weekend. However, he stated that he along with some neighbors did do some
roadside clean-up and that he was aware of other residents who did the same, noting
that the Vajdos Family picked-up 500 nip bottles. He stated he delivered a total of
about 600 nip bottles to Resident Mrs. Betsy Graham and he noted that Mrs. Graham
has asked that they get the word out either through the Ledyard Beautification
Committee or social media that those who were picking up the nip bottles to drop the
bags off to her. Councilor Saums stated that Mrs. Graham was planning to bring the
nip bottles to the State Capital in Hartford to bring awareness of this issue. He stated
residents can obtain clear plastic bags from Southeastern Connecticut Regional
Resource Recovery Authority (SCRRRA).
Councilor Ingalls stated that she and Deb Vessels do roadside clean-up in the area
from the Ledyard sign coming into town from Preston and that they typically collect
at least 100 nip bottles in that area. She stated she liked the idea of delivering the nip
bottles to Hartford. She stated although they could coordinate a town-wide
community event roadside clean-up that it did not address the root of the nip bottle
problem. Councilor Saums stated he agreed with Councilor Ingalls, noting that it was
a complex problem, stating that the Liquor Lobby was successful because there was
not mechanism or stream to redeem the nip bottles. He stated the current return
bottle/can machines do not take the small nip bottles. He stated the whole intent of
the nip bottle was to buy it, drink it, and throw it out the window while driving.
Therefore, he stated it was his opinion that the liquor nip bottles should be out lawed.
Mayor Allyn, III, stated that the Liquor Lobbyists were successful in blocking the nip
bottle deposit proposal; with the State Legislature instead approving Public Act No.
21-58 “An Act Concerning Solid Waste Management” in accordance with
“Resolution Regarding Revenues Received from Beverage Container Surcharges” -
Nip Bottle Surcharge Disbursement. He reported that Ledyard received $13,048.20
from the Nip Bottle Surcharge, noting that this equated to 260,964 nip bottles (17
nips bottles per capita) sold in Ledyard during the past six-months.
Mayor Allyn went on to state unfortunately Public Act No. 21-58 which imposed a
.05 cent surcharge on each nip bottle sold has not addressed the Municipalities
concerns regarding the littering of nip bottles on the roadways and more importantly
it has not deterred motorists from drinking, and driving, and throwing the nip bottles
out of their car windows. He explained that the Municipalities were looking for a .25
cent returnable deposit on each nip bottle sold to provide an incentive for people to
return the nip bottles, noting that you see people cleaning up the roads collecting
other beverage containers to return them to the store for the refund. He stated the
reason nip bottles were not picked-up was because there was not a bottle return and,
as Councilor Saums noted, there were no bottle collection machines for nip bottles,
noting their irregular sizes.
The Finance Committee reviewed the data sheet which listed the Nip Bottle
Surcharge Disbursement for each of the state’s 169 towns noting the following
towns:
