Defines refillable beverage containers and authorized manufacturers of refillable beverage containers to retain unclaimed deposits

1 Co-sponsor

• Thomas F. O'Mara

BILL NUMBER:S3496

Title of bill

An act to amend the environmental conservation law, in relation to refillable beverage containers

Purpose

To define refillable beverage containers and to incentivize the use of these more environmentally sound bottles by allowing the manufacturers to retain the unclaimed deposits.

Summary of provisions

Section One of the bill amends section 27-1003 of the Environmental conservation Law to define a "refillable beverage container" as a container which can be refilled and reused up to ten times.

Section Two of the bill amends section 27-1012 of the Environmental Conservation Law to allow the deposit initiator to retain unclaimed deposits on refillable beverage containers.

Section Three of the bill creates an immediate effective date.

Justification

The bottle bill has been one of New York's most successful recycling initiatives. Not only has it reduced litter along our roadways and in our public spaces, but it has reduced the burden of solid waste disposal that is shouldered by our municipalities. The goal of the bottle bill, however, was to focus on one-use bottles which would otherwise be automatically discarded by creating an incentive to return the bottle to be recycled. It is known that reuse is ultimately a better environmental practice than recycling. Accordingly, those containers that are reused should not be covered by the bottle bill which focuses on recycling.

The recent bottle bill expansion required that all unclaimed deposits be transferred to the state. By now requiring the unclaimed deposits to be transferred to the state, it has interrupted a previous system of preserving certain refillable beverage containers. A redemption center often simply crushes one-use bottles once they are redeemed for the deposit. By allowing the deposit initiator to retain the 5-cent deposit in exchange for collecting and preserving the bottles which are refillable, we will create less waste for landfills, and ultimately help support and grow jobs in New York to manufacture these refillable beverage container, and utilize specialized technology in the washing, sterilizing, and refilling of the bottles.

Giving bottles the additional care and handling to keep them whole i, more costly and time consuming; allowing manufactures to retain the unclaimed deposits helps to off-set the additional costs to purchase,

collect, handle, store and ultimately sterilize and refill the containers.

By enacting this legislation, a worthwhile incentive is provided to refill beverage containers creating not only jobs and opportunities in New York for the container manufacturers and other specialized industries, but protecting the environment as well.

Legislative history

New Bill.

Fiscal implications

There are no negative general fund fiscal implications to the state as unclaimed deposits for refillable containers should not have been covered by the bottle bill originally and the unclaimed deposits were originally paid by the manufacturer. In addition, there is a positive fiscal impact to the state given the overall economic development and job creation associated with a growing refillable container industry.

Effective date

This act shall take effect immediately.