Three years ago, I used the space in this column to write about how restroom vandalism was spiraling out of control, costing portable sanitation providers thousands of dollars every year in replacement parts and worker hours to repair and clean up damaged units.
By January 2007, it seemed like restroom vandalism was becoming a popular sport, especially among teens and college students, who brazenly posted videos of their destruction on the Web site, www.youtube.com. At that time, you could type the words “portable restroom,” “portable toilet’’ or “portapotty’’ in the search field at the Web site and see young people smashing, mashing, toppling, burning and blowing up restrooms from coast to coast.
Nothing has changed. If you take another look today, you’ll see even more explosive videos, showing kids using pipe bombs to obliterate restrooms. They have no regard for the damage they’re causing, typically stopping to celebrate their homemade pyrotechnics on camera. These pranksters are oblivious to the dangers of their stunts and the financial losses the owners of the restrooms incur.
ECONOMIC ISSUE
On these videos, you can often clearly see the faces of the perpetrators. You can see the name of the restroom contractor on the unit stickers. And if the authorities wanted to, they could probably track down the vandals who posted the video to YouTube. Yet with all that evidence, I haven’t heard of many vandals being prosecuted for this type of senseless property damage.
Well, the portable restroom operators of North Carolina are trying to change that. The North Carolina Portable Toilet and Pumper Groups spent the past year lobbying for legislation that will strengthen property damage laws as they pertain to portable sanitation businesses.
Last month, a state statute approved by the North Carolina legislature went into effect, specifically addressing damage to restrooms and liquid waste vacuum trucks. It raises the penalty for restroom vandalism from a Class 2 to Class 1 misdemeanor. Restroom contractors hope the law raises awareness that it’s not OK to think of restroom vandalism as a joke; and conveys that the damage is especially crippling to an industry suffering through a lengthy economic recession.
“The way the economy is now, our companies cannot continue to sit back and absorb these costs and let people have the attitude that this is just the portable sanitation business and it’s just the way it is,’’ says an exasperated Carey Mack, operations manager for Raleigh-based Readilite & Barricade Inc. Mack — whose company has an inventory of 4,000 restrooms — says that everyone from the vandals to legislators to law enforcement needs to understand that portable restrooms are a valuable tool for companies, not the butt of a joke.
NO LAUGHING MATTER
While he was helping promote the vandalism legislation, Mack encountered snickers and laughter everywhere he went. He agreed to do a television news interview about the law as long as the reporter took the subject seriously. He was disappointed when the reporter led into the interview with a joke about portable restrooms. He was greeted with the same response at the state capitol.
“The first thing people want to do is laugh. I went around and talked to several subcommittees and even the senators, at first, thought it was funny,’’ Mack said. “We had to illustrate to them how (vandalism) isn’t funny to the end-users and it’s not funny to the operators. It’s a lack of appreciation and understanding about how important this equipment is.’’
Operators are concerned about escalating costs of new units and repair parts, according to Mack. He forecasts that as restrooms inevitably become more technologically advanced, the costs of replacing and repairing units will skyrocket. It’s time to reverse the trend and hold vandals responsible for their actions, he said.
“If we don’t get the vandals in check now, it’s going to continue to cost our operations and customers huge amounts of money,’’ Mack said. “If there would be vandals brought to justice, maybe people will stop thinking it’s so funny.’’
The North Carolina effort began two years ago, when the trade groups held hearings for contractors to air their biggest concerns. Vandalism emerged as a major threat to the viability of a few hundred member businesses, according to Joe McClees, a lobbyist working for both groups.
ENVIRONMENTAL CONCERNS
Though laws already addressed personal property damage, they weren’t protecting portable restroom operators who were seeing no prosecution for vandalism of restrooms and vacuum trucks. McClees and operators decided a law targeting restroom vandals would raise awareness and encourage law enforcement to give the issue priority.
To round up legislative support, their message was not just about property damage, but environmental concerns raised by incidents of tipped-over restrooms.
“These businesses are focused on trying to protect the environment and public health, and they need to be taken seriously,’’ McClees said. “It would be wise if states protected the portable sanitation industry.’’
The legislature listened. The measure passed last summer, and McClees and the membership are planning to meet with law enforcement officials across the state, asking them to pursue vandalism cases more aggressively. At the same time, they’re developing a warning sticker that can be affixed to restrooms, explaining the enhanced penalties for vandalism.
Both Mack and McClees would be happy to discuss the North Carolina efforts with PROs from different states. They can be reached through the North Carolina Portable Toilet Group at 252/249-1097, or through the Web site, www.ncportabletoiletgroup.org. McClees said he’d like to see several major states enact similar laws, then shoot for national regulations aimed at stopping restroom vandalism.
GETTING STARTED
What can each of us do on a local level right now? Start by pressing your police or sheriff’s department to pursue the vandalism complaints you file. Maybe you can print your own restroom warning stickers reminding vandals of existing property damage laws.
And I’ll renew my call for you to visit YouTube and look for videos of restroom vandalism involving your units or those of other contractors in your area. If you recognize a company sticker, send the video to local police and ask them to investigate. If even one of these cases leads to prosecution, it’s a positive step in the battle to end restroom vandalism.
