Bill text| Bill Number and Name | House File 150 Bill text |
|---|---|
| Primary Sponsor | Whitaker |
| Containers Covered | Expanded to all ready-to-drink packaged beverages except dairy and raw cider |
| Beverages Covered | Redefines accepted sizes as: at least five and one-half fluid ounces or one hundred sixty-two milliliters but not more than sixty-eight fluid ounces or two liters |
| Deposits | Increased to 10¢ (and immediately passed from dealer to redemption center after a sale) |
| Handling Fees | None. Distributors are removed from the deposit-refund chain. |
| Other Fees / Taxes | None |
| Reclamation System | Return to redemption center |
| Unredeemed Deposits | Retained by redemption center |
The chain that describes where the deposit value goes at various points in the distribution/collection cycle is quite complex. A summary at the bottom of HF 150 explains in more detail:
The bill makes significant changes to the way refund values are collected and empty beverage containers are accepted. Currently, distributors collect 5 cents on each container from dealers who in turn charge 5 cents to consumers. Consumers who return the empty beverage containers are refunded thecents by the dealer who returns the empty beverage containers to the distributor and is also refunded the 5 cents. Dealers, however, also receive an amount of 1 cent per container from the distributor, which is commonly referred to as the handling fee. The bill eliminates most of the requirements placed on distributors by the current law. The bill requires dealers to collect the refund values from consumers and then remit the refund value to an approved redemption center. Consumers return the empty beverage containers to the redemption center instead of the dealer and the redemption center pays them the refund value. Distributors no longer have to collect or pay refund values, and they no longer have to accept the empty beverage containers from dealers. Instead, the empty beverage containers will be disposed of by the redemption centers. The bill requires a redemption center to accept all empty beverage containers, but it does not require them to pay the refund value to the consumer if the container does not bear a refund value indication or if the container was purchased out of the state.
January 29, 2009: Introduced, referred to Environmental Protection.
February 2, 2009: Sent to subcommittee