How about upping the fee to redemption centers?

There used to be one on every block. Now you have to drive 20 miles to stand in line for 30 minutes to redeem $10 worth of bottles.

John Martin (D) Eagle lake is "amazed" that people throw them in the trash?!?! When was the last time that old, crooked b*stard returned his cans?

“We’re trying to collect unredeemed deposits that have been paid by Maine consumers and get that money to the state treasurer since it is not going to get into the hands of those consumers,”

All of a sudden, Augusta is on a crusade to protect our money?????

At this point, I think throwning cash in the dumpster has become more fiscally responsible than giving it to the Legislature.

You know that the situation is bad when the State government turns to what is essentially a bottle drive to subsidize its spending.

wonders how they will force mom and pop redemption centers to get "computerized" so they can compare what's sold and returned? An unfunded mandate? surely the cost of implementation will far exceed the benefit.

Tax, Tax, Tax the night away. The state is doing a forced bottle drive. What will this cost us? Im sure implementing this program will sort of be like cash for clunkers, $4,000 dollar rebate, $20,000 administrative cost per vehicle. I wonder what the cost per bottle will be.

Well, now...we can't have the eeeeevil corporations getting away with a few extra dollars! I agree with the captain - since when has the state been concerned about protecting the citizen's money?

Let's call this what it is - an attempt to legalize - highway robbery perpetrated by the power and money hungry in Augusta.

Maybe us tourists will but in another state instead of purchasing them in ME before heading into Canada. Would not want to pay your crooked governor any more

Sorry should have been buy not but

John Martin (Dimocrat) shocked! It's not there money! It's welfare recipients throwing them away.... They're too lazy to return them.

And just why dose the money have to go to the state? Greeeeeeeeeeed.,

The money sholud go to Cuba. They have no food or electricity .

Increase it to fifty cents per bottle. That way it will pay me to get out of the vehicle when I see two or three dollars worth. It’s not worth it right now to stop and pick up ten for just fifty cents.

Dump the bottle law~ It's a waste of time and money. In this age of recycling the bottle bill doesn't make cents.

What a greedy, petty state gummint we have...

I have an idea. Why not give all those useless legislators a trash bag and have them pick up bottles that get thrown away? We'd accomplish three things. The landscape would be cleaner, augusta would get their money and we'd get some honest work out of the legislators.

I would bet that any money that a company "gets to keep" as a result of this program is a fraction of what it actually costs the company to administer the program for the state.

How about increasing deposit on sugary drinks and kill two birds with one stone?

Good idea, hooligan. Plus, all the time they spend out picking up cans is less time they have in the Capitol building, drafting up new legislation about plastic bags and such.

It's classic addition by subtraction; for every hour legislators spend picking up bottles, the people of the State would be saved from approx. 1.25 useless new laws and regulations.

Another legislative scam to transfer money from the private sector to the public sector.

One out of six employees in this State work for the State.

Anyone who has lived here for more than 10 minutes knows that welfare abuse and fraud runs rampant statewide; there is nobody minding the farm for these necessary programs nor does anyone have any inclanation to address this massive issue.

Yet, when the budget gets tight -- we're worrying about bottle deposits.

gw2kpro

I have said for years that a full time, paid legislature is a waste of money and only results in more ridiculous laws.

The legislature should convene twice a year for 10 weeks. They would have TEN WEEKS TWICE A YEAR to pass whatever legislation has the highest priority. Of course, a provision for emergency legislation would be available.

This would eliminate frivolous legislation because you wouldn't have a house and senate sitting on their hands or twiddling their thumbs trying to think up more stuff to make laws about. It would also have the benefit of making the scoundrels go out and get REAL JOBS because their state jobs would only be part time.

Finally, the most important benefit of all. We'd have a better class of people in the legislature. Instead of career politicians the legislature would consist of qualified people who are there for the GOOD of the state instead of fat salaries and retirements.

Bums.

Time to make it a dime deposit

Two (good) ideas for the proper use of this money:

1. Increase the rate paid to redemption centers. I recently chatted with one owner in Bangor. She explainec that increases in minimum wage have pushed many of these small businesses to the brink. They do hard, dirty, thankless work. BTW: it is very appropriate to tip the person who processes your returnables - believe me, they really appreciate it.

