(a) For purposes of this section:

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(1) “Department” means the Department of Energy and Environmental Protection;

(2) “Commissioner” means the Commissioner of Energy and Environmental Protection;

(3) “Beverage” means any carbonated beverage or noncarbonated beverage;

(4) “Carbonated beverage” has the same meaning as provided in section 22a-243;

(5) “Noncarbonated beverage” has the same meaning as provided in section 22a-243;

(6) “Plastic” means a manufactured or synthetic material made from linking monomers through a chemical reaction to create a polymer chain that can be molded or extruded at high heat into various solid forms;

(7) “Plastic beverage container” means any beverage container, as defined in section 22a-243, that is made of plastic. “Plastic beverage container” does not include any label, cap, closure or other item affixed to the container. “Plastic beverage container” does not include any refillable beverage container, including any container that is sufficiently durable for multiple rotations of such container’s original or similar purpose and that is intended to function in a system of reuse;

(8) “Post-consumer recyclable material” means a material or product generated by households or by commercial, industrial or institutional facilities in the role of an end-user of the material or product that can no longer be used for its intended purpose or that was returned from the distribution chain and has been separated from the solid waste stream for the purpose of collection and recycling;

(9) “Post-consumer recycled content” means the amount of post-consumer recyclable material used in the manufacture or production of a new product. “Post-consumer recycled content” does not include preconsumer or post-industrial secondary waste material, including, but not limited to, materials and by-products generated from and commonly used within an original manufacturing and fabrication process;

(10) “Producer” means any person responsible for compliance with minimum post-consumer recycled content requirements for a plastic beverage container, including: (A) Any owner or licensee of a brand or trademark for a plastic beverage container that is sold under such owner’s or licensee’s owned or licensed brand or trademark, regardless of whether such trademark is registered in this state; (B) the manufacturer of a plastic beverage container that lacks identification of a brand at the point of sale or the person who manufactures such plastic beverage container; and (C) if there is no other person described in this subsection over whom the state can constitutionally exercise jurisdiction, the person who imports or distributes the plastic beverage container in or into the state;

(11) “Manufacturer” means any person that produces or generates a plastic beverage container. “Manufacturer” does not include: (A) Any government agency, municipality or other political subdivision of the state, (B) any organization registered under Section 501(c)(3) or 501(c)(4) of the Internal Revenue Code, or (C) any producer that annually sells, offers for sale, distributes or imports into the country for sale in this state (i) less than one ton of plastic beverage containers each year, or (ii) plastic beverage containers that, in aggregate, generate less than one million dollars each year in sales in the state; and

(12) “Person” has the same meaning as provided in section 22a-2.

(b) On and after January 1, 2027, plastic beverage containers sold, offered for sale or distributed in this state by each producer shall contain, on average and in the aggregate, not less than twenty-five per cent post-consumer recycled content.

(c) On and after January 1, 2032, plastic beverage containers sold, offered for sale or distributed in this state by each producer shall contain, on average and in the aggregate, not less than thirty per cent post-consumer recycled content.

(d) On or before December 31, 2032, the commissioner, in accordance with section 11-4a, shall submit to the joint standing committee of the General Assembly having cognizance of matters relating to the environment a report reviewing the minimum post-consumer recycled content requirements of this section. Such report shall include, but need not be limited to: (1) An evaluation of the requirements of this section; (2) any recommendations on future minimum post-consumer recycled content standards for plastic beverage containers; (3) any recommendations for the expansion of post-consumer recycled content requirements to other packaging or product categories and the attendant percentage requirements recommended for each packaging or product category; and (4) an evaluation of any third-party certification methods existing for plastic beverage containers and whether such certification methods should be applied to future minimum post-consumer recycled content requirements.

(e) For the purposes of determining a producer’s compliance with the minimum post-consumer recycled content requirements of this section, a producer may rely on state-specific data regarding plastic beverage container sales and material use, if available, or may alternatively rely on the same type of data applicable to a region or territory in the United States that includes this state. If a producer elects to rely on data regarding plastic beverage container sales and material use derived from data applicable to a region or territory in the United States that includes this state, the producer shall prorate that regional or territorial data to determine state-specific figures based on market share or population in a manner that ensures that the percentage of post-consumer recycled plastic calculated for plastic beverage containers sold in this state is the same percentage as calculated for that larger region or territory; and document in its report the methodology used to determine those state-specific figures.

