AN ACT RELATING TO HEALTH AND SAFETY -- BEVERAGE CONTAINER DEPOSIT RECYCLING ACT OF 2021 (Creates a refundable ten cent ($0.10) deposit for non-reusable beverage containers. A four cent ($0.04) handling fee would be paid by distributors.)

2021 -- S 0106 ======== LC000504 ======== S T A T E O F R H O D E I S L A N D IN GENERAL ASSEMBLY JANUARY SESSION, A.D. 2021 ____________ A N A C T RELATING TO HEALTH AND SAFETY -- BEVERAGE CONTAINER DEPOSIT RECYCLING ACT OF 2021 Introduced By: Senators Calkin, Anderson, Acosta, Mack, Mendes, Bell, and Quezada Date Introduced: January 26, 2021 Referred To: Senate Environment & Agriculture It is enacted by the General Assembly as follows: SECTION 1. Title 23 of the General Laws entitled "HEALTH AND SAFETY" is hereby 1 amended by adding thereto the following chapter: 2 CHAPTER 18.18 3 BEVERAGE CONTAINER DEPOSIT RECYCLING ACT OF 2021 4 23-18.18-1. Definitions. 5 As used in this chapter: 6 (1) ''Beverage'' means an alcoholic beverage as defined in § 3-1-1 including, but not limited 7 to, beer and other malt beverages, wine, and liquor; and any nonalcoholic carbonated or 8 noncarbonated drinks in liquid form intended for internal human consumption including, but not 9 limited to, soda water or similar carbonated soft drinks, water, mineral water, dairy drinks, fruit 10 juices, sports drinks and energy drinks. 11 (2) ''Beverage container'' means any sealable bottle, can, jar, or carton which is primarily 12 composed of glass, metal , plastic or any combination of those materials and is produced for the 13 purpose of containing a beverage. This definition shall not include containers made of 14 biodegradable material. 15 (3) ''Bottler'' means any person filling beverage containers for sale to distributors or dealers, 16 including dealers who bottle or sell their own brand of beverage. 17 (4) ''Consumer'' means any person who purchases a beverage in a beverage container for 18 LC000504 - Page 2 of 8 use or consumption with no intent to resell such beverage. 1 (5) ''Dealer'' means any person, including any operator of a vending machine, who engages 2 in the sale of beverages in beverage containers to consumers in this state. 3 (6) ''Distributor'' means any person who engages in the s ale of beverages in beverage 4 containers to dealers in this state including any bottler who engages in such sales. 5 (7) ''Label'' means a molded imprint or raised symbol on or near the bottom of a plastic 6 product. 7 (8) ''Plastic'' means any material made of polymeric organic compounds and additives that 8 can be shaped by flow. 9 (9) ''Plastic bottle'' means a plastic container that has a neck that is smaller than the body 10 of the container, accepts a screw type, snap cap or other closure and has a capacity of sixteen fluid 11 ounces (16 fl. oz.) or more, but less than five gallons (5 gal.). 12 (10) ''Rigid plastic container'' means any formed or molded container, other than a bottle, 13 intended for single use, composed predominantly of plastic resin and having a relatively inflexible 14 finite shape or form with a capacity of eight ounces (8 oz.) or more, but less than five gallons (5 15 gal.). 16 (11) ''Reusable beverage container'' means any beverage container so constructed and 17 designed that it is structurally capable of being refilled and resold by a bottler at least ten (10) times 18 after its initial use. 19 23-18.18-2. Refund value; Exemption. 20 Every beverage container sold or offered for sale in the state shall have a refund value of 21 not less than ten cents ($0.10). The provisions of this section shall not apply to such containers sold 22 by a distributor for use by a common carrier in the conduct of interstate passenger service. 23 23-18.18-3. Refund of container refund; Refusal to accept container. 24 (a) Every consumer shall deposit with the dealer the refund value of each beverage 25 container purchased from that dealer. 26 (b) Except as provided in subsection (f) of this section , a dealer shall accept from any 27 person during business hours any empty beverage container of the type, size and brand sold by the 28 dealer within the past sixty (60) days and shall pay that person the refund value of each beverage 29 container returned. 30 (c) Except as provided in subsection (f) of this section, a distributor shall accept from any 31 dealer any empty beverage container of the type, size and brand sold by the distributor within the 32 past sixty (60) days and shall pay the deal er the refund value of the beverage container plus a 33 handling fee of at least four cents ($0.04) per container if the empty beverage container is presented 34 LC000504 - Page 3 of 8 at the time of and at the location at which the dealer obtains filled beverage containers from the 1 distributor. 2 (d) Except as provided in subsection (f) of this section , a bottler shall accept from a 3 distributor or a dealer any empty reusable beverage container of the type, size, and brand sold by 4 the bottler within the past sixty (60) days and shall pay the distributor or dealer the refund value of 5 the reusable beverage container plus a handling fee of at least four cents ($0.04) per container if 6 the empty reusable beverage container is presented at the time and at the location where the 7 distributor or d ealer obtains filled reusable beverage containers from the bottler; provided, 8 however, that a bottler other than a bottler of soft drinks manufacturing in this state who offers to 9 refund deposits in accordance with this section, shall not require a distrib utor to deposit with the 10 bottler the refund value of a beverage container which is not reusable, nor shall a bottler require of 11 a distributor that beverage containers which are not reusable, be presented to the bottler at the 12 location where the distributor obtains filled beverage containers. 