The NC State Senate just approved a budget that proposes to eliminate the Division of Environmental Assistance and Customer Service (DEACS) - a vital agency that has helped make NC a national leader in recycling and waste diversion programs. DEACS provides funding, tools, technical assitance, education and resources for the private and public sectors, to ensure recycling and environmental compliance.
The NC House will now consider and pass its own version of the budget, and then submit a final State Budget to Governor Cooper.
Contact the NC House of Representatives today and ask that DEACS and its programs remain fully funded.
Find your NC Legislature representative here.
Sample Letter / Phone Call Script
Dear Representative:
My name is INSERT NAME and I am resident of CITY. The State’s recycling industry needs the Division of Environmental Assistance and Customer Service to support North Carolina's multi-billion dollar recycling economy. Eliminating this non-regulatory assistance will be a giant leap backwards for our state’s recycling industry, a step in the wrong direction for our state’s economy, and ultimately have negative economic, social, and environmental impacts. I strongly encourage you to ensure that DEACS continues to be fully funded and supported.
Please consider the many benefits the NC DEACS provides this state:
- DEACS is a non-regulatory Division in NC DEQ offering no-cost assistance to industry, businesses, local governments, and individual citizens on a wide range of environmental concerns. NC DEACS also helps businesses and citizens understand complex regulations and helps them avoid costs of non-compliance.
- This program creates jobs. DEACS studies have documented that 17,000 North Carolinians are employed directly by the state’s recycling industry. Many of the largest recycling manufacturers are in rural counties, employing thousands of people to support those local economies.
- This program has saved money for thousands of local governments, manufacturers, small businesses, non-profits, and state agencies. DEACS helps its partners find market solutions for discarded materials, saving on landfill tipping fees and solid waste costs. DEACS assistance has helped leading manufacturers and other employers in the state achieve the goal of sending zero waste to landfills.
- This program fuels manufacturing in the state. DEACS technical assistance and grants create critical private investment in processing and manufacturing infrastructure for recyclable materials, providing markets for local government collection programs and vital feedstocks for new products.
- This program helps communities save money. DEACS assistance to rural communities has streamlined drop-off recycling programs, increasing material collection while lowering costs and helping rural counties avoid expensive disposal charges.
- This program is a recognized national leader creating new concepts, pioneering strategies, and delivering strong data. With technical assistance and grants from DEACS, more than 300 municipal curbside programs serving 2 million households have completely transitioned to cost efficient cart-based collection, delivering an annual increase of 100,000 tons of recyclable material to North Carolina processors and manufacturers.
Considering the billions of dollars and thousands of jobs flowing into North Carolina’s economy from a healthy recycling industry, keeping DEACS as a support structure with a real return remains an intelligent investment of state dollars. Thank you for your time and consideration of the impact of this very important state agency and what it means to North Carolina.
Sincerely,
Thanks to Carolina Recycling Assoication for this action and talking points.