Skip to main content
Sister Publication Links
  • Automotive News
  • Rubber News
  • European Rubber Journal
Subscribe
  • Login
  • Register
  • Subscribe
  • Current Issue
  • HUMANITARIAN
  • News
    • TIRE MAKERS
    • COMMERCIAL TIRE
    • GOVERNMENT & LAW
    • MERGERS & ACQUISITIONS
    • BEST PLACES TO WORK
    • OBITUARIES
    • OPINION
    • MID YEAR REPORT
    • SERVICE ZONE
  • ADAS
  • Data
    • DATA STORE
  • Custom
    • SPONSORED CONTENT
  • Resources
    • Events
    • DIRECTORY
    • CLASSIFIEDS
    • SHOP FLOOR
    • AWARDS
    • ASK THE EXPERT
    • LIVESTREAMS
    • WEBINARS
    • SEMA LIVESTREAMS
    • RUBBER NEWS EVENTS
    • BALANCING
    • DEMOUNTING
    • SAFETY
    • TIRE REPAIR
    • TPMS
    • TRAINING
    • VEHICLE LIFTING
    • WHEEL TORQUE
    • Best Places to Work
  • ADVERTISE
  • DIGITAL EDITION
MENU
Breadcrumb
  1. Home
  2. News
June 13, 2018 02:00 AM

Georgia scrap tire program improves, but funding still lags

Tire Business Staff
  • Tweet
  • Share
  • Share
  • Email
  • More
    Print

    ATLANTA — The Georgia Environmental Protection Division has taken steps to improve inspections and enforcement in the state's scrap tire program since an audit of the program three years ago.

    However, funding for the program remains a problem, with the Georgia legislature still appropriating less than half the money gathered under the state's Solid Waste Trust Fund (SWTF) to use for scrap tire abatement, according to the June 2018 follow-up review by the Performance Audit Division of the Georgia Department of Audits and Accounts.

    The original audit in September 2015 found that appropriations to the SWTF were well below the actual money collected, and that the number of activities funded by the SWTF had dropped over the previous decade, according to the report.

    In 2015, auditors found deficiencies in inspection and enforcement arising from several factors, including:

    • Staffing vacancies and uneven workload distribution;
    • Insufficient guidance for inspectors;
    • Decentralized information systems; and
    • Inadequate management oversight.

    "It also noted that the program lacked methods to ensure that scrap tire fees were being properly collected and remitted," the auditors said.

    In the past three years, the Environmental Protection Division has done much to improve scrap tire inspections and enforcement, according to the report.

    It created a Tire Management Unit to centralize the management of program inspectors, and created new policies and procedures to guide the work of inspectors, the auditors said.

    It also filled vacant inspector positions, reallocated workloads and improved the information system used for tracking tire dump enforcement actions, they said.

    "However, our review found that many parties had not responded to notices of violations sent by the program in 2017," the report said. "Officials indicated that the workload makes it difficult to follow up in all cases and that staff follow-up phone calls or emails would not be captured by the system."

    Part of the problem is that appropriations to the SWTF remain only a portion of the money actually collected under Georgia's scrap tire fee, which amounts to $1 on each new tire sold in the state, the auditors said.

    Scrap tire fee collections increased from $6.4 million in fiscal year 2015 to $7.2 million in FY 2017, the report said. But appropriations to the SWTF were only $3.2 million in FY 2017, and were actually reduced to $2.8 million in FY 2018, it said

    The scrap tire fee must be reauthorized by its sunset date in June 2019, according to the report. The Environmental Protection Division has not yet prepared estimates of its funding needs, but intends to discuss its ongoing activities and projects with stakeholders to nail down its estimates, the auditors said.

    Letter
    to the
    Editor

    Do you have an opinion about this story? Do you have some thoughts you'd like to share with our readers? Tire Business would love to hear from you. Email your letter to Editor Don Detore at [email protected].

    Most Popular
    1
    Turbo Wholesale acquires Tire Wholesalers Inc.
    2
    Giti bringing premium tires, in-demand sizes to U.S. plant
    3
    Goodyear to halve capacity at Fulda plant, cut jobs
    4
    VIP Tires acquires Marshfield Tire in Massachusetts
    5
    TBC, Mavis complete deal for NTB, Tire Kingdom stores
    SIGN UP FOR NEWSLETTERS
    EMAIL ADDRESS

    Please enter a valid email address.

    Please enter your email address.

    Please verify captcha.

    Please select at least one newsletter to subscribe.

    Newsletter Center

    Staying current is easy with Tire Business delivered straight to your inbox.

    SUBSCRIBE TODAY

    Subscribe to Tire Business

    SUBSCRIBE
    Connect with Us
    • Facebook
    • LinkedIn
    • Twitter
    • Instagram
    • RSS

    Our Mission

    Tire Business is an award-winning publication dedicated to providing the latest news, data and insights into the tire and automotive service industries.

    Reader Services
    • Staff
    • About Us
    • Site Map
    • Industry Sites
    • Order Reprints
    • Customer Service: 877-320-1716
    Partner Sites
    • Rubber News
    • European Rubber Journal
    • Automotive News
    • Plastics News
    • Urethanes Technology
    RESOURCES
    • Advertise
    • Privacy Policy
    • Privacy Request
    • Terms of Service
    • Media Guide
    • Editorial Calendar
    • Classified Rates
    • Digital Edition
    • Careers
    • Ad Choices Ad Choices
    Copyright © 1996-2023. Crain Communications, Inc. All Rights Reserved.
    • HUMANITARIAN
    • News
      • TIRE MAKERS
      • COMMERCIAL TIRE
      • GOVERNMENT & LAW
      • MERGERS & ACQUISITIONS
      • BEST PLACES TO WORK
      • OBITUARIES
      • OPINION
      • MID YEAR REPORT
      • SERVICE ZONE
    • ADAS
    • Data
      • DATA STORE
    • Custom
      • SPONSORED CONTENT
    • Resources
      • Events
        • ASK THE EXPERT
        • LIVESTREAMS
        • WEBINARS
        • SEMA LIVESTREAMS
        • RUBBER NEWS EVENTS
      • DIRECTORY
      • CLASSIFIEDS
      • SHOP FLOOR
        • BALANCING
        • DEMOUNTING
        • SAFETY
        • TIRE REPAIR
        • TPMS
        • TRAINING
        • VEHICLE LIFTING
        • WHEEL TORQUE
      • AWARDS
        • Best Places to Work
    • ADVERTISE
    • DIGITAL EDITION