The Hawaii Department of Health has announced a half-cent increase of the deposit beverage container fee charged to manufacturers, distributors and importers of beverages.

The rate will grow from 1 cent to 1.5 cents beginning Sept. 1, with the result an increase of $4.5 million in annual program revenues.

Press release quote from director Loretta Fuddy:

The half-cent fee increase was written into the bottle law from its inception to ensure the recycling program could sustain itself and continue to pay back deposits to consumers. We were able to hold off a fee increase for four years by using existing funds; however, the special fund is now too low to continue the program through 2014, and the current fee is not enough to build critical program reserves necessary to conduct essential operations.

State law requires that the program determine the annual redemption rate by the first of August each year. For more info, click here.

Photo courtesy Arenamontanus.