Months after failing at the ballot box, a controversial proposal to expand the state’s 5-cent bottle deposit law has new life in the Legislature.
Rep. Thomas Stanley, D-Waltham, filed legislation on Monday to expand the decades-old deposit on beer and soda to include containers filled with non-carbonated beverages such as water, tea and sports drinks.
Stanley, a longtime supporter of expanding the bottle deposit, didn’t return phone calls seeking comment.
His proposal comes roughly two months after voters overwhelmingly rejected a ballot question to expand the bottle bill, following an expensive campaign waged by the beverage industry to defeat the measure.