TOWN OF TONAWANDA, NY (WKBW) — Bottle redemption centers statewide are urging the New York State Legislature to approve an expanded bottle bill. There haven’t been any changes in 15 years, and they say it would help their struggling businesses.
7 News Senior Reporter Eileen Buckley visited one of the redemption locations Monday to learn more about how this expansion could help.
Inside the Xtra Dime Back, a bottle redemption center located on Englewood in the Town of Tonawanda, you can get back your nickel deposit for cans and bottles that fall under the state's decades-old bottle bill.
The proposed bottle bill expansion would raise the deposit from the current nickel to a dime for the first time in 40 years.
“We do not get the full amount. We get a very small percentage of what comes what comes in what goes out,” remarked Nicole Dyer, manager, Xtra Dime Back. “So you wouldn't get the full ten cents?” Buckley asked. “Unfortunately, no,” replied Dyer.
#XtraDimeBack redemption center is hoping the state legislature approves an expanded #NYSBottleBill. It would hike deposit fee from a nickel to a dime — the first increase in 40 years, but it would also include glass, such as wine & liquor bottles. pic.twitter.com/DSgf73Oob5
— Eileen Buckley (@eileenwkbw) January 8, 2024
As Dyer manages, she also helps sort thousands and thousands of empty cans and bottles each week.
Owner Janine Gallo tells me she recently had to lay off workers because of a minimum wage increase and a deposit hike could help her business.
“When we started this business, I think minimum wage was half, almost half of what it is now, and our nickel is still a nickel, unlike the grocery stores that can make eggs $6 a dozen. We cannot — our nickels a nickel, it will always be a nickel unless they change it to a dime,” Gallo explained.
Gallo said her business provides curbside service for customers and that means she needs more employees.
“We go right out to your car, and we bring the product in and then we bring your money out. We provide an extra service which means extra staff, so this would be extremely helpful,” commented Gallo.
The bottle bill would also expand to include glass such as wine and liquor bottles and juice containers.
“My main thing, that I hate, to throw out is glass because if we're doing all these beer bottles, why don't we add the wine, if anything else even just the wine, liquor bottles is huge,” Gallo noted. “But plastic we throw and some aluminum we must throw away. I'll give you an example brisk iced tea does not have a nickel on it. Why? It should. it's a lot of cans thrown out and it's the same as a Pepsi can.”
“Anything that does not have a New York State stamp on it, so like your High Noon’s, your iced tea or wine bottles, your Gatorade bottles — any of your liquor bottles,” Dyer commented. "If there is no deposit on it. we don't take it. we have to actually just throw it out with our regular garbage.">
The last time the bottle bill was expanded was in 2009 when the state added water bottles for deposit.
Many owners of these bottle redemption businesses are blaming lawmakers in Albany for failing to update the bottle bill since 2009.
“What’s your message to state lawmakers, especially those in our region that might be able to help push this through?” Buckley asked.
“Put nickels on products instead of throwing them out,” Gallo responded.
