Add bottle bills to all recyclable bottles.

 

The purpose of this bill is to add a refundable deposit (anywhere from 10¢ to 25¢) to all glass, metal, and plastic

bottles that can be later returned to major grocery stores and malls to get the refundable deposit back. This will

encourage recycling and reduce littering in public spaces, and even reward the homeless that pick up bottles they find.

 

Other states in the U.S. have already implemented bottle bills, such as Maine, with the highest recycling rate in the

country at 77%. Minnesota has a 45% recycling rate, showing that we have lots of room for improvement. These bottles are

getting dumped into our lakes and rivers, killing animals and endangering ecosystems. If we enact a bottle bill, people

will be less likely to throw away easy money, and homeless people in high populated areas will be able to collect

bottles that are left on the streets and turn them in for a small reward. It doesn’t require an extra trip to a separate

facility, and machines will sort the bottles and cans into their respective materials, making it easier for the

recycling plants.

 

“Bottle bills” Shall be defined as an extra payment added to disposable bottles that is returned to the buyer if they

recycle the bottle at select locations.

“Bill bottle machines” Shall be defined as machines set in select locations that collect bottles with bottle bills on

them, and give a receipt to the initial buyer of the bottle that is given to a worker at that location to be turned in

exchange for money back.

“Refundable Deposit”Shall be defined as money paid in advance that is returned to the payer after specific conditions

are met

“Grocery store”Shall be defined as a retail establishment that sells food and other household supplies, such as Hy-Vee,

Target, and Costco.

 

The funding for the machines to be put into stores would be around 15 million dollars total with machine cost and

installation across the state. This funding would be accounted for in the environmental part of the state budget,

specifically the Minnesota Pollution Control Agency(MPCA). The money given back to the consumer is collected when they

first pay for the bottle, and the machine gives back a receipt that can then be cashed in for paper currency.

 

All major grocery stores would be required to have a bottle bill machine, or instead pay a fee of $1 per bottle sold

that month to the state to help clean up streets and parks. This fee will help encourage stores to insert machines,

because they would be cheaper than the fee.

 

January 1st, 2027