LAW WITHOUTGOVERNOR'S
SIGNATURE
MAY 7, 2022

CHAPTER

742
PUBLIC LAWSTATE OF MAINE_____
IN THE YEAR OF OUR LORDTWO THOUSAND TWENTY-TWO_____
H.P. 1083 - L.D. 1467
An Act To Promote a Circular Economy through Increased Post-consumer
Recycled Plastic Content in Plastic Beverage Containers
Be it enacted by the People of the State of Maine as follows:

Sec. 1. 28-A MRSA §1355-A, sub-§5, ¶J is enacted to read:
J. A rectifier and a holder of a distillery or small distillery license shall comply withall applicable requirements of Title 38, section 1612.

Sec. 2. 28-A MRSA §1381, sub-§4, as enacted by PL 2019, c. 615, §4 and affectedby §7, is amended to read:
4. Conditions on certificate of approval. A certificate of approval under this section
is subject to the laws of the State, including, but not limited to, all applicable requirementsof Title 38, section 1612, and the rules of the bureau.

Sec. 3. 38 MRSA §1612 is enacted to read:§1612. Plastic beverage containers
1. Definitions. As used in this section, unless the context otherwise indicates, thefollowing terms have the following meanings.
A. "Beverage" has the same meaning as in section 3102, subsection 1.
B. "Beverage container" means a bottle, can, jar or other container made of glass, metalor plastic that has been sealed by a manufacturer and at the time of sale contains 4 liters
or less of a beverage. "Beverage container" does not include a container composed, inwhole or in part, of aluminum and plastic or aluminum and paper in combination aslong as the aluminum content represents 10% or less of the unfilled container weight,
the container materials represent 5% or less of the total weight of the container and its
contents and the container is filled with a nonalcoholic beverage. "Beverage container"
does not include a container composed of cardboard in combination with a plastic liner.
C. "Beverage manufacturing industry association" means an association that represents
the interests of companies that manufacture beverages.
D. "Dealer" has the same meaning as in section 3102, subsection 6.

Page 1 - 130LR0190(03)E. "Distributor" means a person that engages in the sale of beverages in beveragecontainers to a dealer in this State and includes a manufacturer that engages in suchsales.
F. "Initiator of deposit" or "initiator" means a manufacturer, distributor or other personthat initiates or is required to initiate under section 3103 a deposit on a plastic beveragecontainer containing a beverage other than spirits.
G. "Manufacturer" means a person, partnership, association, corporation or other entity
that, through its own action or through contract or control of another entity, is primarily
responsible for the production of a beverage contained in a plastic beverage container
for sale or distribution in the State.
H. "Nonrefillable beverage container" means a beverage container that, after being
used by a consumer, is not to be reused as a beverage container by a manufacturer.
I. "Plastic" means a synthetic material made from fossil fuel or organic-based
polymers, such as polyethylene, polystyrene, polypropylene and polycarbonate, thatcan be molded or blown into specific shapes.
J. "Plastic beverage container" means a nonrefillable beverage container that iscomposed wholly or in large part of plastic. "Plastic beverage container" does notinclude a beverage label or a beverage cap that may be screwed onto or otherwise
affixed to a nonrefillable beverage container.
K. "Post-consumer recycled plastic" means plastic produced from the recovery,
separation, collection and reprocessing of plastic that was originally sold for
consumption and that would otherwise be disposed of or processed as waste. "Postconsumer recycled plastic" does not include post-industrial plastic or pre-consumer
plastic.
L. "Proprietary information" has the same meaning as in section 1771, subsection 6-A.
M. "Spirits" has the same meaning as in Title 28‑A, section 2, subsection 31.
N. "Spirits manufacturer" means a person that is:(1) An in-state rectifier, distillery or small distillery licensed under Title 28-A,
section 1355-A that produces spirits contained in a plastic beverage container; or(2) An out-of-state spirits supplier that transports spirits contained in a plastic
beverage container into the State or causes such spirits to be transported into theState and has been issued a certificate of approval under Title 28-A, section 1381.
As used in this paragraph, "rectifier" has the same meaning as in Title 28-A, section 2,
subsection 25 and "out-of-state spirits supplier" has the same meaning as in Title 28-A,
section 1381, subsection 1.
2. Post-consumer recycled plastic requirement. Except as provided in subsection
7, beginning January 1, 2026 and ending December 31, 2030, an initiator of deposit or
spirits manufacturer may not sell, offer for sale or distribute for sale in the State a plastic
beverage container unless all of the plastic beverage containers sold, offered for sale or
distributed for sale in the State by that initiator or spirits manufacturer contain, on averageand in the aggregate, at least 25% post-consumer recycled plastic or the initiator or spirits
manufacturer has paid the fee required by subsection 5.

