GENERAL ASSEMBLY OF NORTH CAROLINA
SESSION 2001
H	1
HOUSE BILL 772
     

 
Short Title:	Deposits on Beverage Containers.	()	
Sponsors:	Representatives Edwards;  Wainwright, Luebke, Insko, and Weiss.	
Referred to:	Rules, Calendar, and Operations of the House.	
March 26, 2001

	A BILL TO BE ENTITLED
AN ACT TO DISCOURAGE LITTERING AND TO ENCOURAGE RECYCLING BY REQUIRING A DEPOSIT ON BEVERAGE CONTAINERS AND REQUIRING RETAILERS, REDEMPTION CENTERS, and distributors TO ACCEPT RETURNED BEVERAGE CONTAINERS AND REFUND THE DEPOSITS.

The General Assembly of North Carolina enacts:
SECTION 1.  Article 9 of Chapter 130A of the General Statutes is amended by adding a new Part to read:
"Part 2E. Beverage Container Deposits and Refunds.
"§ 130A-309.90.  Findings; intent.
(a)	The General Assembly finds that:
(1)	Beverage containers constitute a major source of nondegradable litter and solid waste in this State.
(2)	Litter remains a large problem in North Carolina despite other efforts to discourage littering and to establish criminal penalties under G.S. 14-399 for first-time and subsequent offenses of littering.
(3)	The collection and disposal of litter imposes a great financial burden on the citizens of North Carolina.
(4)	A more concerted effort to reduce litter is needed in North Carolina.
(5)	Beverage containers should be reused or recycled.
(6)	Other states' experience shows that beverage container deposit legislation is successful in reducing litter and increasing recycling of discarded beverage containers.
(7)	Beverage container deposit legislation is consistent with the State's policy, set forth in G.S. 130A-309.04, to promote methods of solid waste management that are alternatives to disposal in landfills.
(8)	It is the intent of the General Assembly to create incentives for manufacturers, distributors, retailers, and consumers of beverages in beverage containers to recycle and reuse beverage containers, while addressing the blight that litter imposes on the highways and lands of this State."§ 130A-309.91.  Definitions.
Unless a different meaning is required by the context, the following definitions apply throughout this Part:
(1)	'Beverage' means any ready-to-drink liquid intended for human consumption. Beverage includes any malt beverage; spirituous liquor; fortified wine; unfortified wine; wine cooler; soda or noncarbonated water; and any nonalcoholic carbonated or noncarbonated drink in liquid form.
(2)	'Beverage container' means a bottle, can, jar, or other container that has been sealed by a manufacturer, contains a beverage, and is made of glass, metal, or plastic.
(3)	'Consumer' means an individual who purchases a beverage in a beverage container for use or consumption.
(4)	'Distributor' means a person who engages in the sale of beverages in beverage containers to a retailer, including any manufacturer who engages in such sales.
(5)	'Fortified wine' has the same meaning as in G.S. 18B-101.
(6)	'Malt beverage' has the same meaning as in G.S. 18B-101.
(7)	'Operator of a vending machine' means its owner, the person who refills it, or the owner or lessor of the property upon which it is located.
(8)	'Private redemption center' means an individual or a privately owned establishment approved by the Secretary under G.S. 130A-309.96.
(9)	'Retailer' means a person who sells or offers for sale in this State to consumers a beverage in a beverage container, including an operator of a vending machine containing a beverage in a beverage container.
(10)	'Spirituous liquor' has the same meaning as in G.S. 18B-101.
(11)	'Unfortified wine' has the same meaning as in G.S. 18B-101.
(12)	'Use or consumption' means the exercise of any right or power over a beverage incident to the ownership thereof, other than the sale, storage, or retention for the purposes of sale of a beverage.
(13)	'Wine cooler' means a beverage of less than eight percent (8%) alcohol content by volume consisting of wine and both of the following:
a.	Plain, sparkling, or carbonated water.
b.	Any one or more of the following:
1.	Fruit juices.
2.	Fruit adjuncts.
3.	Artificial or natural flavors or flavorings.
4.	Preservatives.
5.	Coloring.
6.	Any other natural or artificial blending material.
"§ 130A-309.92.  Deposit and refund value; requirements concerning beverage containers.
(a)	Every consumer who purchases a beverage in a beverage container shall pay a deposit equal to the refund value under subsection (b) of this section.
(b)	Every beverage container sold or offered for sale to a consumer in this State that contains one gallon or less of a beverage shall have a refund value, as follows:
(1)	For beverage containers, except fortified and unfortified wine and spirituous liquor containers, the refund value shall be ten cents (10¢).
(2)	For fortified and unfortified wine containers of greater than 50 milliliters, the refund value shall be twenty-five cents (25¢).
