Legislation Document

SPONSOR:	Sen. Lawson & Rep. Morris
Sens. Pettyjohn, Richardson, Townsend, Wilson; Reps. Briggs King, Osienski, D. Short

DELAWARE STATE SENATE

150th GENERAL ASSEMBLY

SENATE BILL NO. 232

AN ACT TO AMEND TITLE 21 OF THE DELAWARE CODE RELATING TO DISCARDING YARD WASTE ON A HIGHWAY.

BE IT ENACTED BY THE GENERAL ASSEMBLY OF THE STATE OF DELAWARE:

Section 1. Amend § 4189, Title 21 of the Delaware Code by making deletions as shown by strike through and insertions as shown by underline as follows:

§ 4189. Putting glass or other items on a highway prohibited.

(a) No A person shall may not throw or deposit upon any on a highway or adjacent property any glass bottle, glass, nails, tacks, wire, cans cans, or any other substance likely to injure any a person, animal animal, or vehicle upon such on the highway or adjacent property.

(b) Any A person who drops, or permits to be dropped or thrown, upon any on a highway or adjacent property any destructive or injurious material shall immediately remove the same destructive or injurious material or cause it to be removed.

(c) No A person shall may not throw or deposit any goods, merchandise, bundles bundles, or litter of any kind kind, including yard waste, upon on a highway.

(d) Any A person removing a wrecked or damaged vehicle from a highway shall remove any glass or other injurious substance dropped upon on the highway from such the wrecked or damaged vehicle.

(e) No A person shall may not leave, drop, throw away away, or otherwise dispose of trash of any description description, including yard waste, in quantity to exceed 5 pounds or 1 cubic foot upon on or alongside any a highway.

(f) If any a person witnesses the violation of subsection (a), (b) (b), or (c) of this section by a person in a vehicle, and the identity of the offender is not otherwise apparent, there shall be is a rebuttable presumption that the registered owner if the driver’s identity cannot be ascertained or the driver of the vehicle is responsible for such the violation.

(g) Whoever A person who violates this section shall be is guilty of an unclassified misdemeanor, and shall is subject to a fine of be fined not less than $115 and up to 8 hours of community service for a first offense and not less than $125 nor more than $287.50 and up to 25 hours of community service for a second offense within 2 years. A violation of this section, whether a first, second, or subsequent offense, that takes place on or along a “Delaware byway,” as defined in § 101 of Title 17, is subject to a mandatory penalty of $500, which must be imposed in addition to the fine.

(h) The rebuttable presumption set forth in subsection (f) of this section shall does not apply to operators of buses carrying 9 or more persons. Whoever A person who violates subsection (e) of this section shall be is guilty of an unclassified misdemeanor, and shall be fined is subject to a fine of not less than $460 nor more than $690. For each subsequent offense occurring within 3 years of a former offense, the person shall be fined is subject to a fine of not less than $575 nor more than $1,150. The minimum fines for a violation of this section shall are not be subject to suspension. A violation of this section, whether a first, second, or subsequent offense, that takes place on or along a “Delaware byway,” as defined in § 101 of Title 17, is subject to a mandatory penalty of $500, which must be imposed in addition to the fine.

(i) As used in this section, “yard waste” means decomposable waste materials generated by yard and lawn care and includes leaves, grass trimmings, brush, wood chips, and shrub and tree trimmings.