California Beverage Container Recycling and Litter Reduction Act – Bottle Bill

What additional beverages will be included in the Bottle Bill beginning January 1, 2024?

• Wine and spirits, wine coolers and spirits coolers.
• Vegetable juice and 100% fruit juice.

What are the CRV fees?

• Containers that are glass/aluminum/polyethythylene terephthalate (PET) less than 24 ounces are subject to a 5-cent CRV and 10 cents for those larger.
• New container types into the program (Tetra Pak, pouches, bag-in-box) will be subject to a 25-cent CRV.

How will the CRV be paid?

• CRV is normally paid to CalRecycle by the distributor, then recovered from the retailer, who then charges the customer. For direct-to-consumer transactions, wineries would pay the fees to CalRecycle and recover by assessing the CRV upon their customers.

I have wine already produced but it won’t be sold until after July 1, 2025 (library wine as an example) so how do I have a CRV indicia?

• Wine and spirits containers filled and labeled by January 1, 2024 – all sizes – are permanently exempt from CRV labeling requirements.

What is the refund value per container?

• The refund value is the same as the CRV (5, 10 and 25 cents, respectively).

Where do consumers take their empty bottles?

• State certified recycle centers include redemption centers and curbside operations. You can find the closest by zip code or address.

There doesn’t seem to be a lot of recycling centers around the state — will this change?

• There are policy provisions enacted by the passage of SB 1013 and SB 353 meant to sustain existing recycling centers and encourage new ones.

Will there be Processing Fees?

• A processing fee will need to be paid to CalRecycle for all bottles and containers sold for consumption in California.
• The processing fee is updated annually.
• For 2023, the fee for glass is $0.00452 per bottle and for new container types, $0.00762 per container.
• For 2024, the fee for glass is $0.00576 per container, and for new container types, $0.00697 per container.
• Beginning in 2026, the processing fee for new container types will be computed from the actual scrap value of the container type.
• The fees are meant to offset the cost of recycling different material types.

Do all CRV proceeds go to California’s recycling program, or does it go to California’s general fund?

• All proceeds will go to the California Beverage Container Recycling Fund, which is managed by CalRecycle for disbursement in accordance with the bottle bill law.

Do we need to keep track of sales for redemption fees (CRV)?

• For sales directly to a consumer or a retail store, you will need to keep track and pay the redemption fee to CalRecycle.
• Wineries may collect the CRV fee from customers as a separate charge at the time of sale.
• Note: If retailers receive wine from a distributor, then the distributor is responsible for the CRV fee which they may collect from the retailer.

Who pays the fee for wines poured in our tasting room?

• Bottles used in tasting rooms are exempt.

What is the penalty for non-compliance?

• CalRecycle may assess a penalty of up to $10,000 for non-compliance, plus interest.

What do I tell customers if they ask about the CRV fee?

• In order to encourage recycling and litter reduction, California has a law calling for a small California Redemption Value fee to be added to wine bottles that may be refunded when they are recycled.

If customers purchase wine at a winery, can they take the bottle(s) to a recycling center to be reimbursed?

• Bottles purchased at a winery can be taken to an appropriate recycling location for reimbursement of the CRV fee.

Is California the only state that is doing this type of program?

• No, Iowa and Maine have bottle deposit programs that include wine. Oregon will expand its bottle deposit program to include wine in cans effective July 1, 2025.