LANSING, Mich. — Legislation approved Wednesday by the Michigan House of Representatives would prohibit Canadian trash from being dumped in state landfills once the U.S. government gives the state authority to ban foreign refuse.

The chamber voted 105-3 to approve the main bill in the three-bill package.

Only two Democrats voted against the bill but several said the legislation did not go far enough. They said the state should not wait for the U.S. government to ban foreign trash and said the measure limits only a portion of out-of-state waste because it doesn't limit garbage coming in from other states.

Democratic State Representative Kathleen Law failed to win support for an amendment that would have greatly increased the dumping fee on trash if the U.S. Congress does not allow state trash regulation by Nov. 1. Democrats said only by making Michigan an expensive place to dump trash will out-of-state garbage decrease.

"Citizens in Michigan don't want us to wait anymore,'' Law said, noting the Republican plan won't take effect until Congress acts.

The Republican-controlled state House also defeated amendments to ban the construction of new landfills until 2010 and increase penalties for trash-related violations.

Democrats Alexander Lipsey and Bill McConico voted against the main bill, as did Republican Leon Drolet. Two representatives didn't vote: Democrat Marsha Cheeks and John Garfield.

House Republicans, who long have resisted an outright ban on Canadian trash, said they are moving the bills forward because the U.S. House is expected to take up a measure in the coming weeks that would allow states to regulate foreign trash.

It is unclear, however, when the bill will be taken up by the U.S. Senate.

Republicans said the Democrats' plan is a bad idea because it will cost Michigan residents more for trash disposal.

They also noted U.S. Supreme Court decisions have said the federal constitution's interstate commerce clause allows only Congress, not the states, to regulate the trash trade.

"Our hands are tied from a federal perspective and will continue to be tied until the federal government acts,'' said Republican State Representative David Palsrok, who sponsored one of the bills in the package.

The state ban on foreign municipal waste would kick in 90 days after a new U.S. law takes effect. Other bills in the package would make it a felony to dump foreign trash in Michigan, punishable by up to two years in prison and a $5,000 fine.

Landfill owner Waste Management of Michigan said the state legislation would incorrectly ban Canadian trash, instead of responsibly regulate it as required in the measure being considered by the U.S. Congress.

The federal measure "does not call for a flat ban on Canadian waste shipments but ensures that nothing `affects, replaces or amends prior law relating to the need for consistency with international trade obligations,''' said Tom Horton, government affairs manager for Waste Management.

"Canadian waste is a form of commerce, like cars and clothing.''

Legislators are trying to stop Canadian trash from going into the state because Canada is the largest source of trash dumped in Michigan landfills, said a Department of Environmental Quality report that covered Oct. 1, 2003 to Sept. 30, 2004.

Nearly four million tonnes of trash from Canada went into Michigan during the 2003-04 fiscal year, up by 23 per cent over the previous budget year. The amount of trash generated by state residents dropped two per cent during that period, the DEQ said.

The jump in the amount of Canadian trash occurred because Toronto began sending all of its trash to Michigan in 2003. The city ships one million tonnes of trash a year to the Carleton Farms landfill in Wayne County's Sumpter Township.

The state legislation now goes to the Senate, where the bills likely will see quick action.