ALBANY – State Assemblyman Kevin Cahill (D, Kingston) has introduced legislation to update the state’s bottle bill by expanding the list of redeemable bottles and doubling the deposit to a dime.
“The bottle law is the most successful waste diversion and recycling program offered by New York State,” said Cahill. “Increasing the deposit and adding containers for wine, iced tea and sports drinks will further incentivize returning these materials and remove litter from our roads and waterways.”
The revisions were first introduced in the state legislature in 2002. They were passed in the Assembly, but died in the Senate.
In 2009, plastic water bottles were added to the deposit.
The new proposal will include doubling the deposit from a nickel to a dime, include containers for certain wine and liquor bottles, dairy products, ice teas and sports drinks, and increase the handling fee of redemption centers from 3.5-cents to 5-cents.
According to the State Department of Environmental Conservation, the current policy is responsible for a decrease in litter of up to 70 percent and a material redemption rate of 64 percent in 2020.
