When Utah voters go to vote on Tuesday, Nov. 5, they will confront what is perhaps one of the most controversial issues to face Utah in years.

Deciding which candidate to elect can be a difficult choice, but this year voters will be required to decided the future of an initiative that contains 13,000 words and enacts or changes 100 state laws.

Initiative 1, also known as the Radioactive Waste Restrictions Act, will raise taxes on the producers of class A radioactive waste that is transported and disposed of in Utah.

Utah currently accepts class A waste, which is waste that retains its radioactivity for less than 100 years, and taxes waste producers 35 cents per cubic foot for the waste, said Howard Stephenson, president for the Utah Taxpayers Association.

Initiative 1 will raise the tax up to $150 per cubic foot, 429 times the current rate, Stephenson said.

The tax money generated from Initiative 1 will be used for educational funding, to create self-sufficiency programs for the homeless and to build adequate cleanup funds.

Those in favor of the initiative say the taxes are fair and the money generated will benefit Utah.

"Fourteen million cubic feet of Class A radioactive waste was dumped in Utah last year," said Mark Mickelsen, director of communications for the Utah Education Association. "Utah is accepting the lion's share of this waste, but we are not taxing the waste at a rate that we need to. If Initiative 1 is passed, it will generate an additional $150 million for Utah schools."

The exact amount of money that will be generated by the initiative is not yet known, but it is expected to be substantial.

The Legislative Fiscal Analyst estimates that if waste volumes continue at current levels, tax revenues from radioactive waste that would be used for education and for the homeless and impoverished could be approximately $208,000,000 annually, according to an impartial analysis of the initiative found in the Utah voter information pamphlet.

The Utah Education Association is one of many organizations and citizens supporting Initiative 1.

"The Utah Education Association is supporting the initiative for three main reasons. One, it reduces the threat of radioactive waste in Utah. Second, it reduces class size. Third, it provides schools with money for textbooks, computers and supplies," Mickelsen said.

Jim Matheson, congressman for Utah's second district, will vote for the initiative, his spokesperson said.

"Jim is in favor of it," said. "He is tired of having Utah being a dumping ground for radioactive waste."

Mickelson said, "Initiative 1 will stop future licensing of radioactive waste and will not accept hotter radioactive waste."

Hotter radioactive waste includes class B waste, which remains radioactive for up to 200 years, and class C waste, which remains radioactive for up to 500 years.

Those opposed to the issue think the initiative sounds good on the surface but is a deception and abuse of Utah's initiative process.

"It is ambiguous, targets specific companies, and goes against his principles of tax fairness," said Emily Christensen, spokesperson for congressional candidate John Swallow. "It is unfair, unsound and an unwise tax policy."

The hazards of class A waste have been exaggerated, Stephenson said.

"The radioactive levels are so low that one could stand on the soil at the [disposal sites] and receive less radioactive exposure than in many Utah basements or granite buildings such as the State Capitol," Stephenson said.

The impartial analysis section of the Voter Information Pamphlet, drafted by legislative counsel, states that the initiative potentially violates the protection of free speech under the U.S. Constitution, separation of powers under the Utah Constitution and the Legislature's right to appropriate state funds under the Utah Constitution, Stephenson said.

Two other states also accept radioactive waste and impose high taxes on the waste producers.

South Carolina accepted 128,000 cubic feet last year and Washington accepted 58,000.

According to Utahns for Radioactive Waste Control, Washington has a minimum tax of $20 per cubic foot. South Carolina taxes containerized waste at $235 per cubic foot of waste. Utah's present tax is 10 cents on all types of low-level radioactive waste.

The petition will impose an average of about $15 per cubic foot of waste - $4 for some bulk categories that the state is receiving in volumes and up to $150 per cubic foot for containerized waste, which comes in lesser quantities than bulk.

Utahns who want the taxes on radioactive waste will vote "yes" and those opposed to increased taxation will vote "no" for Initiative 1.



Copyright Brigham Young University 30 Oct 2002