Doesn’t it make you crazy when someone chunks trash out the window of their car? Well, if that irks you as much as it does me, you’ll be glad to know that there is a website promoting the Texas anti-littering program where you can report that litterbugging cockroach at www.dontmesswithtexas.org.
Not only can you report a litterer, but you can get some cool, free merchandise promoting the Don’t Mess With Texas anti-littering program. As for reporting a litterer, they don’t get a ticket or a citation. They just get a shaming letter saying that someone saw YOU chuck a bag of McDonald’s out the window of your beat-up old Nova. If you go to the above website link and click on the tab “report a litterer,” it will pull up a form letter and you fill in the blanks with any pertinent information (i.e. color of their car, make, model, date, time, what they chunked out the window and perhaps a landmark nearby so it really looks like they were being watched and will hopefully shame them into not doing it again). They won’t get a citation because it’s not from the police, it’s from a citizen’s report. They just get the letter and a litter bag. Like a “Schmoke and a Pancake.” Another cool thing is that the litter bag fits right out the window of the car. It’s just easier for the guys in the orange jumpsuits.
All states are different as far as littering fines and laws apply. In California, you can only litter with water and feathers. Texas littering laws say ice, water and chicken feathers.
The Don’t Mess with Texas program was put into place with the intention of keeping our highways and roads beautiful, but there are other residual effects from littering, such as animals going onto the road to check out possible edibles and getting hit by a driver. And, according to the website, some drivers would perhaps swerve to avoid hitting an animal and cause a wreck in the process.
Until next week….
Daun Thompson
Writer / Comedienne / Artist
Anti-Littering Program – Comedy Defensive Driving