May 26, 2011
Bottle bill overhaul approved
The changes to the original 1971 legislation include a shift to redemption centers instead of retailers
SALEM — A major revamp of Oregon’s 1971 bottle bill law cleared its final hurdle in the Legislature Wednesday, as the Oregon Senate approved it on a 19-11 vote.
House Bill 3145 now goes to Gov. John Kitzhaber, who is supportive of the revamp’s concept but still needs to review the bill’s details, his press secretary, Christine Miles, said.
The much-debated bill would make three primary changes to Oregon’s current bottle deposit system:
It would start the shift toward Oregonians taking their containers to large redemption centers instead of retailers’ in-store collection points.
It would require a deposit for almost all types of beverage containers including juices, sports and energy drinks as well as coffee and tea drinks, but excluding liquor, wine, dairy products and infant formula. The deposit on these new container types would go into effect one year after 60 percent of current containers — carbonated drinks and water — are redeemed at the new redemption centers, or by 2018 at the latest.
It would increase the deposit to a dime if redemption rates for a given material were below 80 percent for two consecutive years after 2016. Current redemption rates hover around 75 percent for all materials together, with plastic water bottles — on which a deposit has been required only since 2009 — being brought in at a much lower rate, and cans and glass bottles being brought in at a higher rate.
The battle-scarred bill, which has been repeatedly amended, withstood two final changes on the Senate floor Wednesday from Senate Republicans who first tried to alter it with a minority report — primarily targeting the potential deposit increase to a dime — and then attempted to send the bill back to committee.
Both motions failed on straight party-line votes. Democrats hold a 16-14 edge over Republicans in the Senate.
Proponents of the bill say the changes it makes are long overdue and bring Oregon’s once-historic bottle deposit legislation into the 21st century.
“As the bottle bill turns 40, it’s showing signs of age,” said Sen. Mark Hass, a Democrat from Beaverton who carried the bill to the floor. “Ten years ago, 90 percent of the deposit containers were redeemed. That number has now fallen to 75 percent. The redemption experience at grocery stores is time-consuming and messy. And a nickel in 1971 is worth less than a penny today.”
But a number of Senate Republicans remained disturbed by the potential deposit increase, which they argued would take more money out of the pockets of consumers and place too much of a premium on containers.
“It has been said that we need the dime (deposit) to motivate people to recycle; interesting that we motivate them with their own money,” said Sen. Alan Olsen, a Republican from Canby. “This body mines its citizens like a fine natural resource. The citizens provide the gold and silver with no end in sight and all they get is the shaft.”
Under the deposit system, consumers get their money back only if they take the containers back to a retailer — and about three quarters of all sold containers are returned.
Olsen argued the Legislature could add the deposit increase at a later date if necessary.
Olsen also criticized the bill’s language, which doesn’t explicitly state that containers of liquid pharmaceuticals such as Pepto-Bismol or liquid Tylenol and other liquids such as lemon juice or cooking oils would not be subject to the deposit requirement.
“All I’m asking for is … clarity,” he said. “Spell it out. Put it in there what counts and what doesn’t count. … Let’s get this right.”
Hass acknowledged that the bill doesn’t specify every type of beverage or liquid excluded, but pointed out that it does contain a clause that would allow the Oregon Liquor Control Commission to name other exceptions to the new deposit rules.
Hass added that updating the bottle bill so as to keep it relevant to future generations of Oregonians was extremely important. “When Oregonians, especially our children, live with this kind of ethic, it makes them better people,” he said. “The bottle bill is not just words on paper; it’s a symbol of what it means to be an Oregonian.”
Revamped bottle law
What it would do: Expand the types of containers that a deposit is required on, to include non-carbonated juices, sports drinks and energy drinks, coffee and tea drinks. However, liquor, wine, dairy products and infant formula would be excluded.
When it would do this: By 2018 at the latest, or sooner if a regional redemption center system is implemented quickly.
What else it would do: Raise the deposit to 10 cents on any specific type of container — glass, plastic or metal — for which redemption rates are below 80 percent for a period of time.
http://www.registerguard.com/web/newslocalnews/26294752-41/bill-deposit-bottle-containers-senate.html.csp
