Session of
                                                 2025

     INTRODUCED BY SCOTT, GIRAL, PROBST, MAYES, SANCHEZ, HADDOCK,
        DOUGHERTY, GALLAGHER, CEPEDA-FREYTIZ, GILLEN AND CIRESI,
        JULY 23, 2025

     REFERRED TO COMMITTEE ON ENVIRONMENTAL AND NATURAL RESOURCE
        PROTECTION, JULY 23, 2025


                                    AN ACT
 1   Providing for disposal of waste tires, trash and debris, for
 2      rules and regulations and for penalties.
 3      The General Assembly of the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania
 4   hereby enacts as follows:
 5   Section 1.   Short title.
 6      This act shall be known and may be cited as the Disposal of
 7   Waste Tires, Trash and Debris Act.
 8   Section 2.   Definitions.
 9      The following words and phrases when used in this act shall
10   have the meanings given to them in this section unless the
11   context clearly indicates otherwise:
12      "Disposal."    The incineration, deposition, injection,
13   dumping, spilling, leaking or placing of solid waste into or on
14   the land or water in a manner that the solid waste or a
15   constituent of the solid waste enters the environment, is
16   emitted into the air or is discharged to the waters of this
17   Commonwealth.
 1      "Municipality."    A city of the second class, a city of the
 2   second class A, a city of the third class, a borough, a
 3   township, an incorporated town or a home rule municipality.
 4      "Short dumping."    Activity by which an owner or operator, or
 5   an agent of the owner or operator, of a trash, garbage or debris
 6   collection vehicle, including private automobiles and small
 7   trucks or any other type of vehicle used to collect or transport
 8   trash, garbage or debris, knowingly causes to be deposited or
 9   deposits the vehicle's load, or any part of the load, on any
10   road, street, highway, alley or railroad right-of-way, on the
11   land of another or into the waters of this Commonwealth.
12      "Waste tire."     A tire that has been discarded and can no
13   longer be used for the purpose for which it was originally
14   intended, regardless of whether the tire has any remaining
15   useful life.
16      "Waste tire recycling facility."     As defined in section 104
17   of the act of December 19, 1996 (P.L.1478, No.190), entitled "An
18   act relating to the recycling and reuse of waste tires;
19   providing for the proper disposal of waste tires and the cleanup
20   of stockpiled tires; authorizing investment tax credits for
21   utilizing waste tires; providing remediation grants for the
22   cleanup of tire piles and for pollution prevention programs for
23   small business and households; establishing the Small Business
24   and Household Pollution Prevention Program and management
25   standards for small business hazardous waste; providing for a
26   household hazardous waste program and for grant programs; making
27   appropriations; and making repeals."
28   Section 3.   Enforcement of trash laws.
29      (a)   General rule.--Notwithstanding any contrary provision of
30   the act of July 7, 1980 (P.L.380, No.97), known as the Solid

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 1   Waste Management Act or the act of July 28, 1988 (P.L.556,
 2   No.101), known as the Municipal Waste Planning, Recycling and
 3   Waste Reduction Act, a municipality may enforce ordinances,
 4   rules and regulations relating to:
 5            (1)   short dumping by the imposition of a fine or penalty
 6      of not more than $5,000, and by the forfeiture of any
 7      property, including any vehicle, used to violate the act,
 8      regardless of the value of the property; and
 9            (2)   disposal of waste tires by the imposition of a fine
10      or penalty of not more than $500 per tire.
11      (b)   Suspension of operating privileges.--A municipality that
12   imposes a fine or penalty against a person under subsection (a)
13   (1) shall notify the Department of Transportation. On receipt of
14   the notification, the Department of Transportation shall suspend
15   the operating privileges of the person granted under 75 Pa.C.S.
16   (relating to vehicles) for a period of six months.
17      (c)   Records to be retained by businesses that dispose of
18   waste tires.--A business entity in a municipality that accepts
19   used tires for disposal or recycling shall maintain a list of
20   how many tires the business entity accepted and retain proof of
21   disposal in the form of a receipt from an authorized waste tire
22   recycling facility, as evidence of proper disposal of any tires
23   accepted by the business entity. The business entity shall
24   maintain all records for a minimum of five years and make the
25   records available to the municipality at the municipality's
26   request. The business entity shall retain the records
27   electronically.
28      (d)   Record review.--A municipality may review the records of
29   a business entity that accepts waste tires for disposal. The
30   municipality may request that the business entity submit a copy

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 1   of the business entity's records electronically or provide the
 2   municipality with a hard copy of the records as proof that the
 3   business entity complied with this act through the proper
 4   disposal of all waste tires received by the business entity.
 5      (e)     Appeal.--A business entity fined by a municipality under
 6   this section shall have the right to appeal a fine levied by the
 7   municipality to the court of common pleas.
 8      (f)     Use of fines and penalties.--A municipality that imposes
 9   a fine or penalty under subsection (a) shall use the money
10   collected to:
11            (1)   encourage recycling;
12            (2)   expand waste tire disposal programs within a
13      municipality in accordance with Chapter 1 of the act of
14      December 19, 1996 (P.L.1478, No.190), known as the Waste Tire
15      Recycling Act;
16            (3)   remediate the environmental impact of waste tires
17      and other waste that has been improperly disposed of in the
18      municipality;
19            (4)   prevent short dumping and the improper disposal of
20      waste tires; and
21            (5)   enforce compliance with this act.
22      (g)     Existing ordinance.--Nothing in this act shall be
23   construed to invalidate or preempt an existing municipal
24   ordinance or portion thereof as of the effective date of this
25   subsection.
26      (h)     Forfeiture.--Forfeiture of any property carried out by a
27   municipality under subsection (a)(1) shall be consistent with
28   the provisions of 42 Pa.C.S. Ch. 58 (relating to forfeiture of
29   assets).
30   Section 4.     Effective date.

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1     This act shall take effect in 120 days.




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