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Supporters urge update to Massachusetts bottle bill, proposing 10¢ deposit and wider coverage
Summary
At a Joint Committee on Telecommunications, Utilities and Energy hearing, municipal officials, regional planners, environmental groups and retailers urged lawmakers to expand the state's 1982 bottle deposit law to cover more containers and raise the deposit to 10¢, citing falling redemption rates, rising municipal disposal costs and litter.
Supporters of modernizing Massachusetts' 1982 bottle deposit law told the Joint Committee on Telecommunications, Utilities and Energy that expanding the statute to cover bottled water, sports drinks and other containers and raising the deposit to 10¢ would reduce litter, boost recycling rates and save municipal budgets money.
The time for action is now, Leah Robbins, director of government affairs at the Metropolitan Area Planning Council, told the committee: "The time for action we believe is now." Robbins and other witnesses said municipalities are paying sharply higher costs to manage solid waste and that the current deposit law captures a shrinking share of containers.
Proponents said three changes should be central: expand the list of covered containers to include noncarbonated beverages and small alcohol miniatures ("nips"), increase the deposit from 5¢ to 10¢, and raise handling fees paid to retailers and redemption centers.…
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