An Act to expand the Bottle Bill

1 of 2 SENATE DOCKET, NO. 2483 FILED ON: 2/19/2021 SENATE . . . . . . . . . . . . . . No. 2149 The Commonwealth of Massachusetts _________________ PRESENTED BY: Cynthia Stone Creem _________________ To the Honorable Senate and House of Representatives of the Commonwealth of Massachusetts in General Court assembled: The undersigned legislators and/or citizens respectfully petition for the adoption of the accompanying bill: An Act to expand the Bottle Bill. _______________ PETITION OF: NAME: DISTRICT/ADDRESS: Cynthia Stone Creem First Middlesex and Norfolk Joanne M. Comerford Hampshire, Franklin and Worcester 3/2/2021 David Allen Robertson 19th Middlesex 3/2/2021 Michelle L. Ciccolo 15th Middlesex 3/2/2021 Christopher Hendricks 11th Bristol 4/26/2021 Brendan P. Crighton Third Essex 4/26/2021 Carol A. Doherty 3rd Bristol 4/26/2021 Alice Hanlon Peisch 14th Norfolk 4/29/2021 Susan L. Moran Plymouth and Barnstable 5/10/2021 Sal N. DiDomenico Middlesex and Suffolk 5/24/2021 Jason M. Lewis Fifth Middlesex 7/29/2021 Rebecca L. Rausch Norfolk, Bristol and Middlesex 9/28/2021 Patricia D. Jehlen Second Middlesex 9/28/2021 Adam G. Hinds Berkshire, Hampshire, Franklin and Hampden 10/27/2021 Julian Cyr Cape and Islands 11/4/2021 John J. Cronin Worcester and Middlesex 11/4/2021 James B. Eldridge Middlesex and Worcester 11/30/2021 2 of 2 Harriette L. Chandler First Worcester 11/30/2021 1 of 2 SENATE DOCKET, NO. 2483 FILED ON: 2/19/2021 SENATE . . . . . . . . . . . . . . No. 2149 By Ms. Creem, a petition (accompanied by bill, Senate, No. 2149) of Cynthia Stone Creem, Joanne M. Comerford, David Allen Robertson and Michelle L. Ciccolo for legislation to expand the Bottle Bill. Telecommunications, Utilities and Energy. The Commonwealth of Massachusetts _______________ In the One Hundred and Ninety-Second General Court (2021-2022) _______________ An Act to expand the Bottle Bill. Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives in General Court assembled, and by the authority of the same, as follows: 1 SECTION 1. Chapter 94 of the General Laws, as appearing in the 2018 Official Edition, 2 is hereby amended in section 321 by striking the definitions of Beverage and Beverage 3 Container, inclusive, and inserting in place thereof the following definitions:- 4 "Beverage", any drinkable liquid intended for human oral consumption. This definition 5 shall not include nutritive drinks including milk (as defined in FDA 21 CFR 131.110), milk 6 substitutes, non-alcoholic fermented drinks and/or non-carbonated fruit juice made by producers 7 who sell less than 100,000 units a year, any drug regulated under the Federal Food, Drug, and 8 Cosmetic Act (21 U.S.C. 301 et seq.), infant formula, or a meal replacement liquid. 9 “Beverage Container”, any prepackaged container made of any material, including glass, 10 plastic, metal, or multi-material, the volume of which is not more than 102 ounces. This 11 definition shall not include beverage container packaging that is a carton, a pouch, or aseptic 12 packaging. 2 of 2 13 SECTION 2. Chapter 94 of the General Laws, as appearing in the 2018 Official Edition, 14 is hereby amended in section 322 by striking out the word “five” and inserting in place thereof 15 the word “ten”. 16 SECTION 3. Chapter 94 of the General Laws, as appearing in the 2018 Official Edition, 17 is hereby amended in section 323, in paragraph (b), by inserting after “returned.” the following 18 sentence:- “A redemption center or reverse vending machine is not obligated to count containers 19 or to pay a cash refund at the time the beverage container is returned as long as the amount of the 20 refund value due is placed into an account to be held for the benefit of the consumer and funded 21 in a manner that allows the consumer to obtain deposits due within 2 business days of the time of 22 the return.” 23 SECTION 4. Chapter 94 of the General Laws, as appearing in the 2018 Official Edition, 24 is hereby amended in section 325, paragraph (b), by striking out the word “five” and inserting in 25 place thereof the word “ten”. 26 SECTION 5. Chapter 94 of the General Laws, as appearing in the 2018 Official Edition, 27 is hereby amended in section 326, in the first paragraph, by inserting after “sections” the 28 following:- “and shall review handling fees within one year of the effective date of this act, and 29 every four years thereafter.” 30 SECTION 6. This Act shall take effect on December 31, 2021.