Amend the bill by striking out everything after the enacting clause and before the summary and inserting the following:
‘Sec. 1. 32 MRSA §1865, sub-§3, as amended by PL 2003, c. 499, §4, is further amended to read:
Sec. 2. 32 MRSA §1866, sub-§4, ¶C, as enacted by PL 2003, c. 499, §6, is amended to read:
C. The reimbursement that the initiator of the deposit is obligated to pay the dealer or redemption center pursuant to paragraph A or B must be reduced by 1/2¢ for any returned container that is subject to a qualified commingling agreement that allows the dealer or redemption center to commingle beverage containers of like product group, material and size. A commingling agreement is qualified for purposes of this paragraph if the department determines that 50% or more of the beverage containers of like product group, material and size for which the deposits are being initiated in the State are covered by the commingling agreement. Once the initiator of deposit has established a qualified commingling agreement for containers of a like product group, material and size, the department shall allow additional brands to be included from a different product group if they are of like material. The State, through the Department of Administrative and Financial Services, Bureau of Alcoholic Beverages and Lottery Operations, shall make every reasonable effort to enter into a qualified commingling agreement under this subparagraph paragraph with every other initiator of deposits deposit for beverage containers that are of like product group, size and material as the beverage containers for which the State is the initiator of deposit.
Sec. 3. 32 MRSA §1866, sub-§11 is enacted to read:
Sec. 4. 32 MRSA §1871-A, sub-§1, as corrected by RR 2001, c. 2, Pt. A, §41, is amended to read:
Sec. 5. 32 MRSA §1872, sub-§2, as enacted by PL 1989, c. 585, Pt. D, §§9 and 11, is amended to read:
Sec. 6. 32 MRSA §1872, sub-§3-A is enacted to read:
Sec. 7. 38 MRSA §2201, first ¶, as amended by PL 1995, c. 465, Pt. A, §72 and affected by Pt. C, §2, is further amended to read:
The Maine Solid Waste Management Fund, referred to in this section as the "fund," is established as a nonlapsing fund to support programs administered by the State Planning Office and the Department of Environmental Protection. The fund must be segregated into 2 subsidiary accounts. The first subsidiary account, called operations, receives all fees established and received under article 1. The 2nd subsidiary account, called administration, receives all fees established under this article and under Title 36, chapter 719 , and all funds recovered by the department as reimbursement for departmental expenses incurred to abate imminent threats to public health, safety and welfare posed by the illegal disposal of solid waste and all unclaimed deposits returned to the State under Title 32, chapter 28.
Sec. 8. Rulemaking; commingling agreements; plastic bags; redemption center locations. By January 15, 2012, the Department of Agriculture, Food and Rural Resources shall undertake rulemaking in accordance with this section. The rulemaking must be in accordance with the Maine Revised Statutes, Title 5, chapter 375, and rules adopted pursuant to this section are routine technical rules as defined in Title 5, chapter 375, subchapter 2-A.
1. Commingling agreements. The department shall amend its rules regarding commingling agreements in accordance with Title 32, section 1866, subsection 4, paragraph C.
2. Plastic bags. The department shall adopt rules regarding the size and gauge of plastic bags used by a dealer or redemption center as provided for in Title 32, section 1866, subsection 5.
3. Redemption center locations. The department shall adopt rules regarding the licensing of redemption centers in accordance with the population requirements in Title 32, section 1871-A, subsection 3.’
The bill proposes to remove containers larger than 28 ounces from the bottle bill and to establish a uniform deposit of 5¢ for all containers. The amendment strikes those provisions. The amendment retains those sections of the bill that change the committee of jurisdiction that reviews major substantive rules. The amendment also adds provisions that:
1. Remove the requirement that 50% or more of like beverage containers for which deposits are initiated in the State must be covered in a commingling agreement. This allows initiators of deposit who do not initiate 50% or more of like beverage containers to enter into commingling agreements;
2. Incorporate the provisions of L.D. 900 that allow an initiator of deposit to bring a civil action against any person, other than a licensed redemption center, that is found in possession of or knowingly tenders to a redemption center or retailer more than 48 beverage containers that were not originally sold in this State. It also increases the penalty for possession of containers not originally sold in this State to be consistent with the penalty for tendering such containers and removes reference to a first-year warning period from the penalty provision;
3. Clarify that unclaimed deposits received under the bottle bill are not deposited in the Maine Solid Waste Management Fund; and
4. Direct the Department of Agriculture, Food and Rural Resources to undertake rulemaking regarding commingling agreements, plastic bags and redemption center locations.