Bottle Bill Law in Delaware

Update: Delaware's bottle bill has been repealed and replaced with a temporary tax as a result of Governor Markell's signature of SB 234 on June 8th, 2010.  Implementation of the repeal has been challenged.

The Delaware Bottle Bill was enacted on June 30, 1982. The bill covers beer, malt, ale, soft drinks, mineral water, soda water. Consumers can bring their empty beverage containers to retail stores and redemption centers. 

In 2009, House Bill 201 (Viola) was introduced to repeal Delaware's long-standing Bottle Bill. It passed in the House and Senate but was vetoed by the Governor.  On January 6, 2010, Governor Jack Markell announced a proposal to provide statewide curbside recycling.  Governor Markell recommended changing the Delaware Bottle Bill as a means to fund the proposal.  Under the proposal, the current 5-cent-per-bottle returnable bottle deposit would be transitioned over time to a 4-cent-per-bottle nonrefundable fee that would be in place for 4 years as a means to fund curbside recycling.  Legislation reflecting the Governor's proposal was recently introduced as SB 234.