Metal theft is huge problem that affects our entire state. Robbers are stealing everything: cemetery urns, farm equipment, copper from power lines and brass fittings on fire hoses. Metal is a hot commodity because it is valuable and not easily traced.
The havoc wreaked by these incidents causes expensive, destructive damage. When robbers cut copper from power lines the company doesn’t just pay to replace the copper, they pay workers to rebuild the entire system. The hazard to public safety is great. Thieves have caused extensive damage at SeaTac airport, disabled streetlights and highway safety signs and closed a popular ball field for weeks.
State Rep. Roger Goodman has been working on this issue since fall of 2011. Goodman 
convened a metal theft working group, comprised of urban and rural utilities, state patrol, local law enforcement, scrap metal recyclers, DOL, prosecutors and local governments. The group was tasked with understanding the extent of the problem and working on comprehensive solutions to reduce and stop metal theft. They looked both at what other states and the federal government were doing to combat the problem.
HB 1552 is the result many hours of work of by this task force. The bill passed the legislature in the final days of session and awaits the Governor’s signature. HB 1552 fights metal theft through licensingregulations, a “no-buy” list for prevention, and expanded criminal penalties that account not only for the cost of the stolen material but the cost of repair and the damage to public safety.
In response to the legislation’s passage Goodman said, “I’m pleased that we could get this comprehensive bill through to combat the pernicious problem of metal theft. We’re going to get the bad actors out of the second-hand metal market with a vigorous, new law enforcement effort. It will be a major step forward to protect property owners, electric utilities, famers and the public as a whole.”
For more information visit these sites:
Lawmakers Crack Down on Metal Theft
Metal Theft is Dangerous and Costly
Law Aimed at Curbing Metal Theft