2012 -- H 7634

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LC01699

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STATE OF RHODE ISLAND

IN GENERAL ASSEMBLY

JANUARY SESSION, A.D. 2012

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A N A C T

RELATING TO HEALTH AND SAFETY - RHODE ISLAND RESOURCE RECOVERY

CORPORATION

     Introduced By: Representatives Ucci, Carnevale, Fellela, and Petrarca

     Date Introduced: February 16, 2012

     Referred To: House Finance

It is enacted by the General Assembly as follows:

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     SECTION 1. Section 23-19-13 of the General Laws in Chapter 23-19 entitled "Rhode

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Island Resource Recovery Corporation" is hereby amended to read as follows:

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     23-19-13. Municipal participation in state program. -- (a) (1) Any person or

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municipality which intends to transfer, treat, or dispose of solid waste originating or collected

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within the state, or which intends to make arrangements to do so, shall utilize, exclusively, a

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system or facility designated by the corporation as provided under this chapter. All transfer

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stations in existence as of December 1, 1986 are empowered so long as they maintain the

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appropriate license to continue their operations, and the corporation shall not exercise its powers

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under this chapter to compete with their operation and activity. No municipality shall have power

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to engage in, grant any license, or permit for or enter into any contract for the collection,

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treatment, transportation, storage, or disposal of solid waste, and no municipality or any person

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shall engage in any activities within the state, including disposal of solid waste, which would

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impair the ability of the corporation to meet its contractual obligations to its bondholders and

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others, or which would be in competition with the purposes of the corporation as provided in this

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chapter. The corporation shall not be empowered to engage in the transportation, transfer, or

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storage of solid waste, except in temporary situations where a municipality has defaulted in its

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obligation under this section, or in conjunction with its activities at its disposal sites. Provided,

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however, that municipal contracts which were in existence on March 1, 1985, are excepted from

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this requirement until expiration of the original term of the contract or the expiration of any

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extension approved by the corporation, or sooner termination of the contracts, and provided,

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further, that municipalities operating their own landfills on December 1, 1986 shall be free to

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continue to use the landfills until closure of the landfills. Without limiting the generality of the

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preceding, municipalities and persons are expressly empowered to contract with the corporation

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and/or, subject to the approval of the corporation, with a duly licensed private disposal facility for

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the disposal of solid wastes. The approval shall be conditioned upon a finding by the board of

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commissioners of the corporation that any proposed contract with a Rhode Island municipality or

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person is in conformity with the statewide resource recovery system development plan and this

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chapter, and that the proposed contract will not impair the ability of the corporation to meet its

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contractual obligations to its bondholders and others. The contracts may have a maximum total

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term, including all renewals, of up to fifty (50) years.

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      (2) The corporation shall charge fees for its solid waste management services that,

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together with other revenues available to the corporation, will, at a minimum, be sufficient to

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provide for the support of the corporation and its operations on a self-sustaining basis, including

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debt service on its bonds and other obligations.

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      (b) Insofar as the provisions of this chapter are inconsistent with the provisions of any

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other laws of this state, general, special, or local, restricting the power of any municipality to

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enter into long term contracts with the corporation, the provisions of this chapter shall be

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controlling. The corporation shall provide suitable and appropriate assistance to communities

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under these circumstances. Notwithstanding the preceding, if the corporation deems it desirable,

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it may from time to time permit municipalities to contract among themselves for the disposal of

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their wastes.

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      (c) Municipalities, along with private producers of waste which contract with the

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corporation for disposal of their wastes, shall continue to be free to make their own arrangements

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for collection of wastes at the source and/or the hauling of wastes to the designated processing

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and/or transfer stations, so long as those arrangements are in compliance with the provisions of

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chapter 18.9 of this title and with this chapter, and any municipal license relating thereto.

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      (d) All municipalities and state agencies which are participants in the state waste

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disposal program shall initiate a separation and recycling program within one year after the date

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on which the resource recovery facility utilized by that municipality or agency is operational and

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accepting waste for incineration.

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      (e) (1) The corporation and any municipality may enter into a contract or contracts

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providing for or relating to the disposal of solid waste originating in the municipality and the cost

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and expense of the disposal.

