Welti's 'glass' legislation met with sarcasm
Sat, Feb 3, 2007
By Matthew Stolle
The Post-Bulletin
Rep. Andy Welti says he has introduced legislation in an effort to deal with broken glass and glass bottles that dangerously litter some of the state's beaches and waterways.
House Republicans say his solution is to criminalize the possession of mustard bottles and cold cream.
The bill, introduced by the Plainview legislator earlier this week, has caused something of a political ruckus in St. Paul. It would prohibit all glass containers on beaches and watercraft, including inner tubes, kayaks and canoes. Violators would face a misdemeanor charge punishable by up to 90 days in jail, with each violation treated as a separate offense. A civil penalty not exceeding $20 also could be imposed.
House Republicans have weighed in with a fair share of sarcastic commentary over what they see as the "absurd" implications of the bill.
"This isn't littering. This is criminal possession of ketchup," said Andy Gildea, a staffer for the House Republican caucus.
GOP House Minority Leader Marty Seifert argued that a person could be tossed in jail for more than a year, all for having a six-pack of pop, a jar of pickles and bottles of mustard and ketchup aboard a boat. He based the length of the jail term on the idea that each glass bottle would constitute individual offenses.
"I'm not sure where he came up with it -- if he cut his foot on a bottle or what the deal is," Seifert said. "When you've considered the hundreds and hundreds of thousands of people in the state of Minnesota that enjoy boating, I'm not sure what the whole issue is here."
Welti, a second-term Democrat, said he wrote the bill after a constituent expressed concern about the quantity of broken glass cluttering the state's waterways and beaches. Welti declined to identify the person. He said the penalty portion of the bill was drawn up to be consistent with littering laws already on the books.
I don't write to my legislators as often as I should, but I could not let this one go. The following is the email I sent Rep. Andy Welti soon after I read the P-B story above.
Rep. Welti,
District 30B is now the laughing stock of Minnesota because of you. Thanks a lot.
I refer to this weekend's Post-Bulletin story "'Glass' Legislation met with sarcasm" on page 5B.
It is apparently much easier to grow a beard in order to LOOK mature than actually HAVE the maturity to address ONE constitutent's pet peeve with common sense rather than a draconian piece of half-baked legislation.
In President George W. Bush's ill-fated words to former FEMA director Michael Brown, Rep. Welti, you are doing "a heck of a job."
Emphasis on "heck."
Othelmo da Silva
Paleocon Strikes!
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