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Maine residents may see fewer cigarette butts on the ground in the months to come. A bill that would place a 5-cent refundable deposit on cigarettes was introduced to the legislature by Representative Joe Brooks.
If this bill is passed, a 5-cent refundable deposit will be placed on every cigarette sold in Maine. Every cigarette box will have “Do Not Litter. ME-5 cents” printed on the outside. Each cigarette filter will be stamped “ME-5 cents”. To get the deposit back, 20 cigarette butts must be sealed in a plastic bag and returned to a redemption center.
The bill was proposed late last fall and came out as a legislative document in January 2001. The bill will be reviewed by the Business and Economic Department Committee of the Maine Legislature on March 8. If the bill passes it will technically go into effect 90 days after the legislature adjourns but it may take a few months for the law to be enforced.
“Concerns over sanitation are not greater than for returnable bottles and cans,” said Peter Daigle, a writer of the bill. “Butts would be returned in sealed plastic bags.” Stores will not be required to accept redeemable cigarette butts but could do so voluntarily.
Aside from being litter, cigarette butts bring other concerns. Cigarette filters are made of cellulose acetate, a plastic that takes many years to biodegrade. The purpose of cigarette filters is to trap carcinogenic chemicals that smokers do not want in their bodies. When butts are thrown on the ground, the chemicals end up in rivers, lakes and oceans.
Supporters of the bill see it as being an effective way to reduce cigarette butt litter and overall pollution in Maine.
“We are very serious about this,” Brooks said. “Now that the bill is out people are starting to take notice.”
Currently, Maine has no specific laws dealing with the disposal of cigarette butts but there are three statutes against littering in Maine.
Littering is considered a civil violation, which is the same as a speeding ticket according to Lt. Michael Zubik, an officer with Public Safety.
The litter laws that are in effect do not seem to be strictly enforced Daigle said. He said he hopes when the laws become more specific police officers will be less lenient.
Bangor Daily News