Pay redemption centers more for bottle returns

After reading The Gazette's Jan. 31 editorial “Bottle law: No better plan in sight yet,” I feel we should increase the reimbursement provided to small retailers.

Each year, the little family-owned convenience store where I work in my hometown loses a certain amount of money because of Iowa's beverage container deposit law, which mandates that it accept bottle returns. The 1 cent per-bottle handling fee provided by the 34-year-old piece of legislation does not cover today's handling costs.

I think the law is a very good thing for keeping bottles off the roadsides, but I also think we should respond to the increasing costs of complying with the deposit law by providing more reimbursement to small redemption centers.

Martin Diltz

Coggon