Iowa Bottle Bill History
| Original Law | 2022 Admendment | Current Law | |
| Name | Beverage Container Control Law | ||
| Purpose | Litter Control and Promoting Recycling | ||
| Enacted | April 1, 1978 | June 17, 2022 | |
| Implemented |
|
January 1, 2023 | |
| Beverages Covered | Beer, carbonated soft drinks & mineral water, wine coolers, wine, and liquor | Beer, carbonated soft drinks & mineral water, wine coolers, wine, and liquor | |
| Containers Covered | Any sealed glass, plastic, metal bottle, can, jar, or carton containing a beverage. | Any sealed glass, plastic, metal bottle, can, jar, or carton containing a beverage. | |
| Amount of Deposit |
5¢ |
5¢ | |
| Reclamation System | Retail stores and redemption centers | Retail stores and redemption centers | |
| Unredeemed Deposits | Retained by beverage bottlers and distributors | Retained by beverage bottlers and distributors | |
| Handling Fee |
1¢ |
|
|
| Redemption Rate | 2000: 93% | 2016: 64% [4] | |
| Notes | Iowa does not collect sales or return data on beverage containers. Consequently, updating the estimated redemption rate is not done every year due to a lack of resources [1]. The redemption rate was estimated at 93% in the year 2000 [2]. | This update raised the handling fee to 3¢ per container for redemption centers and participating retailers, requires beverage manufacturers to register the deposit products they sell in Iowa, established enforcement for program violators, and allows retailers to opt out of redeeming containers if they meet specific criteria [3]. | |
Footnotes
[1] "Study shows new recovery rate of containers in Iowa." The State of Iowa does not collect data on deposit containers sold or redeemed. Sales estimates were derived from CRI's 2017 Beverage Market Data Analysis (using 2015 sales data). Material-specific recycling rates were derived by the Iowa Dept. of Natural Resources using data from its 2017 statewide Waste Characterization Study ("Final 2017 Iowa Statewide Waste Characterization Study," SCS Engineers for Iowa DNR, December 28, 2017) with analytical assistance from CRI. This study reported a 71% overall deposit container recycling rate. Press release issued by Iowa Department of Natural Resources. January 18, 2018.
Note: the reported overall recycling rate included deposit containers redeemed for the 5-cent refund, and deposit containers recycled through other channels where consumers voluntarily forgo the 5-cent refund. CRI then used curbside & dropoff percentages from California (2012 and 2016) as proxies to estimate deductions for deposit containers recycled through Iowa's curbside and dropoff programs, and derived a 64% overall redemption rate in Iowa. We did this to be consistent in reporting redemption rates across all 10 deposit states.
[2] "Iowa DNR, Waste Management Division (year 2000 estimate)." As per phone conversation with Jeff Geerts. August 29, 2018.
[3] "Changes to the Bottle Bill Frequently Asked Questions." Iowa DNR. 2022
[4] See Footnote 1.