A bill that attempts to set up standards for cleaning up meth homes will go before the 2001 Utah Legislature without the endorsement of the Law Enforcement and Criminal Justice Committee.
The endorsement was rejected during an interim committee meeting Wednesday on the vote of Sen. Michael Waddoups, R-Taylorsville. The bill needed a majority vote from both House and Senate members in the committee.
Because Waddoups was the only senator, his lone "no" vote killed the endorsement.
While admitting there is a big problem with meth houses in Utah, Waddoups said the bill would result in too much government intervention.
Waddoups said meth homes need to be cleaned up as quickly as possible and that it shouldn't be up to the government to decide which homes receive priority treatment.
Waddoups agreed a cleaning standard needs to be established. But he said government shouldn't be doing things that would raise the cost of cleanup and add to the time it takes to clean a drug home.
Utah House conservatives also argued for less government intervention during the 2000 session when a similar bill was rejected.
Rep. Lamont Tyler, R-East Millcreek, said his bill is not weighted down with as many restrictions as the one that failed during the 2000 legislative session.
The current bill would establish a certification procedure for Department of Environmental Quality inspectors who would determine whether a home has been contaminated by drugs.
The bill would also set up a standard that maps out how inspectors should handle suspected drug homes.
The bill is designed to "protect public health" said Lamont. Too many families have moved unsuspectingly into homes or apartments that used to have meth labs, resulting in family members suffering serious health problems because of chemical residue, he said.
But opponents argue the bill creates an unfair burden for property owners.
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