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      (2) The contract may be made with or without consideration and for a specified or

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unspecified time not to exceed fifty (50) years, and on any terms and conditions which may be

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approved by the municipality and which may be agreed to by the corporation in conformity with

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its contracts with the holders of any bonds or other obligations. Subject to the contracts with the

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holders of bonds, the municipality is authorized and directed to do and perform any and all acts or

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things necessary, convenient, or desirable to carry out and perform the contract and to provide for

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the payment or discharge of any obligation under the contract in the same manner as other

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obligations of the municipality.

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      (3) All municipalities that contract with the corporation for the disposal of solid waste

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shall prepare as an addendum to its fiscal year 2010 contract with the corporation and any

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contracts with the corporation for the subsequent years a plan that includes a description of the

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process by which thirty-five percent (35%) of its solid waste will be recycled and fifty percent

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(50%) of its solid waste will be diverted beginning July 1, 2012. This addendum shall include a

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residential and municipal waste stream evaluation, a plan for the reduction of solid waste and

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recyclables generated and the process by which recyclable materials are to be segregated. The

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corporation shall have the right to execute or deny execution of the municipal solid waste and

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recycling services contract pending approval of the addendum. Once the corporation approves

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this addendum, the municipality must implement the plan and report on the results annually to the

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corporation. The corporation shall enforce the provisions of this section pursuant to subdivision

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23-19-13(g)(3).

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      (4) The corporation shall notify every city or town that it contracts with as to the

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addendum requirements that must be included in contracts to recycle thirty-five percent (35%)

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and divert fifty percent (50%) of solid waste beginning July 1, 2012.

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      (f) The municipalities and the state have shared responsibility for the payment of the cost

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of municipal solid waste disposal. The state will pay its share of the cost of the solid waste

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disposal services to be provided by the corporation to the municipalities at its solid waste

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management facilities and its central landfill in the town of Johnston, and at any back-up facility

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which the corporation is required to provide, by providing solid waste disposal operating

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subsidies as provided in subsections (i) and (j).

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      (g) (1) The corporation shall charge each municipality with which it has a long-term

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contract for solid waste disposal services a tipping fee per ton of source separated solid waste

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excluding separated recyclable materials, sludge, and demolition debris delivered to any

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corporation facility computed in accordance with this subsection. For purposes of this chapter,

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"fiscal year" shall mean the twelve-month period, July 1 to June 30. The municipal tipping fee

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shall be equal to one hundred seven and one-half percent (107.5%) of the prior fiscal year's

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municipal tipping fee through the end of the 2009 fiscal year. One dollar and ten cents ($1.10) per

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ton on all garbage, including recycled garbage, collected by the corporation as tipping fee shall be

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paid to the town of Johnston. In addition to any other fees the corporation shall also charge a

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three dollar ($3.00) tipping fee per vehicle. Any vehicle carrying municipal solid waste shall be

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exempt from this three dollar ($3.00) tipping fee. All fees collected shall be paid to the town of

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Johnston on a biannual basis. The corporation shall annually pay to the town of Johnston an

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additional six million dollars ($6,000,000). No tipping fee shall be charged for recyclable

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materials delivered to a recycling facility provided by or through the corporation.

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      (2) Notwithstanding the provisions of subdivision (g)(1), the municipal tipping fee may

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be increased, if, due to the commencement of operation of a new resource recovery facility during

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the previous fiscal year, the state subsidy as calculated pursuant to subsection (i), not considering

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landfill revenues and losses, is projected to be greater than the state subsidy projected by the

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corporation and the department of administration when the projections were officially accepted

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by the corporation on the basis of contracts entered into for the initial resource recovery facility.

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The amount by which the projected state subsidy exceeds the original projections will be

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apportioned between the state and the municipalities in the same ratio as the state subsidy for the

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previous year divided by the number of tons of municipal solid waste processed by the

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corporation bears to the municipal tipping fee for that year. The increased municipal tipping fee

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herein provided shall be subject to the same escalation factor as the municipal tipping fee set forth

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above.

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      (3) The corporation shall establish in the contract, the maximum amount of municipal

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solid waste that each municipality will be entitled to deliver to the corporation at the municipal

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tipping fee. Solid waste in excess of the contract amount will be charged to the municipality at the

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non-municipal rate. In determining the maximum amount of municipal solid waste which will

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qualify for the municipal tipping fee, the corporation shall consider the municipality's solid waste

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per capita average, the statewide solid waste per capita average, and any other factors that it shall

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deem appropriate.

