The Virginian-Pilot
©
RICHMOND
Every year, smokers discard enough cigarette butts to fill more than seven Olympic-size pools, polluting the Chesapeake Bay and its tributaries, Del. Joe Morrissey, D-Henrico County, said before a panel of his peers Monday.
Those cigarettes leak toxins such as arsenic into the soil and water supply, Morrissey said, quoting a study by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention and Johns Hopkins University. To crack down on the litter, Morrissey proposed a bill requiring smokers convicted of littering a cigarette to pay a $100 civil fine into the Litter Control and Recycling Fund. The bill also would have allowed judges to require the person to perform community service by picking up litter.
However, the House criminal courts subcommittee axed the bill, with several members saying it would have provided a loophole for judges to avoid more serious sentences.
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KIguy52
I doubt removing ashtrays from vehicle production really saves much money. I don't think smoker's use ashtrays anyway. No one, not even smokers, want their homes and vehicles polluted with filthy smoke, which is why butts are carelessly tossed out of car windows. The correct answer is to lean on the federal and state governments to protect innocent citizens by totally banning the manufacturing of this vile and deadly product. And non smokers should speak up every single time they see butt littering and of course be vocal about demanding the right to breath air free of tobacco smoke.
Apprehension excuse
This, if it were made a primary offense could be used as a "probable cause" to stop someone, and then apply the secondary offense of texting/phoning while driving. With the prevalence of dashboard cams, proof would be easy. Unfortunately, the people who say they are most concerned with government intrusion on people's lives while infringing on personal behavior heavily will not let this happen.
Common sense tells you not to liter
The more and more you vote for laws like this, the more you give up your right to think for yourself.
The average person knows right from wrong. The fact that they choose not to use it says a lot about our education system, and parenting ability.
This is one of those rules
This is one of those rules that is impossible to enforce. However, throwing cigarette buts on the ground or out of a car window tells much about the character of the person who is doing it just like irresponsible dog walkers is an example of people who selfishly care a lot about themselves. If you want to smoke--fine. Just keep your butt off my property.
Comment deleted
Comment removed for rules violation. Reason: Personal attack, name calling
Butts....
This problem can be blamed on the evil automobile industry who, in order to cut costs, no longer provide ashtrays in new vehicles. I propose legislation requiring ashtrays in all vehicles sold in the United States beginning in 2013. This legislation will place the burden of cigarette butt disposal on the shoulders of evil corporations such as Walmart and Home Depot when they have to clean up the little piles of butts that get dumped in their parking lots.
Butts have been thrown out of vehicle windows
since smokers started driving. They would prefer to litter rather than "store" butts in the ashtrays until they can remove them at home.
All Goes Back to Money
They really killed this so that judges wouldn't avoid harsher sentences?? I think this all goes back to government, money, and the tobacco companies. If people know these fines exist, they may be more inclined to quit smoking which means less money all around for these jerks.
Def needs to be some type of citizens task force arranged to take care of these folks. I will definitely sign up! It makes me sick when I am trying to take a walk with my 18 month old and she bends down to pick one up. In my neighborhood, I like to go in front of peoples condos that constantly throw them on the ground and fill up a bag and put on their porch..actually seems to cut down once we do it and helps clean up the environment:)
Most Smokers are just Pigs !
On the ground or out the car window. The evidence is clear, No respect for yourselves or the environment we all live in. For a new Law !! we already have a law, it's called littering.
I suppose there's an argument to be made for singling out butts,
...they're a fire hazard, toxic, and easily wash into our watershed. All pollutants eventually break down to a molecular level, and we still haven't fully understood the harm from it. Plastic is in near everything now, take a sample of sand from our shores, you guessed it, microscopic parts of plastic. Seeing that is seeing a possible unknown cause to some of our cancers.
Anyone thinking there isn't a slew of butts everywhere isn't being very observant, we are inundated. Just observe the many smokers who display a penchant and total disregard for themselves and everybody around them in how they publicly dispose of their habit.
The real legislation needed is a renewed campaign for LEOs to be stringently enforcing ALL littering laws.