Massachusetts Senate Passes ‘Bottle Bill’ Amendment, Modernizing Bottle Deposit System
June 25, 2024Measure adds noncarbonated beverages, containers including ‘nips,’ increases deposit to 10 cents
(BOSTON—06/25/2024) Today, the Massachusetts Senate voted to modernize the bottle bill, adding noncarbonated beverages, wine, and spirits to the list of containers eligible for a bottle deposit, and increasing the deposit amount from 5 cents to 10 cents.
Small alcohol bottles, known as ’nips,’ would be included in the deposit program under the measure.
The Senate voted on the policy as an amendment to S.2829, An Act upgrading the grid and protecting ratepayers.
The amendment would have meaningful climate impacts for the Commonwealth. According to the Container Recycling Institute, it is projected to:
- Lead to 3.1 billion additional containers being recycled each year in Massachusetts.
- Slash emissions by 182,000 metric tons per year.
- Save cities and towns $36.5 million annually.
- Create hundreds of jobs.
“Boosting recycling and cutting emissions are crucial to meeting our climate goals—modernizing the bottle bill does both,” said Senate President Karen E. Spilka (D-Ashland). “I’m grateful to Senator Creem for her tireless work to move this important policy change forward, and to my colleagues who supported the measure.”
“For the first time in over forty years, the Senate took meaningful action to update the container deposit system, bringing our most effective recycling system into the 21st century,” said Senate Majority Leader Cindy Creem (D-Newton), Chair of the Global Warming and Climate Change Committee. “By modernizing the bottle bill, we will reduce litter in our parks and along our roads, slash greenhouse gas emissions, save cities and towns millions on waste removal, support thousands of jobs, and generate hundreds of millions in revenue. I'm grateful to Senate President Spilka and Senator Barrett for making this important policy a priority, and to the broad coalition of organizations led by MASSPIRG that has championed the bill and mobilized strong grassroots support for it.”
Having been approved, the amendment will be included in S.2829. A final vote on the bill is expected to take place on Thursday in the Senate.
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