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Permanent LinkMeeting Public Comments
Subcommittee meeting and times are as follows:
A bill for an act relating to the redemption of beverage containers, providing civil penalties, and including effective date provisions.(Formerly HF 814, HSB 252; See HF 892.)
Subcommittee members: Bossman-CH, Brink, Konfrst
Date: Tuesday, April 27, 2021
Time: 8:00 AM - 8:30 AM
Location: RM 102, Sup. Ct. Consult
Names and comments are public records. Remaining information is considered a confidential record.
Comments Submitted:
Download Comments04-23-2021
Jessica Mazour [Sierra Club Iowa Chapter]
Please vote no on HF872. Iowa's Bottle Deposit Program is overwhelmingly popular and a majority of Iowans want to see it stay the way it is or expand it. HF 872 does the opposite.We opposed allowing grocery stores the option to optout.We would like to see the handling fee increased to 2cents.We should expand the types of containers in the program to include water, juice, and sports drinks.We should increase the deposit amount to 10cents to increase the rate of return.HF 872 makes it less convenient to recycle and the result will be more cans and bottles in our water, landfills and the side of the road. Vote no on HF 872.
04-23-2021
S Sweeney []
Vote NO on HF 872 Please do not limit where bottles and cans can be returned in Iowa. The bottle bill should not be partisan, it should be updated and expanded to include more types of bottles and drinks. I personally think the deposit should be 10 cents and more money returned to retailers and redemption centers to get people to return them and in turn keep our state clean. Recycling is important, stop filling up the landfills.
04-23-2021
Frank Potter []
I see one state gives 15 cents for bottle and can returns so I hope Iowa will be at least 15 cents.Frank from Dubuque
04-23-2021
Patrick Bosold [S.E. Iowa Sierra Club]
Everybody including retailers, grocery stores and other points of purchase needs to stay engaged in accepting used beverage containers and keeping them out of Iowa's waters, roadsides and landfills. HF 872 isn't helping. "If it ain't broke, don't fix it." If anything, we should be keeping all current places of redemption engaged in this program AND start including in it more types of beverage containers, such as those for sports drinks, water and tea. It would also be a good idea to increase the handling fee from one cent to two cents, to give redemption centers more incentive to stay open, or reopen, and give the public another option for responsibly disposing of their empty beverage containers.HF 872 is not good public policy, it takes us in exactly the wrong direction. Please vote NO on HF 872.
04-23-2021
Sue Wilson [LWV]
Vote NO on HF 872. If passed this bill takes the convenience out of recycling by allowing grocery stores to optout of taking back cans and bottles. If Iowans cannot return their cans and bottles at their place of purchase, those cans and bottles will likely end up in the landfill, ditches or our water. Iowans overwhelmingly like the bottle bill and want to see it expanded not gutted. We should include sports drinks, water bottles, and tea. We should increase the handling fee from 1cent to 2cents so redemption centers can earn a living wage. We want to increase the number of bottles and cans that are recycled this bill does the opposite. Please VOTE NO on HF 872
04-23-2021
Linda Meloy []
Please vote NO on H.F. 872. A significant number of Iowans, more than a majority even, want the bottle bill to be expanded and not limited. My tenyearold grandson wonders why sports, water, and tea bottles are not included to save the environment from the mouths of babes I believe is the saying.Further, I know of no scientific studies or data sets that have established a health risk from can recycling at grocery stores where the deposits have been paid for the duration of this outstanding service to, first, the environment, and second, to the establishment of the recycling business in our state.Thank you for your attention to my comments.L. L. Meloy
04-23-2021
Jody Gibson []
Vote NO on HF 872. If passed this bill takes the convenience out of recycling by allowing grocery stores to optout of taking back cans and bottles. If Iowans cannot return their cans and bottles at their place of purchase, those cans and bottles will likely end up in the landfill, ditches or our water. Iowans overwhelmingly like the bottle bill and want to see it expanded not gutted. We should include sports drinks, water bottles, and tea. We should increase the handling fee from 1cent to 2cents so redemption centers can earn a living wage. We want to increase the number of bottles and cans that are recycled this bill does the opposite. Please vote no on HF 872.
