Stomped-out cigarette butts — the blight of many a Big Apple sidewalk — would be collected and recycled as part of a statewide environmental program included in a bill proposed by a Queens assemblyman.
Democrat Michael G. DenDekker, who drafted the bill last week, wants to slap a one-cent deposit on every cigarette sold in the state, similar to the deposit on cans and bottles. He hopes it will stop people from littering, or inspire others to pick up the butts.