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      (4) Seaweed collected and removed by a municipality shall be deemed "yard waste" for

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purposes of this chapter and any rules, regulations and/or plans promulgated by the corporation

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pursuant to this chapter, and shall be accepted by the corporation at the same rate and cost as all

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other municipal yard waste.

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      (h) The corporation, after the initial resource recovery facility becomes operational, shall

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charge each non-municipal user of its facilities a fee per ton equal to the projected annual

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resource recovery system cost less energy revenues and interest earnings on bond reserve funds,

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if any, divided by the projected tons to be processed by the corporation at its resource facilities

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for the year. Landfill costs shall not be considered in the calculation unless landfill costs exceed

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revenues generated at the landfills; in those cases, excess landfill costs will be added to the

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system costs.

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      (i) The annual state subsidy for the cost of disposal of municipal solid waste shall be

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calculated for each fiscal year or portion of each fiscal year according to the following formula:

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The annual state subsidy shall equal the total projected annual resource recovery system costs

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(minus costs associated with the central landfill) for the next fiscal year less the sum of the

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following: (1) projected resource recovery system revenues for the year; and (2) projected landfill

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revenues; provided, however, that in the event that the landfill is projected to operate at a loss, the

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amount of the loss shall be added to the subsidy.

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      (j) (1) On or before October 1 of each year, the corporation shall submit a budget to the

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director of administration for the succeeding fiscal year using actual resource recovery system

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revenues and costs, and the audit of the preceding fiscal year prepared by the corporation's

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independent auditors and accepted by the auditor general. On or before December 1 of each year,

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the director of administration, in consultation with the corporation, shall review the budget of the

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corporation and shall determine and certify the annual state subsidy for the succeeding fiscal year

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to the governor who shall submit to the general assembly printed copies of a budget which shall

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include the state subsidy as previously determined in this subsection. The state subsidy

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appropriation shall be on a system basis but shall contain specific appropriations for each

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resource recovery facility. If the amount appropriated exceeds the amount needed for a specific

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facility, the corporation, with the approval of the director of administration, may reallocate the

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appropriated but unadvanced funds to other corporation facilities or costs. If the audit prepared by

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the corporation's independent auditors indicates that the amounts appropriated and disbursed to

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the corporation as a subsidy were in excess of the amounts which would have been required for

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the year if actual resource recovery system revenues and costs had been used in the calculation of

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the subsidy, the excess shall be credited against the current fiscal year's subsidy.

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      (2) At any time, if the corporation determines that the state subsidy will be insufficient to

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discharge the corporation's obligations for the current fiscal year, it shall request, in writing, to

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the director of administration for a supplemental appropriation. After review, the director of

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administration will recommend to the governor additional funding for the corporation, and the

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governor after further review, shall submit a supplemental appropriation bill request for the funds

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to the general assembly.

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      (3) From the appropriations made by the general assembly, the state controller is

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authorized and directed to draw his or her orders upon the general treasurer every month for the

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payment of those sums that may be required upon receipt by him or her of properly authenticated

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vouchers.

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      (k) If, in any fiscal year, the appropriation for the state subsidy is not made and if the

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corporation has insufficient other funds to discharge its obligations to holders of its bonds and

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notes as certified by the state auditor general, the corporation shall be empowered to charge both

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municipal and non-municipal users whatever fees are necessary to discharge its obligations to

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holders of its bonds and notes, and the municipal tipping fee set forth in subsection (g) shall not

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be applicable for the fiscal year.

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      (l) On or after the date established for separation of recyclable solid waste in the

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statewide plan for separation of recyclables by the department of environmental management,

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only segregated solid waste shall be accepted at the corporation's facilities.

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      (m) Costs associated with participation in the state program shall not constitute state

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mandated costs under section 45-13-7.

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     SECTION 2. This act shall take effect upon passage.

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LC01699

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EXPLANATION

BY THE LEGISLATIVE COUNCIL

OF

A N A C T

RELATING TO HEALTH AND SAFETY - RHODE ISLAND RESOURCE RECOVERY

CORPORATION

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     This act would require the Rhode Island resource recovery corporation to annually pay

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six million dollars ($6,000,000) to the town of Johnston in addition to any other monies paid to it

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by the corporation.

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     This act would take effect upon passage.

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LC01699

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