The NWRA Florida chapter recently held its Legislative Fly-In virtually. During this meeting, Florida chapter members joined in conversation with the Florida Department of Environmental Protection (DEP). Speakers included Tim Bahr, director of the Division of Waste Management for the DEP, and Karen Moore, environmental administrator for waste reduction.

“The backbone of NWRA is our state chapters. Some of the most significant issues impacting our industry are at the state level. It is important that we continue to engage with regulators on those issues and that we recognize the efforts of lawmakers who support our industry,” said NWRA President and CEO Darrell Smith.

Legislative Champion Awards were presented to individuals promoting legislation in support of the waste and recycling industry during Florida’s 2020 legislative session. The first awards were presented to House Majority Whip Toby Overdorf and Sen. Keith Perry for their role in passing legislation related to environmental regulations and recycling. The proposed legislation made it clear that local governments should consider specific issues in their contract negotiations with a residential recycling collector or a materials recovery facility in an effort to reduce contaminated recyclable material.

Rep. Danny Perez, Judiciary Committee chair, was presented with a Legislative Champion Award for his work with HB 609, relating to petroleum cleanup, which included language that specifies such damages may include damages to real or personal property directly resulting from the pollution rather than all damages resulting from the pollution.

“For more than 20 years, the NWRA Florida chapter has held great Legislative Fly-Ins. Even with COVID-19 travel restrictions, we were able to have a successful meeting to plan the priorities for the 2021 legislative session. Our legislative participation was strong, with leaders in both the House and Senate joining the meeting to discuss issues facing the industry,” said Keyna Cory, NWRA’s government affairs representative in Florida.

Other speakers included Rep. Evan Jenne, Co-Democratic Leader Tom Yeatman, Deputy Chief of Staff – Florida Senate Kathy Mears and Sen. Gary Farmer.

For more information, visit www.wasterecycling.org.

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