Legislators are considering costly and inefficient Extended Producer Responsibility (EPR) legislation (S.1464/A.1749) that will hurt New York families, and threaten local businesses and employees.

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“The mandates in this bill will negatively impact our union members, costing them jobs, job hours and income… it would be costly and disruptive to the commercial activity that our workers depend on for their livelihoods.”

– Teamsters 812

The cost of food and housing in New York is out of control, and this EPR proposal amounts to a hidden tax on working families and small businesses.

Costs assessed on producers will likely flow through the supply chain. Presumably grocery stores and distributors will be hit with higher fees and higher costs that will be passed on to consumers.
Lawmakers should be focused on bringing down costs, not doing things that will drive up prices without making our lives better.

The mandates from this bill will make things less convenient for New Yorkers without providing a true benefit.

This bill will presumably force companies to switch to glass bottles for beverages whether families want it or not. Shifting to glass packaging would actually increase environmental harm.
Well-designed collection systems enacted in Colorado, Maryland, Minnesota and Washington focus on improving recycling rates by making recycling efficient, effective, convenient and financially sustainable. This bill does not do that.

This EPR proposal takes freedom of choice away from consumers, with fewer products available and fewer options on the shelves.

The bill demands replacement of widely used materials, many of which are safe and 100% recyclable.
This bill’s extreme provisions would most likely force the unnecessary removal of hundreds of popular products from grocery shelves and dramatically affect New Yorkers’ choices, because they don’t meet rigid, state-specific packaging mandates that ignore national supply chains and recycling realities.

The Legislature should not take action that will most likely drive costs up for New Yorkers at the grocery store with a costly and poorly designed EPR bill. There are better ways to improve recycling and reduce litter in the state.

Say NO to the costly and untested EPR Bill!