Bill > SB00299

This bill enacts significant changes to Connecticut's beverage container redemption system, requiring redemption centers to obtain a license from the Commissioner of Energy and Environmental Protection starting July 1, 2026, with a $2,500 application fee, and prohibiting them from accepting containers they know or should know were not originally sold in the state, were previously redeemed, are damaged, or are on a list of non-redeemable containers. It also increases the number of containers an individual can return per day from four to one thousand before requiring detailed record-keeping, and mandates that all beverage containers transported in a single vehicle be attributed to one individual for this purpose, while also requiring redemption centers to transmit records of redemptions exceeding one thousand containers to the Commissioner quarterly, with failure to do so potentially leading to license revocation. Furthermore, the bill expands the reasons dealers and distributors can refuse to accept beverage containers, including if they know or should know the container was not sold in the state or was previously redeemed, and introduces new penalties for violations, including civil penalties and misdemeanor charges for repeat offenders, with municipal police gaining enforcement authority. The bill also modifies the handling fees paid by distributors to redemption centers and dealers, and adjusts the percentage of funds deposit initiators (companies that sell beverages) must deposit into special accounts and remit to the state based on redemption rates, with specific provisions for rebates for eligible deposit initiators experiencing negative account balances.