The Senate Local Government and Taxation Committee voted on Thursday to print a bill that would require a county to hold a public hearing if it wants to build on county-owned land an incinerator or energy-producing facility that would increase pollutants.

Sen. Elliot Werk, D-Boise, introduced the bill in response the Ada County Commissioners’ handling of the Dynamis waste-to-energy project, which was approved without a public hearing. The county said since the project was within a county-owned landfill, no public hearing was required under Idaho law.

“The public was very upset and lawsuits have been filed,” Werk told committee members.

“The idea is to make sure there is a hearing process. The worst-case scenario is they are held up for whatever period of time it takes to get the notification done and hold the public hearing,” said Werk.

The new law would apply only to county- or city-owned landfills, not private ones, Werk said.

The permitting process to put an incinerator or energy-producing project within a privately owned landfill already requires a public hearing process, he said.