13 (e) Any person may establish a redemption center and shall have the right to determine 14 what type, size and brand of beverage container shall be accepted. Except as provided in subsection 15 (f) of this section, a distributor shall take from any redemption center any empty beverage container 16 of the type, size and brand sold by the distributor within the past sixty (60) days and shall pay the 17 redemption center the refund value of the container plus a handling fee of at least four cents ($0.04) 18 per container. 19 (f) A dealer, distributor, redemption center or bottler may refuse to accept any beverage 20 container which contains material foreign to the normal contents of the container. 21 (g) Any bottler or distributor who receives depos its and/or handling charges under this 22 chapter shall segregate said deposits or handling charges in a fund which shall be maintained 23 separately from all other revenues. Said bottler or distributor shall report on a monthly basis to the 24 Rhode Island resource recovery corporation and the division of revenue, the amount of said deposits 25 or handling charges received and the amount refunded. 26 (h) Any bottler or distributor who is subject to the provisions of subsection (c), (d) or (e) 27 of this section shall maintain a separate account to be known as the deposit transaction fund. Said 28 fund shall be kept separate from all other revenues and accounts. Each bottler or distributor shall 29 place in said fund the refund value for all non -reusable beverage containers it sells subject to the 30 provisions of this chapter. 31 Except as specified in subsection (d) of this section, amounts in such fund may only be 32 expended to pay refund values paid after January 1, 202 2, for returned non -reusable beverage 33 containers pursuant to subsection (c), (d) or (e) of this section. Amounts in such fund shall not be 34 LC000504 - Page 4 of 8 used to pay the handling fees required by subsection (c), (d) or (e) of this section. Each such fund 1 shall be maintained by said bottlers and distributors on behalf of consu mers who have purchased 2 refundable non-reusable beverage containers and on behalf of the state; except as specified in § 23-3 18.18-6, for no purpose are amounts in such fund to be regarded as income of said bottlers or 4 distributors. 5 (i) The obligations to accept or take empty beverage containers and to pay the refund value 6 and handling fees for such containers as described in subsections (b), (c), (d) and (e) of this section 7 shall apply only to containers originally sold in this state as filled beverage containers. Any person 8 who tenders to a dealer, distributor, redemption center or bottler more than ten (10) cases of twenty-9 four (24) empty beverage containers each, which a person knows or has reason to know were not 10 originally sold in this state as filled beverage containers, for the purpose of obtaining a refund value 11 or handling fee, shall be subject to the enforcement action and civil penalties set forth in § 23-12 18.18-10. For the purpose of this section and § 23-18.18-10, the term person shall include any 13 individual, partnership, corporation, or other combination or entity. 14 23-18.18-4. Reports by bottlers and distributors of transactions affecting deposit 15 transaction fund. 16 Every bottler or distributor shall report to the director of the division of revenue by the 17 tenth day of each month, concerning transactions affecting its deposit transaction fund in the 18 preceding month. Such report shall be made in a form prescribed by said director and shall include 19 the number of non -reusable beverage containers sold and the number of non -reusable beverage 20 containers returned in said month, the amount of deposits received in and payments made from said 21 fund in said month and the most rece nt three (3) month period, any income earned on amounts in 22 the deposit transaction fund during said preceding month, the balance in said deposit transaction 23 fund at the close of said preceding month, and such other information as the director of revenue 24 may require in furtherance of the director's duties pursuant to this chapter. 25 23-18.18-5. Abandoned deposit amounts; Determination and transfer. 26 (a) At the end of each month, any amounts that are or should be in a bottler's or distributor's 27 deposit transaction fund and that are in excess of the sum of: 28 (1) Interest income earned on amounts in said account during that month; and 29 (2) The total amount of refund values received by said bottler or distributor for non -30 reusable beverage containers during that month and the two (2) preceding months shall be deemed 31 to constitute abandoned deposit amounts. Income earned on said fund may be transferred from said 32 fund for use as funds of the bottler or distributor. 33 (b) By the tenth day of each month, each bottler or distributor shall turn over to the director 34 LC000504 - Page 5 of 8 of the division of revenue any deposit amounts deemed to be abandoned at the close of the 1 preceding month, pursuant to subsection (a) of this section. Such amounts may be paid from the 2 deposit transaction fund. Amounts collected by the director of the division of revenue pursuant to 3 this subsection shall be deposited in the water pollution control revolving fund established by § 46-4 12.2-6. 