2. Many redemption centers have lists of local charities that people can direct their redeemables to support. Perhaps the state coukld develop a formula by which this windfall could be distributed to United Ways around the state.

The state SHOULD NOT simply assume they can keep this money.

Some of the comments so far have been rather silly. If you want to appear clever, suggest something logical and constructive.

Not so true Overtaxed .... Why would they want to throw the bottle deposit away? They don't have to pay for the deposit. The food stamp program does. The tax payers pay for the bottle deposit when they buy soda with food stamps. I am not against people having assistance like that. I just feel that there should be bigger guidelines for the food stamp program. Maybe if the State did that...they would not worry so much about the deposits that are being thrown away. Start fixing the miss use of food stamps. No Junk food and if they want soda, then they should have to pay the deposit. If someone gets a town voucher for food, the person can not buy premade cookies, cakes, sodas , chips , candy , fresh seafood or even expensive cuts of meat. That should like that with food stamps too. Don't you all think?????

With the legislature debating ways to get back the 1 or 2 million dollars in unredeemed bottle deposits, is it any wonder that our small minded representatives cannot put Maine into the black again? Good lord, we are looking at another $400 million shortfall and all these people can talk about is getting back little bits of money! Get off your asses and find ways to raise revenues without pissing off the people of Maine (i.e. raising their taxes) and you will then, and only then, earn my respect. Oh yeah, and try not to make any more cuts to vital programs. Stop seeing the people of Maine as dollars and cents.

“I am amazed at the number of people that pay deposits and then just throw away the bottles or cans,” said Rep. John Martin, D-Eagle Lake

It's a nickel for most bottles and cans. I'm done storing these things up in a big bin and schelping them to a recycling center every week or two for maybe two or three dollars in returnables. What a waste...and I'm not going to do it for a dime a can either (oooh....four or six dollars for an hour or so of effort). Have the city do curbside recycling of bottles and cans and they can have 'em free o' charge. Or better yet...Where are all the bottle drives I used to see for boy scouts/schools/fundraisers?? Stop by my house once a month and I'll give you a pile of bottle and cans, I'll even carry them out for you...Probably my whole neighborhood would too.

Do you think the tourists are going to turn a bottle in for a nickle????

Get real...

I still throw away cans here and there...

There a pain in the arse.

As I recall, one of the primary purposes (perhaps THE primary purpose) of the bottle deposit law was to keep all of those bottles and cans out of the waste stream, not to provide operating funds for the government. I'm kind of disappointed by the attitudes expressed in comments here--that it's too much trouble to return them, there's not not enough deposit money to make it worthwhile, etc. I think we're missing an important piece.

Drinky, many Boy Scout Troops would gladly take them. There are 3 (or 4) Troops in Bangor alone, and I know that one of them has a bottle program. Probably the others do, too. What town do you live in?

I think the money should be giving to the working class, if you filed a tax return, you should get some the money back

More revenue! More revenue! More revenue! More revenue! Always the same chant from these thieving criminals. Stealing more money from you and I. The last thing the state needs is more revenue. More revenue to in turn further regulate our lives and increase the size of government. Cut government! cut government! cut government! cut government! SMASH THE STATE!

I paid 1/3 of my property tax with bottles retrieved from the shore and road on our property. Keep throwing them... It would be a good idea to tie the deposit on a bottle to the rate of inflation, if that were the case, a deposit would now be about 26 cents a bottle, and I could pay my entire property tax with discard money.

We save all our bottles and cans and I have not turned them in for about a 2 month time frame and I have probably close to 70.00 here to turn in.. As far as waiting in line and driving 20 miles I have 5 bottle redemption places in my area all within a 5 minute drive to me. And I live here in the Hudson/Corinth area!

And I have never had to wait in line with any of them. I also go through the trouble to PRE count all my bottles and cans, clean them and even put them in clean garbage bags BEFORE I turn them in..

