Buying a drink in some states adds a small refundable charge to the price. That deposit changes recycling behavior measurably, and it also creates rules that catch travelers out.
The deposit is a refund, not a tax
The charge is added at purchase and returned when the empty container is brought back to a redemption point. Nobody loses money by participating.
Because the money is only recovered by returning the container, the incentive attaches to the container itself rather than to a general sense of duty.
This is why deposit states show much higher return rates for covered containers than states relying on curbside collection alone.
Return quality is the real benefit
Containers returned through a deposit system arrive sorted by material and largely free of contamination, because they were handled individually.
Curbside single-stream collection mixes materials, and glass in particular breaks and contaminates paper and plastic in the same load.
Cleaner streams have real value to reprocessors, which is why deposit material is more likely to actually become new containers.
Coverage is inconsistent between states
Programs differ in which containers are included, with some covering only carbonated drinks and others extending to water, juice and other beverages.
Deposit amounts differ as well, and a container bought in one state generally cannot be redeemed in another.
A road trip crossing several states therefore accumulates containers with different statuses, only some of which are worth anything at the next stop.
Redemption points are the practical obstacle
Returns happen at retailers, reverse vending machines or dedicated centers, and their hours and locations vary considerably.
Machines reject damaged or unlabeled containers because they read the barcode, so crushing everything into a bag defeats the process.
Travelers moving daily often find that finding a redemption point costs more time than the deposit is worth, which is why containers end up in hotel bins instead.
What this means for packing
A refillable bottle avoids the question entirely, and water refill stations are now common in airports, park visitor centers and trailheads.
Where bought containers are unavoidable, keeping them uncrushed and consolidating a return before leaving a deposit state recovers the money and keeps the material in the better stream.
Knowing which states run a program before a trip is a small piece of planning that determines whether any of this is possible.