SPRINGFIELD - Thieves looking to cash in on the rising cost of copper and other scrap metals soon might have a tougher time unloading their stolen goods.

State Rep. Bill Haine, D-Alton, is pushing for tougher laws that would require scrap metal dealers and recyclers to get information from sellers before handing over cash. A copy of the seller's driver's license and photos of their vehicle, license plate and the metal he or she is selling all would be required under Haine's proposed law.

"It's a monumental problem," Haine said of copper and metal theft. "The theft is one thing, but the damage done to the structure it's being removed from often far exceeds the value of the materials taken."

Sgt. Steve Chabak of the Decatur Police Department said instances of copper and metal theft are on the rise.

"I'd say that, within the past half-year, it's become a problem," he said. "We've seen an increase in it (metal theft), and of copper in particular. We've seen it primarily from abandoned houses, where people remove wire and tubing and clean them out."

But Chabak said not all of the homes targeted by thieves are abandoned; some are occupied and hooked up to gas lines.

"That's become an additional problem; it's not only the theft," he said. "Sometimes, if the utilities aren't shut off, they pop a gas line, and there will be a leak. Fire department and gas people have responded to a couple houses, and that's how a couple of them (copper thefts) have been discovered."

Jamie Shaffer, president of Morris Tick Recycling in Bloomington, which deals in scrap metal, said the proposed requirements will not be tough to conform with.

"It's a doable thing," he said. "From our perspective, it doesn't change how we do business. It's more for the protection of whoever is getting something ripped off."

Shaffer estimated the price of copper has tripled in price in the last four years to about $2.50 to $3.00 a pound.

The legislation is Senate Bill 69.

Blackwell Thomas can be reached at Blackwell.thomas@lee.net or at 789-0865.