(3)	For spirituous liquor containers of greater than 50 milliliters, the refund value shall be twenty-five cents (25¢).
(c)	Every beverage container that contains a beverage that is sold or offered for sale in this State shall clearly indicate by embossing or imprinting on the normal product label, or in the case of metal beverage containers, on the top of the container the words 'North Carolina' or the initials 'N.C.' and the refund value of the container in not less than one-quarter inch type size. This subsection does not apply to any permanently labeled glass beverage container having a refund value of not less than ten cents (10¢) prior to the effective date of this Part and having a brand name permanently marked thereon, unless the glass beverage container contains spirituous liquors, fortified or unfortified wines, or malt beverages.
(d)	Every beverage container that contains a beverage that is sold or offered for sale in this State shall be made of materials that are recyclable or made of recycled materials.(e)	Every five years, the Department shall determine the percentages of each category of beverage containers under subsection (b) of this section that are being returned. If the Department finds that the return rate for any category is less than seventy-five percent (75%), the Department may increase the refund rate for that category of beverage containers by five cents (5¢).
"§ 130A-309.93.  Duties of retailers.
(a)	Every retailer shall pay to the distributor deposits equal to the value of the refunds under G.S. 130A-309.92 when the retailer purchases beverages from a distributor and shall receive deposits from consumers at the time of sale.
(b)	Subject to subsections (d) and (e) of this section, a retailer shall accept at the retailer's regular place of business from any consumer or other person not a retailer any empty beverage container of any kind, size, and brand sold by that retailer and shall pay to the consumer the refund value in cash.
(c)	A retailer may limit the total number of beverage containers that the retailer will accept from any one consumer or other person in any one business day to 24 containers or any other number greater than 24.
(d)	A retailer or a private redemption center may refuse to redeem from a consumer, and a distributor may refuse to redeem from a retailer or a private redemption center, all of the following:
(1)	An empty beverage container that is not labeled as required by G.S. 130A-309.92.
(2)	A beverage container that is not empty and not free of materials foreign to the original contents of the container.
(3)	A glass beverage container that is broken.
(e)	A retailer may refuse to accept beverage containers if the retailer has contracted with a private redemption center under G.S. 130A-309.96, and the order approving that redemption center states that the private redemption center serves that retailer.
"§ 130A-309.94.  Duties of distributors.
(a)	A distributor shall accept from any retailer or any private redemption center any empty beverage container of any kind, size, and brand sold by that distributor and shall pay the retailer or the operator of the redemption center the refund value plus a handling fee equal to five cents (5¢) for each empty beverage container accepted.
(b)	Any distributor who receives deposits under this Part shall segregate these deposits in a fund that shall be maintained separately from all other revenues. The distributor may use this fund only to pay refund values and handling fees under this section. The distributor shall maintain this fund on behalf of consumers who purchased beverages in beverage containers and on behalf of the State. Except as provided in G.S. 130A-309.99, the moneys in this fund are not the property of the distributor. The distributor shall report on a monthly basis to the Department in a manner prescribed by the Department, the amount of these deposits and the amount refunded.
(c)	The Department may establish, by rule, criteria prescribing the manner in which the distributor shall have the obligation to pick up any empty, unbroken, and reasonably clean beverage containers of the particular kind, size, and brand sold by the distributor from retailers to whom a distributor has sold those beverages and from redemption centers. The obligation may be fulfilled by the distributor or indirectly through a contracted agent. The rules may establish a minimum number or value of containers below which a distributor is not required to respond to a request to pick up empty containers. Any rules adopted under this subsection shall allocate the burdens associated with the handling, storage, and transportation of empty containers to prevent unreasonable financial or other hardship. These rules may require a retailer and a private redemption center to transport all returned containers to a material recovery facility and to require a material recovery facility to sell the beverage containers to a private recycling firm at market prices.
"§ 130A-309.95.  Retailer acting as distributor.
Whenever any retailer or group of retailers receives a shipment or consignment of, or in any other manner acquires, beverage containers outside the State for sale to consumers in the State, such retailer shall comply with this Part as if the retailer were a distributor, as well as a retailer.
"§ 130A-309.96.  Private redemption centers.
(a)	Any retailer, group of retailers, or any person or other entity may seek the approval of the Secretary to operate a private redemption center to serve local retailers and consumers, at which consumers may return empty beverage containers pursuant to G.S. 130A-309.93.
(b)	Application for approval of a private redemption center shall be filed with the Department. The application shall state the names and addresses of the operator of the center and the person responsible for the center, and the names and addresses of retailers to be served and their distances from the redemption center.
(c)	The Secretary shall approve a private redemption center if the Secretary determines that the center will provide a convenient service for the return of empty beverage containers. The order approving a redemption center shall state the retailers to be served and the kinds, sizes, and brand names of empty beverage containers that the center will accept.
