The Oregon House this morning passed a bill carried to the floor by Rep. Andy Olson that is expected to help dry up the market for stolen metal.

The vote was 55-0.

HB 3026A now goes to the Senate for consideration. Olson, a Republican from Albany, said the Senate will get the bill in two to three weeks.

In urging passage, Olson told the House the value of scrap metal has tripled over the past two years because of supply and demand in China. As a result, the theft of metal has tripled as well.

"The majority of this criminal behavior is meth driven," he said.

Last year, Olson said he was asked by Jeff Stone of the Oregon Association of Nurserymen to participate in a work group with representatives from agriculture, transportation, utilities, construction, law enforcement and metal recycling industries to find a way to deal with the escalating problem.

Olson said the bill restructures the current Oregon statute that deals with failing to maintain metal purchasing records.

If the bill clears the Senate, the amended statute will require that scrap metal dealers keep more meticulous records.

The information required includes dates and times of transactions, the name of the person conducting the transaction for the dealer, a description of the property, how much was paid and, if the amount is more than $100, the seller must state that the metal was not stolen.

A video surveillance tape of the seller must be kept for 30 days and there also must be a vehicle license number of the seller kept on file.

The first three convictions of a violation would result in a $1,000 fine, and the fourth time the fine jumps to $5,000.