New York's Bottle Bill
Returnable Container Act (RCA)
Section 27-1007(1)(b) of the Environmental Conservation Law (ECL) (PDF) (52 kB) contains requirements for dealers with respect to installing and maintaining reverse vending machines (RVMs). For specific details on these requirements, please refer to this section of the law.
A summary of these requirements may also be found on our "What Does a Dealer Do" webpage.
The Success of New York's Bottle Bill
The New York State Returnable Container Act, also known as the "Bottle Bill", has been a tremendous success. Over the last 26 years it has achieved significant impacts to create a cleaner and healthier New York. The Bottle Bill has:
- reduced roadside container litter by 70 percent;
- recycled 90 billion containers, equal to 6 million tons of materials, at no cost to local governments;
- saved more than 52 million barrels of oil; and
- eliminated 200,000 metric tons of greenhouse gases each year.
When the Bottle Bill was passed in 1982 non-carbonated drinks like iced teas, sport drinks and bottled water made up a small fraction of the beverage market. Today, non-carbonated water makes up more than 23 percent of the market.
More about New York's Bottle Bill:
- Litigation Updates for the IBWA, et al. v. Paterson, et al. Case - Here are updates on the ongoing case of IBWA, et al. v. Paterson, et al. involving the 2009 amendments to the Returnable Container Act.
- Frequently Asked Questions About the Bottle Bill - Here are some of the more frequently asked questions regarding the Bottle Bill.
- Get Your Money Back - Information on the RCA and getting your deposit back.
- What Does a Dealer Do? - A "dealer" is every person, firm or corporation who engages in the sale of beverages in beverage containers to a consumer for off-premises consumption in New York State.
- What is a Redemption Center and How Do they Work? - These are small businesses that accept empty beverage containers from the public and pay the refund value. Anyone may open a redemption center and determine the type of empty beverage containers to be accepted.
- Signs Requirements for Dealers - All dealers must post the "New York Bottle Bill of Rights" sign conspicuously at the point of sale.
- Third-Party Systems and Related Companies - A list of third-party systems and related companies for the Bottle Bill