And I am on a disability and on the Welfare system unfortunately I can no longer be employed and I am far from being lazy as one person stated here that the welfare people are the ones throwing them away. Just have my good days and my bad days and on good days I do process the cans and bottles :) and turn them in!

Not so...

I am sure that there are many on the welfare system that are using them and turning them in.

There are many people out there that just don't want to bother with them too.. They may be elderly, retired, or so filthy well off they don't want to bother with the hassle to even collect them and give them to some charitable organization either.

Maybe when the state wagon comes to collect recyclables that I see in Bangor, Maine they should also have a bucket out there for Bottles and Cans! For those who don't want to bother with collecting for themselves.. can put them in a container for that so that when they come to pick it up they have that too..

But like one person stated this was not started for state revenue fees and wants.. this was started for us to save our planet and keep the planet from all these bottle and cans from just sitting there for millions of years in our waste dumps and such..

So I don't agree with the State getting funds from it.. they are not processing the bottles and cans! Give it to these poor mom and pop companies that have to process the stuff!

And apparently are going to have to go computerized as well!

Well that is my take on all this!

$70.00 is two months worth?! Let's do the math there. 70/.05 = 1,400 bottles and cans. Divide that by 60 days and you get about 23 a day. That's a lot od drinking.

I'm willing to provide a service to come pick up returnable bottles. I had contemplated it last year, but didn't think there was a calling for it then. Maybe there is now. I could split proceeds 50/50 with clients (bearing in mind how far I'd have to travel, of course!) I'm hesitant to leave my phone # in a public forum like this, but feel free to email me: radiandave@roadrunner.com. Thanks!

I didn't even know you could buy sodas and other sugary drinks with food stamp money. Seriously? Why would that even be allowed?

Fruit, vegetables, meats, grains...not pop tarts, Snickers and coffee.

I don't mind giving someone a hand when they need it, but, pop tarts, snickers and coffee aren't necessary to get by...

It would be a rather simple task to see exactly how much money from the bottling companies is not given back to the customer by, having stores send in the amount of bottles purchased and the total amount collected in one week... then having redemption centers calculate the weekly returns. Every three to six months, if there's an amount owed to the state, then whoever holds that money, will be responsible for giving a check to the State of Maine for the bottles that haven't been returned.

Seems rather simple to me... but perhaps am I missing something?

4:18 AM, llep54, to plow the roads you drive on in your big pickup truck.

Some people make a living at collecting bottles and cans. I donate mine to the boy scouts and cub scouts

It seems to me that those folks on food stamps are probably trying to stretch the food budget. Unfortunately healthy food is often more expensive. I just got a 2 liter bottle of soda at Walmart for 78 cents. I don't think you can buy milk or juice for that price. You can get a bag of chips for 2 dollars or less. A bag of apples is at least 4. Maybe people who get "junk food" are just trying to keep their children from having growling stomachs. Just a thought. . .

They are getting desparate, aren't they!!

If five or six cents works, why not ten dollars a bottle?

The reason ten dollars is stupid is the same reason six cents is stupid.

The legislative excuse for this law in the beginning was allegedly to “protect the environment”. In actuality, like everything that comes from Government, it was to collect money from someone so the Legislature has a big pot of money to play with. Consider all t he small bottlers we now have. Small wineries, etc. Have you any idea how much paperwork is created in order for them to keep track of bottle deposits paid? Trust me, it’s extensive and it provides for yet another state worker whose job it is to go around harassing the bottlers for paperwork. It also gives the State yet another great place to levy fines.

What should happen is that most of our laws should be gotten rid of altogether and rational rules be put in place. In today’s polite society, most people know not to toss crap on the roadsides. It’s simple enough to recycle all these bottles and cans. Prisoners from the local jails could easily pick up what gets tossed out the car windows. That would give the prisoners fresh air and something to do besides watch TV all day.

Inland wrote:

"...most people know not to toss crap on the roadsides."

I tell you what, Next May when the snow has melted, come on down here to Washington County and we'll walk my properties lines together. If I don't get $25 dollars worth of bottles oin the first trips, I'll give you $25.... bet? The bottle deposit should be indexed to inflation. 25 cents a bottle is fair. Why should I have to be a garbage man on the cheap?