Page 2 - 130LR0190(03)Except as provided in subsection 7, beginning January 1, 2031, an initiator of deposit or
spirits manufacturer may not sell, offer for sale or distribute for sale in the State a plastic
beverage container unless all of the plastic beverage containers sold, offered for sale or
distributed for sale in the State by that initiator or spirits manufacturer contain, on averageand in the aggregate, at least 30% post-consumer recycled plastic or the initiator or spirits
manufacturer has paid the fee required by subsection 5.
3.
Determination of compliance with post-consumer recycled plastic
requirement; advisory committee. For the purposes of determining an initiator of
deposit's or spirits manufacturer's compliance with the post-consumer recycled plastic
requirement in subsection 2, an initiator or spirits manufacturer may rely on Maine-specificdata regarding plastic beverage container sales and material use, if available, or may
alternatively rely on the same type of data applicable to a region or territory in the UnitedStates that includes the State.
A. If an initiator of deposit or spirits manufacturer elects to rely on data regarding
plastic beverage container sales and material use derived from data applicable to aregion or territory in the United States that includes the State, the initiator or spirits
manufacturer shall:(1) Prorate that regional or territorial data to determine Maine-specific figures
based on market share or population in a manner that ensures that the percentage
of post-consumer recycled plastic calculated for plastic beverage containers soldin the State is the same percentage as calculated for that larger region or territory;and(2) Document the methodology used to determine those Maine-specific figures
calculated under subparagraph (1) in the report required under subsection 4.
B. The department may form an advisory committee composed of stakeholders todetermine the ability of initiators of deposit and spirits manufacturers to measure andreport the Maine-specific information required under this subsection and to develop
any recommendations for improving the data determination and reporting process. The
department may, as necessary, contract with a qualified 3rd-party entity to assist theadvisory committee in developing recommendations under this paragraph. Any costs
to the department associated with this paragraph may be offset through any feescollected by the department pursuant to this section.
4. Initiator of deposit and spirits manufacturer reporting; payment of fees;
product removal for noncompliance. On or before April 1, 2024, and annually thereafter,
an initiator of deposit or spirits manufacturer that has in the prior calendar year sold, offered
for sale or distributed for sale in the State a plastic beverage container shall submit a reportto the department identifying, by resin type when applicable, the amount by weight inpounds of post-consumer recycled plastic, the amount by weight in pounds of plastic thatis not post-consumer recycled plastic and the percentage of post-consumer recycled plastic
in the total weight of all plastic beverage containers the initiator or spirits manufacturer
sold, offered for sale or distributed for sale in the State in that prior calendar year.
A. If the initiator of deposit or spirits manufacturer has determined the data required
to be reported under this subsection using regional or territorial data, the initiator or
spirits manufacturer shall describe in the report the methodology used to determine theMaine-specific figures.

Page 3 - 130LR0190(03)B. At the time that an initiator of deposit or spirits manufacturer submits a reportrequired under this subsection, the initiator or spirits manufacturer shall pay to thedepartment an annual registration fee and, on or after January 1, 2026, any fee requiredby subsection 5. The department shall set the amount of the annual registration fee,
which may not exceed $500 and which must be designed to offset the costs to thedepartment of administering and overseeing this section. Any fees received by thedepartment pursuant to this section must be deposited in the Maine Environmental
Protection Fund established in section 351.
An initiator of deposit or spirits manufacturer that in the prior calendar year sold,offered for sale or distributed for sale in the State less than 10,000 plastic beveragecontainers or, in the aggregate, less than 200 pounds of plastic that is not post-consumer
recycled plastic is not required to pay an annual registration fee under this paragraphbut shall otherwise comply with all applicable requirements of this section, including,but not limited to, submission of the report required under this subsection and paymentof any fee required by subsection 5.
C. The department may conduct audits or take other necessary actions to verify theaccuracy of initiator of deposit or spirits manufacturer data reported under thissubsection.
D. Proprietary information submitted to the department in a report required under thissubsection or submitted to the department as part of an audit or other action taken by
the department under paragraph C that is identified by the submittor as proprietary
information is confidential and must be handled by the department in the same manneras confidential information is handled under section 1310-B.
E. The department shall make available on its publicly accessible website all reports
submitted under this subsection, except that the department shall redact or remove fromsuch reports any proprietary information identified pursuant to paragraph D.
F. An initiator of deposit may submit the report required under this subsection using
information provided to the initiator by a manufacturer. An initiator of deposit or aspirits manufacturer may contract with a 3rd party to submit the report on the initiator'sbehalf. The submission of the report required under this subsection by an initiator of
deposit using information provided by a manufacturer or by a 3rd party on an initiator'sor spirits manufacturer's behalf does not relieve the initiator or spirits manufacturer
from complying with the other requirements of this section.
G. Not more than once every 5 years, the department may require initiators of deposit
and spirits manufacturers to fund a 3rd-party verification of accuracy of the information
submitted under this subsection. The 3rd party selected by the department to conduct
such verification must be agreed upon by the initiators of deposit and spirits
manufacturers.
An initiator of deposit or spirits manufacturer may elect to satisfy the requirements ofthis paragraph by submitting to the department a 3rd-party verification, or, in the caseof an initiator of deposit, a manufacturer's verification, of the accuracy of substantiallysimilar information to that required to be reported under this subsection that was
submitted to another state with a post-consumer recycled plastic content requirementthat is substantially similar to the requirements of this section as long as that other state

