ALBANY, N.Y. (Legal Newsline) - New York Attorney General Eric Schneiderman received court judgment against The Juice Factory Corp., a beverage company, for allegedly failing to follow the state's Returnable Container Act.
Known as the Bottle Bill, the act requires beverage companies to collect bottle deposits of at least five cents from consumers and then remit any unclaimed deposits to the state.
The Juice Factory, which is based in Monroe County, allegedly didn’t give the state the unclaimed deposits for more than two years. The court ordered the company to pay the total amount of $79,571.
If the Juice Factory fails to follow the court order, an additional $25,000 penalty will be added on.
“The Bottle Bill is one of New York’s hallmark environmental laws, and companies that skirt the law not only hurt recycling and litter prevention efforts but also cheat us all out of money that benefits the public,” Schneiderman said. “We will continue to work with our law enforcement partners to enforce New York’s Bottle Bill and other environmental laws, and ensure that everyone plays by the same set of rules.”
The New York State Department of Environmental Conservation (DEC) assisted Schneiderman in the investigation.