Pro-recycling (CA) assemblywoman peddling $7 new-bike fee

[question everything]

Pro-recycling assemblywoman peddling $7 new-bike fee

By Michael Gardner
COPLEY NEWS SERVICE

February 25, 2005

SACRAMENTO – A $7 fee would be charged on every new bicycle sold in California to promote a statewide recycling program, under recently introduced legislation.

Buyers would receive $3 back when they turned their bikes in to a certified recycler or community group that refurbishes or reuses the popular mode of transportation.

"Our landfills are jammed. Why not recycle parts of bicycles?" said Assemblywoman Betty Karnette, D-Long Beach, who is carrying the measure, AB 1103. "We can put bikes together and sell them cheaply or give them to people who can't afford bikes."

For years, California has charged a deposit on cans and bottles to fund recycling programs. More recently, the state has started collecting $6 to $10 on every new television and computer monitor sold to offset disposal costs.

But the new legislation has sparked a debate in the bicycling community over whether the fee would lead to more users by providing affordable bikes or if higher prices would hurt independent dealers who actively promote cycling through rides and education.

More..

Find this article at:
http://www.signonsandiego.com/uniontrib/20050225/news_1n25bikefee.html

[shance]

1. I've met Betty Karnette and she has one of the biggest hearts in Caleeforn

She's a kick, and a great example of a what a good citizen is all about.

[Wilms]

2. I'd rather they start with a recycling deposit on SUV's.

But it makes sense.

[Mugweed]

3. FIll me in (like a landfill cell)

No really - I don't understand why so many bike parts would be going to the landfill that it's becoming a cell-space problem. The article doesn't give enough info for anyone who isn't familiar to give insight as to why so much bike-related material is showing up in garbage hauls.

[question everything]

4. This is the first that I've read

But you can read the text of the proposed bill http://www.leginfo.ca.gov/pub/bill/asm/ab_1101-1150/ab_1103_bill_20050222_introduced.html

[Wilms]

5. Didn't read far in when I came to this.

Wow.

"California has an escalating number of bicycles for disposal every year. Currently over 250,000 bicycles are disposed of in California. Less than 3,000 of them are recycled each year."

Wonder what thoughts the Bike Riders Union feels about this.