04-23-2021
Hannah Hayes []
Vote NO on HF 872. If passed this bill takes the convenience out of recycling by allowing grocery stores to optout of taking back cans and bottles. If Iowans cannot return their cans and bottles at their place of purchase, those cans and bottles will likely end up in the landfill, ditches or our water. Iowans overwhelmingly like the bottle bill and want to see it expanded not gutted. We should include sports drinks, water bottles, and tea. We should increase the handling fee from 1cent to 2cents so redemption centers can earn a living wage. We want to increase the number of bottles and cans that are recycled this bill does the opposite. Please vote no on HF 872.
04-24-2021
Thomas Reardon []
The Iowa bottledeposit law is a longstanding piece of extraordinarily successful and popular legislation that needs to be strengthened by upping the deposit and including items such as juice containers that dont currently require a deposit. Polls show its popularity, and its success (although the numbers are readily available) can be gauged just by personal experience. As I hike or fish in our state parks, I usually carry a trash bag to pick up litter, and the overwhelming majority of containers I find do not have the Iowa deposit stamp.The success of this law rests on two legs, the incentive to return (the deposit) and the convenience to do so (after all the deposit is quite small). Yet HF 872 would greatly weaken the law by cutting off the convenience leg. Not only will this adversely affect the environment and our enjoyment of it but will in effect create a sneaky tax by charging Iowans for services they will not get.Please vote against this sneaky tax bill.
04-24-2021
Nancy Porter []
Please rewrite this bill to include a ten cent deposit so Redemption Centers can become profitable. Please put in place Redemption Centers that are convenient and open to the public (close and convenient to their homes) using kiosks if applicable. Please allow penalties and oversight to enforce Redemption which is supported by 70% of Iowans in a poll that could still be off by 10 percent and still represent a large majority. Make this bill include plastic which is ruining our waters and harming many animals.Make Redemption profitable for all, easy for Iowans, and a job market for those in need. Thank you!
04-24-2021
Margo Vanderhill []
Keep the bottle bill, but increase the handling fee from 1 cent to 2 cents. Bottles should be recycled near consumers rather than consumers having to make long trips to bring them to recycling stations. Increase the types of beverage containers that can be recycled, including plastic containers so that we can keep our roadsides, parts, and waterways cleaner while recovering valuable resources such as metal, plastics, and glass.
04-24-2021
Leland Freie [LWV]
Vote NO on HF 872, Grocers sell the cans, they need to take them back as well.More beveragecontainers need to be included as well. Look at Oregon's bill and Michigan's bill.It'sunconscionable that we haven't raised the redemption fee since the 70's No matter WHO you are or what you job is, we owe it to future generations to raise the deposit fee and to increase the redemption fee for ALL involved. It's the principle of the thing.It's ridiculous to drive 20 miles,how environmentally unfriendly.I'm 70 years old, it's about TIME Iowa steps up to the plateLeland Freie
04-25-2021
Dennis Stewart []
Please vote no on HF 872. We should be discussing how to strengthen out bottle policy, not weaken or eliminate it. We just celebrated the 51 Earth Day in our communities and it is more important than ever to understand why we need a strong bottle bill, that does not allow companies to opt out of taking back returns. No business that sells products, that charge a deposit, should be allowed to not take them back. This idea is absurd. These businesses need to take back those containers that they have sold to the public, that is just a fact. No business should be allowed to say no, otherwise they should not be able to sell that product, it is just that easy. We the people, should be the ones setting the standard for the returns, not the businesses. Please say no to HF 872, our future generations need a clean earth and this bill will not help that.
04-25-2021
Mark Sarcone []
Vote NO on HF 872. If passed this bill takes the convenience out of recycling by allowing grocery stores to optout of taking back cans and bottles. If Iowans cannot return their cans and bottles at their place of purchase, those cans and bottles will likely end up in the landfill, ditches or our water. Iowans overwhelmingly like the bottle bill and want to see it expanded not gutted. We should include sports drinks, water bottles, and tea. We should increase the handling fee from 1cent to 2cents so redemption centers can earn a living wage. We want to increase the number of bottles and cans that are recycled this bill does the opposite. Please vote no on HF 872.
