Honorable Robert Bunda

President of the Senate

Twenty-Third State Legislature

Regular Session of 2006

State of Hawaii

Sir:

Your Committees on Energy, Environment, and International Affairs and Commerce, Consumer Protection, and Housing, to which was referred S.B. No. 2972 entitled:

beg leave to report as follows:

The purpose of this measure is to require a dealer to redeem deposit beverage containers on a one-to-one basis and defines one-to-one basis.

The Sierra Club Hawaii Chapter submitted testimony in support of this measure. The Department of Health, Legislative Information Services of Hawaii, Safeway Inc., Foodland, Reynolds Recycling, Retail Merchants of Hawaii, The Chamber of Commerce of Hawaii, Hawaii Food Industry Association, and Kualapuu Market Ltd., submitted testimony in opposition.

Numerous testifiers described the negative effects one-to-one redemption at the point of sale could have on consumers, employees, and the employers. However, consumers have complained that the current redemption process is cumbersome and inconvenient given factors such as the limited number of redemption centers and the unreliable hours of operation of some redemption centers.

Your Committees agree with Sierra Club Hawaii Chapter that it is more practical to require dealers to provide redemption to consumers and let the dealer decide whether to subcontract with a certified redemption center to operate on the dealer's premises or provide a reverse vending machine pursuant to section 342G-115, Hawaii Revised Statutes.

Your Committees amended this measure by:

(1) Leaving the existing language in subsection (a);

As affirmed by the records of votes of the members of your Committees on Energy, Environment, and International Affairs and Commerce, Consumer Protection, and Housing that are attached to this report, your Committees are in accord with the intent and purpose of S.B. No. 2972, as amended herein, and recommend that it pass Second Reading in the form attached hereto as S.B. No. 2972, S.D. 1, and be placed on the calendar for Third Reading.