Maryland Lawmakers Address Copper Thefts
posted 6:47 am Wed January 30, 2008 - ANNAPOLIS, Md.
Scrap metal laws have been adopted in more than half the states as skyrocketing copper and other metal prices have led to a surge in thefts. Most of the thefts are nuisances, such as the recent Anne Arundel County theft of copper wire from a football field. But the thefts can be dangerous when charged wire is cut, and dozens of people nationwide have died trying to pilfer copper in the past couple years. The bill under consideration Wednesday in a House committee would require scrap dealers to keep records on people turning in copper scrap. They would also have to take tag numbers and physical descriptions of people selling scrap copper. Junk dealers could be fined $500 for not keeping the records, which police say could help prevent people from breaking into power substations or electrical boxes to steal copper.
--On the Net:
Read State Bill 33: http://mlis.state.md.us/2008RS/bills/hb/hb0033f.pdf
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