Bottle Bill Called ‘Encouragingly Close’
Proponents of expanding the state’s bottle redemption law to cover water and non-carbonated beverages said Thursday they have not given up the fight, a day after they sent their proposal off for further study.
It was brought up Wednesday as an amendment to the $32.3 billion fiscal year 2013 budget bill, but was sent to study by a 22-15 vote.
“Massachusetts is going to have the updated bottle bill one way or another,” Jack Clarke, director of public policy for Mass Audubon, told the State House News Service Wednesday.
The group plans to continue pushing lawmakers to release a bill for a vote in both branches. Supporters say it will help the environment by easing pressure on landfills. Opponents of attaching a 5-cent bottle deposit to water, juice and other non-carbonated beverages call it a tax and say it will hurt in-state retailers and communities that on the New Hampshire border.
The vote in the Senate was encouragingly close, Clarke said. He said he thinks supporters have enough votes in the House to get it passed, despite opposition from Speaker Robert DeLeo.
WBJ Web Partners
Most Recent
Most Recent
0 Comments