Secondary Metals Recycling Board of County Commissioners Work Session October 5, 2010
Introduction Overview of the issue State law and other jurisdictions Public Comment Requested action Presentation Outline
Introduction Presentation Outline Comm. Scott Boyd Comm. Fred Brummer
Overview of the issue Presentation Outline Lt. Jeff Stonebreaker Orange County Sheriff’s Office
Price of Copper The price of Copper has been slowly rising after a sharp decline in early 2009
Metal Theft Trends Copper is the primary stolen metal in Orange County All Air conditioning thefts are included in these statistics. These statistics are based on the number of cases reported to the OCSO automated querying system.
Consolidated Note: As the price of copper fluctuates, so do the number of copper/metal theft cases in Orange County.
% Increase YTD Number of Copper Thefts by Month & Year Comparing January through July 2009 to 2010, the percent change is 61%
Overview Location of copper thefts
Summary To summarize what Law Enforcement would like to see in an ordinance: Establish a “prohibited items” list consistent with Orlando’s ordinance Require additional proof of ownership before the dealer can accept a prohibited item Establish mandatory reporting of all sales and transactions (not just the prohibited items) to Law Enforcement via FINDER. Require cashless transactions for items contained on the prohibited items list
State law and other jurisdictions Presentation Outline Dana Crosby County Attorney’s Office
State law State law— Significant changes to state law in Secondary metals recyclers must maintain a record of seller (FDLE form): Identification information Statement of ownership Description of seller Seller’s thumbprint Description of seller’s vehicle Photo or video of metal being sold
State law State law (cont’d) — Photo of seller receiving money for sale Allows for law enforcement inspection of property and records Provides for a state-preempted hold notice Provides for exemptions Provides no cash transaction over $1000 Requires all dealers register with the state
State law State law (cont’d) — Prohibits: Purchase of regulated metals between 9 pm and 6 am Purchase anywhere but fixed location Purchase of property not transported in a motor vehicle
Other Jurisdictions Orlando— Adopted an ordinance Aug. 30, 2010 Ordinance takes effect Oct. 29, 2010 Establishes a cashless system Provides for a penalty per City Code Lists 17 items for which seller must prove ownership and notify law enforcement of sale or attempted sale
Other Jurisdictions Orlando (cont’d) — 17 items for which seller must prove ownership: ● Manhole cover ●Electric light pole or utility structure Guard rail ●Street sign or traffic signal ●Communication, transmission, distribution, and service wire Funeral marker or vase Historical marker Railroad equipment
Other Jurisdictions Orlando (cont’d) — 17 items for which seller must prove ownership (cont’d): Metal item marked with name, initials, or logo of a governmental entity, utility company, or cemetery Copper or aluminum coils from heating or air conditioning unit An aluminum or stainless steel container or bottle designed to hold propane for fueling forklifts Stainless steel beer kegs Any part of a catalytic converter
Other Jurisdictions Orlando (cont’d) — 17 items for which seller must prove ownership (cont’d): Metallic wire that was burned in whole or in part to remove insulation Brass or bronze “FDC valves” Brass or bronze commercial potable water backflow preventer valves Shopping carts
Other Jurisdictions Dallas— Requires dealers keep detailed records of transactions Contains a list of items for which owner must prove ownership or agency with owner (called “12 deadlies”) Contains a 5 day hold period for regulated metal property
Other Jurisdictions Dallas (cont’d) — Establishes a nontransferable cash transaction card system Requires check or debit card credit as payment for transactions Establishes a local licensure program for secondary metals recyclers
Other Jurisdictions Phoenix— Creates a local licensure process Requires scrap metal dealers log data relating to transactions exceeding $25.00 (excl aluminum cans and metal products) and maintain data for law enforcement Holding period (7 days) for specific copper, aluminum wire Requires payment of by check or money order for scrap metal transactions (def as insulated and uninsulated metal cables)
Other Jurisdictions Phoenix (cont’d) — Requires notification of scrap metals receipt to law enforcement Allows no more than one cash transaction per day Disallows purchase of burned metallic wire or copper with insulation removed except industrial accounts or dealer to dealer Allows law enforcement to place hold on suspected stolen property for up to 90 days
Summary To summarize recent events: August 30, 2010 – City of Orlando adopted an ordinance August 31, 2010 – Commissioner Boyd brought a report to BCC September 22, 2010 – County hosted a meeting with City, industry, law enforcement, and others October 5, 2010 – Discussion item; seeking Board direction
Summary Next Steps: ●State has not expressly preempted this area of law (except as to hold notice) ●The Attorney General has ruled that a County can locally regulate this area further ( , AGO) ●The County can adopt an ordinance following a public hearing with 10 days notice
Requested action – Seeking Board direction on local ordinance to establish additional regulatory requirements relating to secondary metals recycling. Summary
Public Comment Presentation Outline
Secondary Metals Recycling Board of County Commissioners Work Session October 5, 2010