El Monte : State Waste Plan Rejected

The City Council voted unanimously Tuesday not to implement a state-mandated waste-reduction program after expressing anger over having to pay all its costs.

“We have to say ‘no more,’ because the state just keeps taking money from us,” said Councilman Jack T. Crippen, opposing immediate compliance with the program, which would cost residents an extra 45 cents a month on utility bills.

In the program, the state is requiring a 25% reduction in waste by 1995, compared to 1991.

Director of Public Works Robert Pinniger said that although El Monte has already achieved this goal, the state may not allow reductions before January, 1991, to count toward the 25%.

The council’s vote carried with it a resolution to file a formal complaint with the state for requiring that the program be funded entirely by the city.