(d)	Subject to G.S. 130A-309.93(d), a private redemption center shall accept from any consumer or other person not a retailer any beverage container of the kind, size, and brand sold by a retailer served by the center and shall pay the refund value in cash.
(e)	A list of the retailers served, the kinds, sizes, and brand names of empty beverage containers accepted, and the hours the private redemption center will accept returnable beverage containers shall be prominently displayed at each private redemption center.
(f)	The Secretary may withdraw approval of a private redemption center if the private redemption center has not complied with the approval order or if the private redemption center no longer provides a convenient service to the public.
"§ 130A-309.97.  Alternate redemption arrangements for vending machines.
Any retailer who is an operator of a vending machine and who is not otherwise a retailer, may elect to arrange with another retailer or a private redemption center, within five miles of the location of the vending machine, to redeem beverage containers from the vending machine. The vending machine operator, so long as the arrangement is in effect, shall be relieved of the duty to redeem beverage containers under this Part. The vending machine operator shall post on each vending machine the name and address of the redeeming retailer.
"§ 130A-309.98.  Unredeemed Beverage Container Deposits Fund.
(a)	The Unredeemed Beverage Container Deposits Fund is created in the Department, to be administered by the Department. The Unredeemed Beverage Container Deposits Fund is a nonreverting fund that consists of abandoned deposits remitted by distributors and credited to the Fund under G.S. 130A-309.99. Interest earned shall accrue to the Fund.
(b)	The Unredeemed Beverage Container Deposits Fund shall be used to fund the following:
(1)	The costs to the Department for administering the Fund and for administering this Part.
(2)	Reimbursements to distributors under G.S. 130A-309.100 for refund redemptions and handling fees paid by distributors that exceed the deposits collected by the distributor.
(3)	Public education programs directed at reducing litter and encouraging recycling and reuse of beverage containers.
(4)	Grants to material recovery facilities to support their role under this Part to purchase beverage containers as recyclables to be sold to private recycling firms.
"§ 130A-309.99.  Abandoned deposit amounts; determination.
(a)	At the end of each month, any amounts that are in the distributor's segregated fund under G.S. 130A-309.94 and that are in excess of the total amount of refund values received by the distributor for beverage containers during that month and the two preceding months shall be deemed to constitute abandoned deposit amounts. Income earned on the distributor's segregated fund under G.S. 130A-309.94 may be transferred to the distributor and is the distributor's property.
(b)	By the tenth day of each month, each distributor shall remit to the State Treasurer any deposit amounts deemed to be abandoned under subsection (a) of this section as of the close of the preceding month. The State Treasurer shall credit these moneys to the Unredeemed Beverage Container Deposits Fund.
"§ 130A-309.100.  Reimbursements to distributors.
If in any month the payments by a distributor under G.S. 130A-309.94 as refunds and handling fees exceed the distributor's segregated fund under G.S. 130A-309.94, the distributor shall be reimbursed from the Unredeemed Beverage Container Deposits Fund.
"§ 130A-309.101.  Penalties.
A person may be assessed a civil penalty not to exceed one thousand dollars ($1,000) per violation if the person does any of the following:
(1)	Sells or offers for sale beverages in containers not labeled in accordance with G.S. 130A-309.92.
(2)	Refuses to accept and return the deposit on a beverage container in accordance with G.S. 130A-309.93, 130A-309.94, or 130A-309.96. 
(3)	Operates a private redemption center without the order of approval required under G.S. 130A-309.96. 
(4)	Makes a report pursuant to G.S. 130A-309.94 that is false."
SECTION 2.  The Department of Environment and Natural Resources shall conduct a study to determine at least all of the following:
(1)	This act's economic impact on North Carolina retailers, distributors, and manufacturers of alcoholic and nonalcoholic beverages and their containers.
(2)	The problems, if any, incurred in the distribution, sale, and return of beverage containers.
(3)	The effectiveness of this act in reducing the proportion of beverage containers in litter found along the State's roads and highways, and along its streams and rivers.
(4)	The effectiveness of this act in increasing recycling or reuse of beverage containers.
(5)	The costs incurred in the administration of this act.
The Department of Environment and Natural Resources shall submit interim reports to the Environmental Review Commission and a final report to the 2005 General Assembly and to the Environmental Review Commission detailing its findings made pursuant to the study under this section. The final report shall include recommendations and any legislative proposals considered to be appropriate as determined by the study under this section.
SECTION 3.  The Department of Environment and Natural Resources may adopt rules to implement this act.
SECTION 4.  This act becomes effective January 1, 2002, and applies to beverage containers sold or offered for sale on or after that date.