Texas - Don't Mess with Texas Campaign - Litter..


July 20, 2009 - It's not quite a citizen's arrest, but an average of 1,025 Texans every month open their mailboxes to find a letter from the state saying they've been busted as litterbugs. The letters are triggered by the report-a-litterer portion of the Don't Mess with Texas campaign sponsored by the Texas Department of Transportation
People submit alleged litterbugs' license plate numbers and other details, and TxDOT sends the letters when it finds a match through its vehicle registration database. Each letter is accompanied by a litter bag emblazoned, “Real Texans Don't Litter.”

The reporting program is separate from laws against littering that carry the prospect of fines or, for a repeat offense, jail time. Only a law officer can enforce those.

“Randomly discarded trash, even the smallest item such as a cigarette butt, endangers our environment, our wildlife and our economy,” says the form letter, which notes each recipient's vehicle information and details about the alleged incident. It adds, “If you lined up all the cigarette butts tossed on Texas highways each year, you'd have a line of smelly, nasty litter going from Beaumont to El Paso six times.” (the total distance from El Paso, TX to Beaumont, TX is 744 miles.)

Reference: Litterbugs beware: Other drivers watching you Anyone reported messing with Texas will get a letter, and a bag for next time by PEGGY FIKAC - AUSTIN BUREAU, Chron.com, 7/20/2009.

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