Substitute Senate Bill No. 457, also known as Public Act No. 26-148, introduces new regulations concerning the collection of refund values on beverage containers not purchased in the state. Effective October 1, 2026, the bill prohibits any person from collecting or charging a refund value on such containers. It establishes a tiered system of penalties for violations, categorizing offenses based on the number of containers involved: a class B misdemeanor for 5,000 to 19,999 containers, a class A misdemeanor for 20,000 to 30,999 containers, and a class D felony for 40,000 or more containers. The bill also clarifies that these provisions do not apply to common or contract carriers or warehouse workers engaged in lawful transportation or storage of beverage containers.

Additionally, the bill amends the handling fee structure for beverage containers processed by redemption centers. It repeals a previous provision and substitutes it with a new clause that reduces the handling fee by not more than one cent for certain redemption centers that process over fifty million containers annually and do not use automated scanning technology. This reduction will remain in effect until July 1, 2027, or until the redemption center implements automated scanning, whichever comes first. The previous language that conditioned the fee reduction solely on the absence of automated scanning has been deleted.

Statutes affected:
Raised Bill:
ENV Joint Favorable:
File No. 479:
JUD Joint Favorable: