I would like to welcome my colleagues, Senators Robb, Bayh, and Specter to today's hearing. All three of you are representing slightly different, but compatible points of view on interstate transport of solid waste.
Senator Bayh, I supported your predecessor, Senator Coats, in his efforts to impose some reasonable, state-option restrictions on transport of solid waste and I am glad to see that you have taken up that torch.
Senator Specter, we also have worked on this and many other issues in recent years. I am delighted to see you here today.
Senator Robb, I am most familiar with your situation. I spend a fair bit of time in Virginia. My home when I am here is in your neck of the woods. I have witnessed first hand how hard you have worked, in conjunction with my good friend, Senator Warner, to try to introduce some reasonable restrictions on interstate transport.
I have read your bill and it seems like it makes some reasonable, common sense changes to the rules of the road. As someone who has spent much of his career trying to keep waste of another kind out of my state, I know someone who is willing to fight to the finish for his state when I see him. I am proud to work with you on this issue.
It is not my goal this morning to put anyone on the spot, but do not dismiss lightly the similarities between forcing states to accept unwanted trash from other states and the desire of many in this body to force Nevada to accept waste from America's nuclear reactors.
Nevada does not rely on nuclear power and never has. Nevada has never wanted and never will want a dump at Yucca Mountain, yet here we are.
Worse, rather than closing 110 "landfills" and opening just one, we are really just opening the 111th landfill.
Again, I don't want to beat this to death this morning, but it often seems like "states' rights" is just something we pay lip service to on this issue.
We spend a lot of time in the Committee talking about kitchen table, quality of life issues that affect the everyday lives of all Americans.
In the last year alone, we have addressed issues of congestion, air quality, and drinking water quality. These are issues that concern most people every day.
As part of our effort to alleviate these problems, this Committee has worked hard to ensure that our states and local governments have the tools and resources they need to effectively combat these quality of life detriments.
Tremendous resource flexibility under TEA-21 and the Safe Drinking Water Revolving Fund are both examples of this Committee listening to our governors, mayors, and state assemblymen when they have told us what they need to most effectively run our states.
Today, we are considering three bills in this same tradition. Our states are telling us that they want and need the ability to say, "No," to other states that want to ship their trash out-of-state.