This LTE originally provided by The Daily Mail

February 15, 2006

Bottle deposit would not be a tax

According to Webster's Dictionary, a tax is a compulsory payment, usually a percentage, levied on income, property value, sales prices, etc., for the support of a government.

A deposit is a sum of money paid as a security on something rented, or for a returnable bottle, etc.

These two words are not synonyms, yet the Daily Mail used them as such in its Feb. 6 editorial, "A bottle bill is a bad idea."

Let's get the facts straight.

The West Virginia Container Recycling and Litter Control Act would place a 10-cent deposit on beverage containers sold in West Virginia. Once consumers return their containers, they would receive their deposit back in full.

If only all of our taxes were fully refundable -- food tax, sales tax, income tax and property tax. We pay those and they are gone forever.

A deposit on beverage containers is not a tax. Taxes are not refundable.

Bottle bill states enjoy reduced litter and increased recycling. Residents of those states understand that they are paying a deposit, not a tax.

That's why no statewide deposit law has ever been repealed.

States with container laws have reduced their beverage container litter by as much as 80 percent.

It's a fact that the soft drink and beer industries still thrive in the states with container laws.

And it's a fact that there's a noticeable difference in the cleanliness of states with container laws versus states without.

Thanks to its bottle bill, Maine sends its litter clean-up crews out once or twice a year. Imagine.

West Virginia is known for its mountains and streams. People come here to escape the big city life. They come here to enjoy our state's natural beauty.

Let's give ourselves another reason to be proud -- less trash along our roadways and in our rivers and creeks.

A bottle bill is an idea that works, and it's not a tax.

Linda Frame

Charleston