Relates to returnable bottles; repealer

• Democratic80
• Republican1

◆ The sponsor's argument

Why Rachel May says this is needed

New York's Returnable Container Act ("The Bottle Bill"), first enacted in 1982, has been the State's most successful recycling program. According to the DEC, the Bottle Bill reduced curbside container litter by 70 percent and has encouraged the recycling of billions of plastic, glass, and aluminum containers. The Container Recycling Institute (CRI) states that the over 11 million tons of containers recycled in New York since the implementation of the Bottle Bill has reduced greenhouse gas emissions equivalent to taking about 3 million cars off the road for a year. CRI also makes the important point that the processing and sale of recycled containers benefits New York's economy and secures jobs in the recycling industry. By expanding the Bottle Bill to include a much more inclusive list of beverages, we can expect an even greater number of containers to be recycled and an even greater reduction of container litter in our streets. Additionally, in the face of a growing recycling crisis, an expansion of the Bottle Bill would help ease the burden that municipal recycling facilities are currently facing by keeping these materials out of the traditional waste stream. The expansion would be phased in, beginning primarily with the harder-to-manage glass and aluminum containers and subsequently to PET and other plastics. This approach, coupled with the post-consumer content requirements for beverage containers will help ensure a continued market for beverage container materials and provide an important step in decreasing reliance on single-use plastic. Raising the deposit to 10 cents will incentivize the public to return empty beverage containers, reduce liter, and provide additional income to individuals who collect and redeem such containers. Additionally, the delayed phase in will allow time for the bottle return industry to prepare.

This is the sponsor's own case for the bill, quoted from their memorandum. It is not Agora's description of what the bill does.