04-25-2021
Nancy Pinkerton []
Please vote NO on HF 872. This bill makes it less convenient to recycle by allowing grocery stores to opt out of taking back the bottles and cansIowans want to see the bottle bill expanded. We should include more types of bottles such as water bottles, sport drinks, and teas. We need to increase the handling charge from 1cent to 2cents so redemption centers can earn a living.It is important to increase the number of bottles that are recycled so less are sent to the landfills and ditches.
04-26-2021
Kara Trebil-Smith []
Please Vote NO on HF 872. The Bottle Bill is popular among Iowans we should be thinking about how to expand it so we can keep even more waste out of our ditches and landfills while also ensuring the people working at redemption centers are able to earn a fair wage. Please Vote NO on HF 872.
04-26-2021
Jessi Carver []
Vote no on HF 872. Iowans want expanded redemption options for bottles and cans. Vote no on HF 872 and introduce legislation that holds corporations accountable for the waste they produce.
04-26-2021
Syndy Conger [Member, LWVIA]
Thank you for your attention to the bottle bill and your willingness to hold a meeting to address fees and penalties. Here are suggestions in order of importance (1 most important):1. Double (at least) the handling fee to 2 cents. 3 cents would be even better. This will make program more attractive to more attractive for retailers and independent recycling businesses.2. Increase the deposit fee. This will make the program more attractive to consumers, lower income collectors of roadside cans, and will keep more containers in the supply chain.3. Assign the collection of data on unclaimed deposits and any penalties to the Department of Revenue. Collection of these monies should be as automatic and transparent as possible.4. Dedicate the income from unclaimed deposits and any penalties to the recycling goal: offer grants to vendors to modernize their equipment and and to entrepreneurs to open recycling centers in areas with little or none
04-26-2021
04-26-2021
Pam Mackey-Taylor [Iowa Chapter of the Sierra Club]
I urge you to oppose this bill. The Sierra Club supports increasing the handling fee from 1 cent to 2 cents; keeping the 10minute convenience standard where the redemption center is 10 minutes or less from the dealer selling the beverage; and expanding the kinds of containers to include juice, teas, water. Further dealers who do not accept empty containers should be penalized that is a huge problem today in that some stores who sell the beverages are refusing to take the returns. Expecting customers to travel beyond 10 minutes to a redemption center is unreasonable and will result in cans not being returned, leading to littered ditches.
04-26-2021
Shannon Patrick []
Let's fix this bill properly so that it works in the long term and don't have to keep talking about it every year. To make it durable: (1) move administration and disbursements of unclaimed deposits to a more appropriate state agency, (2) bring the handling fee and deposit up to datea 2 cents fee is better, but either 3 cents and a 10 cent deposit or builtin scheduled increases are what is really needed. Also, (3) phase in additional containers redeemed to include water, tea, sports drinks, and juice that use the same materials as currently redeemable containers.The bottle bill does a lot of good for Iowa, from keeping our ditches clean to supporting manufacturer to providing a gig to help out lowincome Iowans. Let's give it the 40year tuneup it needs and let it continue to do good.
04-26-2021
Carolyn Stephenson []
Vote NO on HF 872. Without the convenience of recycling cans and bottles at a local grocery store those cans and bottles will likely end up in the landfill, ditches or our water. Iowans overwhelmingly like the bottle bill and it has helped keep our roadways cleaner for the past 20 years. Iowans want to see it expanded not gutted. We should include sports drinks, water bottles, and tea. We should increase the handling fee from 1cent to 2cents so redemption centers can earn a living wage. We want to increase the number of bottles and cans that are recycled this bill does the opposite. Please vote no on HF 872.
04-26-2021
Gaylen Wobeter []
Please improve the Bottle Bill by including water, tea, sports drinks, and juice that use the same containers as those currently redeemed. Raising the handling fee to 3 cents and the deposit to 10 cents totally makes sense considering how the value of money has changed in 40 years. Change the administration and disbursement of unclaimed deposits to a more appropriate state agency. Making these changes will help every segment of the Iowa economy and will make a big impact on our environment.
04-27-2021