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Does Councilman [Congressional Candidate] Gary DeLong Support Sen. [Congressional candidate] Alan Lowenthal's SB 568 To Reduce Styrofoam Pollution/Encourage Recycling? We Ask Him And He Says...
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Does Councilman [Congressional Candidate] Gary DeLong Support Sen. [Congressional candidate] Alan Lowenthal's SB 568 To Reduce Styrofoam Pollution/Encourage Recycling? We Ask Him And He Says...
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| (Aug. 23, 2012) -- At midday today (Aug. 23), LBReport.com asked Councilman [Congressional candidate] Gary DeLong (who'd just wrapped up an unrelated public event) for his position on SB 568 by state Senator [Congressional candidate] Alan Lowenthal (D., LB-Paramount). The bill aims to phase out polystyrene ("styrofoam") food containers that litter Long Beach and other CA coastal areas while allowing their continued use if an effective recycling program is in place locally. It was recently taken off the Assembly inactive file (where it was placed last August when it encountered strong opposition from various industry interests) and could receive a final up-or-down vote in the coming days.
Asked what he thinks of the bill, Councilman DeLong discussed the burdens of regulations on businesses in the current economy, then regarding SB 568 specifically said, "I'm not opposed to the bill, but I am opposed to it in 2012. Down the road it might makes sense. It makes no sense today." To hear Councilman DeLong's full response, click here  Polystyrene items dot L.A. River litter in LB following Jan. 2008 storm. LBReport.com photo. The bill passed the state Senate in a close vote with some bipartisan support...including "yes" votes from two Republican state Senators who represent coastal areas: Sen. Tom Harman (R, Huntington Beach) and Sen. Sam Blakeslee (R., San Luis Opispo). In June 2011, the Long Beach City Council went on record 8-0 -- with Councilman DeLong absent -- to support the bill. In May, the President/CEO of the Long Beach Area Chamber of Commerce wrote a letter opposing the bill, echoing oppositon by the CA Chamber of Commerce which gave Sen. Lowenthal's bill its worst designation: a "job killer." Sen. Lowenthal has said the opposite is true, and cited new firms in California that manufacture alternatives to sytrofoam containers. He also notes that his bill, whose effective date is 2016 (and 2017 for schools), includes a proviso allowing styrofoam containers if there's a recycling program in place with a reasonable likelihood that annually "at least 60 percent of the polystyrene foam food containers will be recycled." SB 568 faces a legislative deadline for Assembly passage (and Senate concurrence in amendments, if any) by August 31. For related LBReport.com coverage -- including a list of SB 568 supporters and opponents, click here. To view the full bill text, click here. To view the Assembly floor legislative analysis, click here.
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