5 23-18.18-6. Reimbursements to bottlers or distributors. 6 If in any month the authorized payments from the deposit transaction fund by a bottler or 7 distributor pursuant to § 23-18.18-2 exceed the funds that are or should be in its deposit transaction 8 fund, the state shall reimburse said bottler or distributor, from amounts received pursuant to § 23-9 18.18-5, for those refunds paid by the bottler or distributor for non -reusable beverage containers 10 for which the funds that are or should be in its deposit transaction fund are insufficient; provided, 11 however, that such reimbursements to a bottler or distributor for a month shall not exceed the excess 12 of: 13 (1) Amounts paid by said bottler or distributor to the state pursuant to § 23-18.18-5 in the 14 preceding twenty-four (24) months over; 15 (2) Amounts paid by this state to said bottler or distributor pursuant to this section during 16 said twenty-four (24) months. 17 23-18.18-7. Holding or connecting devices; Break down by bacteria or light. 18 No dealer shall sell or offer f or sale in the state containers connected to each other by a 19 separate holding device constructed of plastic rings or any other device or material which cannot 20 be broken down by bacteria and or by light into constituent parts as provided in chapter 38 of this 21 title. 22 23-18.18-8. Refund value; Statement on container; Vending machines. 23 (a) Every beverage container, except permanently labelled reusable glass containers, 24 imported into, or offered for sale in the state by a bottler, distributor, or dealer shall clearly indicate 25 in at least eight (8) point type, by embossing or by stamp, or by label, or other method securely 26 affixed to any portion except the bottom of the beverage container, the refund value of the container. 27 A permanently labelled reusable glass beverage container first imported into, or offered for sale in 28 this state after the effective date of this chapter by a bottler, distributor, or dealer shall clearly 29 indicate in at least eight (8) point type, by embossing or by stamp, or by label, or other method 30 securely affixed to any portion except the bottom of the permanently labelled reusable glass 31 beverage container, that the container may be returned for deposit. A dealer, distributor, redemption 32 center, or bottler, may refuse to accept from any person any empty beverage container, except a 33 permanently labelled reusable glass beverage container, which does not state thereon a refund value 34 LC000504 - Page 6 of 8 and may refuse to accept any permanently labelled reu sable glass beverage container which does 1 not state thereon that the container may be returned for deposit. 2 (b) Every operator of a vending machine which sells beverages in beverage containers shall 3 post a conspicuous notice on each vending machine indicat ing that a refund of not less than ten 4 cents ($0.10) is available on each beverage container purchased and where and from whom that 5 refund may be obtained. The provisions of this subsection shall not be construed to require such 6 vending machine operators to provide refunds at the premises wherein such vending machines are 7 located. 8 23-18.18-9. Administration of provisions relating to bottlers and distributors; rules 9 and regulations. 10 (a) The director of the department of environmental management shall admini ster the 11 provisions of §§ 23-18.18-1, 23-18.18-2, 23-18.18-3(a) through (f), inclusive, 23-18.18-7, and 23-12 18.18-8. Said director shall promulgate rules and regulations to effectuate the purposes of said 13 sections. 14 (b) The director of the division of revenue shall administer the provisions of §§ 23-18.18-15 3 (g) through (i), 23-18.18-4, 23-18.18-5 and 23-18.18-6. 16 The director of the division of revenue shall promulgate and from time to time revise rules 17 and regulations to effectuate the purposes of said sections. Said rules and regulations shall include 18 a provision to permit bottlers or distributors to borrow, without any interest charge, against their 19 deposit transaction funds subject to such terms and conditions as the director deems appropriate. 20 23-18.18-10. Enforcement. 21 (a) The attorney general shall enforce the provisions of this chapter. Any bottler, 22 distributor, redemption center or dealer who violates any provisions of this chapter or any person 23 who violates § 23-18.1-3 shall be subject to a civil penalty for each violation of not more than one 24 thousand dollars ($1,000). 25 (b) Any bottler or distributor failing to make full and timely payments as required by § 23-26 18.18-5 shall pay interest on any unpaid amounts at the rate of one and one-half percent (1.5%) for 27 each month or part thereof until payment is made in full; provided, however, that any person, 28 including a bottler, distributor, redemption center or dealer, who violates the provisions of § 23-29 18.18-3(i) shall be subject to a civil penalty of not less than one hundred dollars ($100) for each 30 container or twenty-five thousand dollars ($25,000) for each tender of containers. 31 LC000504 - Page 7 of 8 SECTION 2. This act shall take effect on January 1, 2022. 1 ======== LC000504 ======== LC000504 - Page 8 of 8 EXPLANATION BY THE LEGISLATIVE COUNCIL OF A N A C T RELATING TO HEALTH AND SAFETY -- BEVERAGE CONTAINER DEPOSIT RECYCLING ACT OF 2021 *** This act would create a refundable ten cent ($0.10) deposit for non -reusable beverage 1 containers. A four cents ($0.04) handling fee would be paid by distributors. 2 This act would take effect on January 1, 2022. 3 ======== LC000504 ========