I
105TH CONGRESS
1ST SESSION
H. R. 1586
To amend the Solid Waste Disposal Act to require a refund value for certain
beverage containers, to provide resources for State pollution prevention
and recycling programs, and for other purposes.
IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES
MAY 13, 1997
Ms. RIVERS introduced the following bill; which was referred to the Committee
on Commerce
A BILL
To amend the Solid Waste Disposal Act to require a refund
value for certain beverage containers, to provide re-
sources for State pollution prevention and recycling pro-
grams, and for other purposes.
Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representa-
tives of the United States of America in Congress assembled,
SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE.
This Act may be cited as the ‘‘National Beverage
Container Reuse and Recycling Act of 1997’’.
SEC. 2. FINDINGS.
Congress finds the following:
(1) The failure to reuse and recycle empty bev-
erage containers represents a significant and unnec-
essary waste of important national energy and mate-
rial resources.
(2) The littering of empty beverage containers
constitutes a public nuisance, safety hazard, and
aesthetic blight and imposes on public agencies, pri-
vate businesses, farmers, and landowners unneces-
sary costs for the collection and removal of the con-
tainers.
(3) Solid waste resulting from the empty bev-
erage containers constitutes a significant and rapidly
growing proportion of municipal solid waste and in-
creases the cost and problems of effectively manag-
ing the disposal of the waste.
(4) It is difficult for local communities to raise
the necessary capital to initiate comprehensive recy-
cling programs.
(5) The reuse and recycling of empty beverage
containers would help eliminate unnecessary burdens
on individuals, local governments, and the environ-
ment.
(6) Several States have previously enacted and
implemented State laws designed to protect the envi-
ronment, conserve energy and material resources,
variety in liquid form intended for human consump-
tion.
‘‘(2) BEVERAGE CONTAINER.—The term ‘bev-
erage container’ means a container—
‘‘(A) constructed of metal, glass, or plastic
(or a combination of the materials);
‘‘(B) having a capacity of up to 1 gallon
of liquid; and
‘‘(C) that is or has been sealed and used
to contain a beverage for sale in interstate com-
merce.
‘‘(3) BEVERAGE DISTRIBUTOR.—The term ‘bev-
erage distributor’ means a person who sells or offers
for sale in interstate commerce to beverage retailers
beverages in beverage containers for resale.
‘‘(4) BEVERAGE RETAILER.—
‘‘(A) IN
GENERAL.—The term ‘beverage
retailer’ means a person who—
‘‘(i) purchases from a beverage dis-
tributor beverages in beverage containers
for sale to a consumer; or
‘‘(ii) sells or offers to sell in commerce
beverages in beverage containers to a
consumer.
‘‘(B) BEVERAGE
VENDING
MACHINES.—
The Secretary shall promulgate regulations that
define ‘beverage retailer’ for any case in which
a beverage in a beverage container is sold to a
consumer through a beverage vending machine.
‘‘(5) CONSUMER.—The term ‘consumer’ means
a person who purchases a beverage container for any
use other than resale.
‘‘(6) REFUND VALUE.—The term ‘refund value’
means the amount specified as the refund value of
a beverage container under section 12002.
‘‘(7) UNBROKEN BEVERAGE CONTAINER.—The
term ‘unbroken beverage container’ includes—
‘‘(A) a beverage container opened in a
manner in which the container was designed to
be opened; and
‘‘(B) a beverage container made of metal
or plastic that is compressed if the statement of
the amount of the refund value of the container
is still readable.
‘‘(8) WINE
COOLER.—The term ‘wine cooler’
means a drink containing less than 7 percent alcohol
(by volume)—
‘‘(A) consisting of wine and plain, spar-
kling, or carbonated water; and
‘‘(B) containing a non-alcoholic beverage,
flavoring, coloring material, fruit juice, fruit ad-
junct, sugar, carbon dioxide, or preservatives
(or any combination thereof).
‘‘SEC. 12002. REQUIRED BEVERAGE CONTAINER LABELING.
‘‘(a) IN GENERAL.—Except as provided in section
12007, no beverage distributor or beverage retailer may
sell or offer for sale in interstate commerce a beverage
in a beverage container unless there is clearly, promi-
nently, and securely affixed to, or printed on, the con-
tainer a statement of the refund value of the container
in the amount of 10 cents (as adjusted under subsection
(c)).
‘‘(b) SIZE AND LOCATION OF STATEMENT.—The Ad-
ministrator shall promulgate regulations establishing uni-
form standards for the size and location of the refund
value statement on beverage containers.
‘‘(c) ADJUSTMENTS OF REFUND VALUE.—
‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—The Secretary shall adjust
the amount of the refund value of the container
under subsection (a)—
‘‘(A) on the date that is 10 years after the
date of enactment of this subtitle, to reflect
changes in the Consumer Price Index for all-
urban consumers published by the Department
of Labor since the date of enactment of this
subtitle; and
‘‘(B) on the date that is 10 years after the
initial adjustment made under paragraph (1),
and each 10 years thereafter, to reflect changes
in the Consumer Price Index for all-urban con-
sumers published by the Department of Labor
since the most recent adjustment.
‘‘(2) ROUNDING.—The Secretary shall round
any adjustment under paragraph (1) to the nearest
5 cent increment.
‘‘SEC. 12003. COLLECTION OF REFUND VALUE.
‘‘(a) COLLECTION FROM RETAILERS BY DISTRIBU-
TORS.—In the case of each beverage in a beverage con-
tainer sold in interstate commerce to a beverage retailer
by a beverage distributor, the distributor shall collect from
the retailer the amount of the refund value shown on the
container.
‘‘(b) COLLECTION FROM CONSUMERS BY RETAIL-
ERS.—In the case of each beverage in a beverage container
sold in interstate commerce to a consumer by a beverage
retailer, the retailer shall collect from the consumer the
amount of the refund value shown on the container.