Page 4 - 130LR0190(03)is included in the region or territory identified by the initiator or spirits manufacturer
under paragraph A.
H. Except as provided in paragraph I, if an initiator of deposit or spirits manufacturer
fails to submit the report and pay all applicable fees required under this subsection
within 60 days of the reporting deadline, the department may prohibit the initiator or
spirits manufacturer from selling, offering for sale or distributing for sale in the Stateany plastic beverage container.
(1) If, pursuant to this paragraph, the department prohibits an initiator of deposit
from selling, offering for sale or distributing for sale in the State any plastic
beverage container, the department shall provide written notification of thatprohibition to any manufacturer whose plastic beverage containers are sold, offered
for sale or distributed for sale in the State by the initiator and to dealers anddistributors in the State. A manufacturer, dealer or distributor that receives such
written notification and, 3 calendar days or more after receipt of the notification,
sells, offers for sale or distributes for sale in the State a plastic beverage containerof the initiator commits a violation of this section.
(2) If, pursuant to this paragraph, the department prohibits a spirits manufacturer
from selling, offering for sale or distributing for sale in the State any plastic
beverage container, the department shall provide written notification of thatprohibition to the Department of Administrative and Financial Services, Bureau of
Alcoholic Beverages and Lottery Operations, which shall ensure that the plastic
beverage containers of the spirits manufacturer are promptly removed from sale in
the State.
(3) An initiator of deposit or spirits manufacturer prohibited by the department
pursuant to this paragraph from selling, offering for sale or distributing for sale in
the State any plastic beverage container that subsequently sells, offers for sale or
distributes for sale in the State a plastic beverage container commits a violation ofthis section.
I. Notwithstanding any provision of this section to the contrary, if an initiator of deposit
lacks the information necessary to submit the report required under this subsection by
the reporting deadline and calculate the fee required under subsection 5 due to thefailure of one or more manufacturers whose plastic beverage containers the initiator
sold, offered for sale or distributed for sale in the State during the prior calendar year
to provide such information to the initiator, the department may:
(1) Allow the initiator to submit the required report and calculate and pay therequired fee based only on the manufacturer information available to the initiatorand to thereby be deemed in full compliance with those requirements;(2) Allow the initiator to sell, offer for sale or distribute for sale in the State any
plastic beverage container of any manufacturer that provided the initiator with theinformation necessary to satisfy the reporting requirement and calculate therequired fee but prohibit the initiator from selling, offering for sale or distributing
for sale in the State any plastic beverage container of any manufacturer that failed
to provide such information to the initiator. If the initiator of deposit sells, offers
for sale or distributes for sale in the State a plastic beverage container subject to a