(f) (1) On or before April 1, 2026, each producer that offered for sale, sold, or distributed plastic beverage containers in or into the state in the previous calendar year shall register with the commissioner, individually, or through a third-party representative that registers with the Commissioner of Energy and Environmental Protection on behalf of a group of producers, in a form and manner prescribed by the Commissioner of Energy and Environmental Protection. At the time of registration, each producer shall submit an initial registration fee of five hundred dollars in a manner prescribed by said commissioner. Any entity that becomes a producer for the first time on or after April 1, 2026, shall submit the registration and submit the initial registration fee required by this subparagraph not more than one hundred eighty days after such entity becomes a producer and shall register on the schedule specified in subdivision (2) of this subsection. Any producer that sold, offered for sale or distributed less than ten thousand plastic beverage containers or, in the aggregate, less than two hundred pounds of plastic that is not post-consumer recycled plastic shall not be required to pay the initial registration fee required by this subdivision.

(2) On or before April 1, 2031, and every five years thereafter, each producer that offered for sale, sold, or distributed plastic beverage containers in or into this state in the previous calendar year shall register with the Commissioner of Energy and Environmental Protection. In addition, each producer or representative submitting such a registration shall remit a registration fee in an amount to be determined by said commissioner. Such fee shall be scaled to reflect the market share of any such producer or representative during the preceding five calendar years, as determined using information provided in reports filed pursuant to subdivision (3) of this subsection, and shall be adequate to cover the department’s cost to implement, administer, monitor and enforce the provisions of this section and shall be used exclusively for such purposes. The commissioner may modify the amount of such registration fee, including by setting a maximum amount for such fee, as necessary, to reflect updated implementation costs. Any producer that sold, offered for sale or distributed less than ten thousand plastic beverage containers or, in the aggregate, less than two hundred pounds of plastic that is not post-consumer recycled plastic, shall not be required to pay the registration fee required by this subdivision.

(3) Each producer shall submit a report to the Department of Energy and Environmental Protection, on or before April 1, 2026, and annually thereafter, identifying the brand names of the plastic beverage containers represented in the report as well as the weight, in pounds, of post-consumer recycled plastic, the weight, in pounds, of plastic that is not post-consumer recycled plastic and the percentage of post-consumer recycled plastic in the total weight of all plastic beverage containers the producer sold, offered for sale or distributed for sale in this state in such prior calendar year. The form and manner of the report shall be prescribed by the commissioner and each report shall be certified and such certification signed by an authorized official of the producer.

(g) Not more than once per calendar year, a producer may seek from the commissioner a waiver from the requirements of this section by filing a written request on a form prescribed by the commissioner. In seeking any such waiver, the producer shall set forth the specific basis upon which the waiver is claimed, indicate any applicable timeframe for such waiver request, submit such proof as the commissioner determines to be necessary and provide any other information specified by the commissioner. The commissioner shall consider written waiver requests submitted between the first day of September and the first day of October of each calendar year, and any approved waiver shall take effect the first day of January of the following calendar year. The commissioner may approve a waiver. In making such a determination, the commissioner may consider factors including, but not limited to, the availability of feedstock.

(h) The Commissioner of Energy and Environmental Protection may participate in the establishment and implementation of a multistate clearinghouse to assist in carrying out the requirements of this section. Any such clearinghouse shall assist in coordinating reviews of producer registrations, waiver requests and certifications, recommend acceptable third-party certifications and implement state reporting activities and any other related functions pursuant to this section. Notwithstanding the requirements of subsection (f) of this section, if the commissioner determines to participate in such a clearinghouse, such participation may provide producers the ability to register on a centralized portal offered by such clearinghouse in lieu of a state-specific portal provided such registration requirement shall not otherwise be affected by the use of any such centralized portal.