Cuomo Resurrects the Bottle Law

ALBANY—The state will start collecting revenues on unclaimed bottle deposits, Attorney General Andrew Cuomo announced.

The collection had been stayed by an earlier court ruling, after bottlers sued over an expanded bottle law that seeks to collect nickel deposits for bottled water sold in the state. The ruling, by federal judge Deborah Batts, would prevent these deposits form being collected but would allow the state to recoup the unclaimed deposits, for which it had budgeted.

Bottlers must comply with the law by October 22, Batts ruled.

"The Court's decision yesterday will allow essential, long-overdue updates to the Bottle Bill to finally take effect," Cuomo said in a statement. "Our victory will ensure that the most critical elements of the Bill move forward expeditiously, resulting not only in cleaner communities and new, green jobs but also in over $100 million in added revenue for New York State."

David Paterson and legislative leaders all agreed that the law, as passed in the budget, needed to be amended. However, they did not act before it took effect, and were taken to court.