Page 5 - 130LR0190(03)prohibition imposed under this subparagraph, the initiator commits a violation ofthis section; and(3) Provide written notification of a prohibition imposed under subparagraph (2)to manufacturers, dealers and distributors in the same manner as in paragraph H,
subparagraph (1). A manufacturer, dealer or distributor that receives such written
notification and, 3 calendar days or more after receipt of the notification, sells,
offers for sale or distributes for sale in the State a plastic beverage container of an
initiator of deposit subject to a prohibition imposed under subparagraph (2)commits a violation of this section.
5. Post-consumer recycled plastic content fee. Pursuant to the provisions of thissubsection, an initiator of deposit or spirits manufacturer shall calculate the amount of apost-consumer recycled plastic content fee and shall remit such amount to the department
pursuant to subsection 4, paragraph B as follows:
A. The initiator of deposit or spirits manufacturer shall add the total amount by weightin pounds of post-consumer recycled plastic and the total amount by weight in poundsof plastic that is not post-consumer recycled plastic used by the initiator in all plastic
beverage containers it sold, offered for sale or distributed for sale in the State during
the prior calendar year. The initiator of deposit or spirits manufacturer shall calculate
the figure under this paragraph based on the information reported by the initiator or
spirits manufacturer pursuant to subsection 4;
B. The initiator of deposit or spirits manufacturer shall multiply the figure calculated
under paragraph A by the minimum post-consumer recycled plastic percentage
required under subsection 2 during the prior calendar year;
C. The initiator of deposit or spirits manufacturer shall subtract from the figure
calculated under paragraph B the total amount by weight in pounds of post-consumer
recycled plastic used by the initiator or spirits manufacturer in all plastic beveragecontainers it sold, offered for sale or distributed for sale in the State during the priorcalendar year; andD. The initiator of deposit or spirits manufacturer shall multiply the figure calculated
under paragraph C by 20¢. If the figure calculated under this paragraph is less than orequal to zero, the initiator of deposit or spirits manufacturer is not required to pay a
post-consumer recycled plastic content fee to the department pursuant to subsection 4,
paragraph B.
6. Waiver. At the request of an initiator of deposit or spirits manufacturer or amanufacturer as provided in paragraph A, and in accordance with the provisions of thissubsection, the department may grant a one-year waiver from payment of the fee that would
otherwise be required pursuant to subsection 5 if the initiator, spirits manufacturer or
manufacturer demonstrates to the department's satisfaction that it was unable to meet theapplicable post-consumer recycled plastic requirement of subsection 2 due to anomalous
market conditions consisting of a disruption in or lack of the supply of post-consumer
recycled plastic.
A. A manufacturer may on its own initiative request a waiver from the department
pursuant to this subsection with respect to a plastic beverage container of the
manufacturer for which an initiator of deposit is required pursuant to subsection 4 toPage 6 - 130LR0190(03)submit a report and pay to the department an annual registration fee and the fee required
pursuant to subsection 5. If a manufacturer requests a waiver pursuant to thisparagraph, both the initiator of deposit and the manufacturer are responsible forresponding to any requests for information made by the department pursuant toparagraph C.
B. A waiver request submitted under this subsection by an initiator of deposit or spirits
manufacturer must be submitted with the report required under subsection 4 and must
include payment to the department by the initiator of a $100 waiver processing fee. A
waiver request submitted under this subsection by a manufacturer pursuant toparagraph A must be submitted on or before the reporting deadline under subsection 4
and must include payment to the department by the manufacturer of a $100 waiverprocessing fee. A waiver request must include sufficient information to demonstrate
the anomalous market conditions consisting of a disruption in or lack of the supply of
post-consumer recycled plastic causing the initiator of deposit, spirits manufacturer or
manufacturer to be unable to meet the applicable post-consumer recycled plastic
requirement of subsection 2.
C. An initiator of deposit, spirits manufacturer or manufacturer that submits a waiver
request to the department shall promptly respond to any request from the department
for additional information relating to the waiver request. The department may return awaiver request submitted by an initiator of deposit, spirits manufacturer or
manufacturer as incomplete for processing if the initiator, spirits manufacturer or
manufacturer fails to provide sufficient information for the department to review thewaiver request or fails to promptly respond to a request from the department for
additional information relating to the waiver request. A determination by thedepartment under this paragraph to return a submitted waiver request as incomplete forprocessing does not constitute a final agency action as defined in Title 5, section 8002,
subsection 4 and may not be appealed to the board or to the Superior Court.
D. As a condition of granting a waiver request under this subsection, the department
may require an initiator of deposit, spirits manufacturer or manufacturer to submit acorrective action plan describing the actions the initiator, spirits manufacturer or
manufacturer intends to implement to ensure its compliance with the requirements ofsubsection 2 during the current calendar year. If the initiator of deposit, spirits
manufacturer or manufacturer has been granted 2 consecutive waiver requests pursuant
to this subsection, the department shall require the initiator, spirits manufacturer or
manufacturer to submit a corrective action plan pursuant to this paragraph as acondition of granting a 3rd waiver request.
(1) The department may approve the corrective action plan as submitted, approve
the plan with required changes or reject the plan.
(2) The department may require the initiator of deposit, spirits manufacturer or
manufacturer to demonstrate implementation of an approved corrective action plan
before the department grants the waiver request submitted by the initiator, spirits
manufacturer or manufacturer under this subsection.
(3) If the department rejects a corrective action plan required under this paragraphor if the department determines that the initiator of deposit, spirits manufacturer or
manufacturer has failed to implement an approved corrective action plan, thePage 7 - 130LR0190(03)department shall require the initiator or spirits manufacturer to pay the fee required
pursuant to subsection 5 within 45 days of the date of the department's rejection of
the corrective action plan or within 45 days of the department's determination thatthe initiator, spirits manufacturer or manufacturer has failed to implement anapproved corrective action plan.
E. If the department denies a waiver request submitted by an initiator of deposit, spirits
manufacturer or manufacturer pursuant to this subsection, the initiator or spirits
manufacturer shall pay to the department the fee required pursuant to subsection 5
within 45 days of the date of the department's denial of the waiver request.
7. Review of post-consumer recycled plastic requirements. Beginning January 1,
2026, and not more than annually thereafter, the department, on its own initiative or at thepetition of a beverage manufacturing industry association, may initiate a review of theapplicable post-consumer recycled plastic requirement under subsection 2 to determine
whether that requirement should be reduced due to market conditions for post-consumer
recycled plastic, including the demand for such plastic for food-grade applications, and areview of recycling rates, progress made by initiators of deposit, spirits manufacturers andmanufacturers in complying with the post-consumer recycled plastic requirement undersubsection 2 and any other factors reviewed by the department.
A. A petition for review submitted pursuant to this subsection by a beverage
manufacturing industry association must be evaluated by the department based on
information provided by the association and any other information available to thedepartment. The department may require the beverage manufacturing industry
association to fund a 3rd-party verification of the accuracy of information submitted
by the association under this subsection. The 3rd party selected by the department to
conduct such verification must be agreed upon by the beverage manufacturing industry
association.
The department may reject the petition for review if the beverage manufacturingindustry association fails to provide sufficient information, as determined by thedepartment, for the department to make a determination under this subsection regarding
the need for a reduction in the post-consumer recycled plastic requirement undersubsection 2 or if the association fails to reach an agreement with the department
regarding the selection of a 3rd party to verify the accuracy of submitted information.
B. After conducting the review authorized by this subsection, the department may
adopt rules reducing the applicable post-consumer recycled plastic content requirement
under subsection 2.
8. Department reporting. Beginning February 15, 2025, and annually thereafter, thedepartment shall submit a report to the joint standing committee of the Legislature having
jurisdiction over environment and natural resources matters regarding the requirements ofthis section and including any recommendations for changes to those requirements. The
report must describe, in the aggregate, the data submitted to the department by initiators ofdeposit and spirits manufacturers under subsection 4.
A. Beginning February 15, 2028, and annually thereafter, the report under thissubsection must include information regarding initiator of deposit and spirits
manufacturer compliance with the requirements of subsection 2, including, at aminimum, information on the number of noncompliant initiators and spirits

Page 8 - 130LR0190(03)manufacturers, the number of waiver requests received and granted or rejected by thedepartment under subsection 6 and the total funds generated from payment of theannual registration fee under subsection 4 and the payment of the post-consumer
recycled plastic content fee as calculated under subsection 5. The report must include
any recommendations by the department regarding whether the requirements of thissection should be amended to better ensure initiator of deposit and spirits manufacturer
compliance.
B. The report under this subsection may be included in the report required pursuant tosection 1772, subsection 1. After reviewing the report under this subsection, the joint
standing committee of the Legislature having jurisdiction over environment and natural
resources matters may report out legislation relating to the report.
9. Administration and enforcement; rules. The department shall administer andenforce this section and may adopt rules to implement this section. Rules adopted pursuant
to this subsection are routine technical rules as defined in Title 5, chapter 375, subchapter
2-A. The department may, as necessary, contract with qualified 3rd-party entities to assist
in the implementation of this section and the development of any rules to be adopted
pursuant to this subsection.
10. Violations. A person that violates a provision of this section is subject to civil
penalties under section 349.
11. Preemption. Beginning April 1, 2024, the State intends to occupy the whole fieldof regulation of the amount of post-consumer recycled plastic contained in plastic beveragecontainers. A local government may not adopt an ordinance regulating the amount of postconsumer recycled plastic contained in plastic beverage containers and, beginning April 1,
2024, any ordinance or regulation that violates this subsection is void and has no force oreffect.

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