SB 5284, the packaging or Extended Producer Responsibility (EPR) measure, passed the House following over four hours of heated debate that continued into the early hours of Tuesday morning. The bill now returns to the Senate for concurrence with House amendments before heading to the Governor for final consideration.
SB 5284, prime-sponsored by Senator Liz Lovelett (D-40), is supported by the EPR Leadership Forum and opposed by waste and recycling haulers, among others.
Meanwhile, HB 1607, the bottle recycling or beverage container refund program, appears to have stalled, failing to gain approval from the full House. It remains unclear whether the bill will be included in budget negotiations or revisited during the interim. It was not added as an amendment to SB 5284, as some had anticipated.
