Dive summary:

• Michigan officials are pushing legislation to dissuade people from trying to bring in out-of-state aluminum cans and cash in on Michigan’s recycling refund program.
• If the legislation passes, offenders will face up to 93 days in jail and a $1,000 fine.
• Michigan has the highest-paying recycling refund in the U.S. at 10 cents per can, which adds up to $10 to $13 million in fraudulent returns per year, according to a report from the Michigan Beer and Wine Wholesalers Association.

From the article:

"If you are intending to defraud ... then you should be held accountable for it," Kurtz said.

According to the state government website www.michigan.gov, most beverage containers in Michigan are labeled with a bar code that a reverse vending machine reads to determine if the container is returnable. It is preferred that the containers not be crushed so that the bar code can be read to ensure the product was bought in Michigan, the website notes. However, retailers are required to accept crushed containers if they are clean, sold by the retailer and can be identified as a Michigan returnable beverage container. ...