NY State Senate Bill S7336

Archive: Last Bill Status - Passed Senate

Introduced
In Committee
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Actions

view actions (7)

	Assembly Actions - Lowercase Senate Actions - UPPERCASE
Jun 07, 2016	referred to ways and means delivered to assembly passed senate
May 09, 2016	advanced to third reading
May 05, 2016	2nd report cal.
May 04, 2016	1st report cal.705
Apr 15, 2016	referred to cities

Votes

view votes

Jun 7, 2016 - floor Vote

S7336

floor

Aye

Nay

Absent

Excused

Abstained

May 4, 2016 - Cities 1 committee Vote

S7336

committee

Aye

Nay

Aye with Reservations

Absent

Excused

Abstained

show Cities 1 committee vote details

Cities 1 Committee Vote: May 4, 2016

aye (4)

aye wr (3)

Co-Sponsors

S7336 (ACTIVE) - Details

See Assembly Version of this Bill:: A9904
Law Section:: General City Law
Laws Affected:: Add §13-d, Gen City L
Versions Introduced in 2017-2018 Legislative Session:: S362, A1750

S7336 (ACTIVE) - Summary

Establishes a prohibition on the imposition of any tax, fee or local charge on carry out merchandise bags.

S7336 (ACTIVE) - Sponsor Memo

 BILL NUMBER:  S7336

 TITLE OF BILL :

An act to amend the general city law, in relation to prohibiting the
imposition of any tax, fee or local charge on carry out merchandise
bags

 PURPOSE :

This bill seeks to prohibit the imposition and/or collection of any
tax, fee or local charge on carry out merchandise bags.

 SUMMARY OF PROVISIONS :


Section one of the bill would amend the general city law to add a new
section 13-D to prohibit the imposition and/or collection of any tax,
fee or local charge on carry out merchandise bags.

More specifically, subdivision one of this bill would provide a
definition of carry out merchandise bag and retail store, while
subdivision two would establish a prohibition on any city, including a
city of one million or more, from imposing any tax, fee or local
charge on any carry out merchandise bag, and subdivision three would
establish a corollary prohibition on any city, including a city of one

million or more, from collecting any tax, fee or local charge on any
carry out merchandise bag.

 JUSTIFICATION :

Carry out merchandise bags are any plastic, paper or other bag or
carrying container, provided by a retail store, to a customer of that
store, for the purpose of carrying and/or transporting merchandise
lawfully obtained at such store. They further include any plastic
carryout bag as defined by subdivision four of section 27-2701 of the
environmental conservation law. In brief, they are most often
disposable bags provided to customers by a grocery or other retail
store for the purposes of carrying or transporting their food items or
other merchandise from the store to the customer's home.

For decades, grocery stores and retailers have provided customers with
disposable carry out bags to transport their merchandise. For many
years, such disposable bags were predominantly made of paper, but in
an effort to accommodate advocates in the environmental movement and
promote environmental protection, so as to save trees and switch to a
more eco-friendly recyclable material, most grocery stores and retail
establishments have switched to plastic bags and containers. These
disposable bags are easily recyclable, safe, convenient and healthy,
and have become the standard in the retail marketplace.

Despite the fact that there are many recycling programs for carryout
plastic bags, both in practice and in law, there has now developed a
movement in the environmental community to abandon its previous
advocacy for disposable plastic bags and advance the promotion of
permanent, customer owned shopping bags. As consumers clearly prefer
the disposable bags presently provided by grocery stores and other
retail establishments, those who favor the permanent, customer owned
shopping bags, now seek to force consumers to modify their behavior,
by means of the imposition of a tax or fee on every disposable carry
out merchandise bag provided by a retailer.

Although well intentioned, this bag tax or fee idea, is actually
harmful to consumers, families, retailers and public health. It is not
only impracticable to believe that every consumer can provide their
own carry out bag or container, but imposing a tax or fee on every bag
provided by the retailer, would significantly increase the cost of
groceries and every retail item sold in any city that imposes such a
tax or fee. Families who are already facing a high cost of living,
would be seriously and negatively impacted by this misguided and
unnecessary tax or fee.

Worse still, if customers do begin to provide their own carry out
bags, as those who support this tax or fee intend, such reusable bags
will undoubtedly present a serious public health issue. For such
reusable bags often present the risk of bringing into the store a
contaminate of food based disease, bacteria or other illness, which
can cause serious cross contamination or infection for both the
customer, or other customers, or store employees. Issues such as
salmonella, or other bacteria or viruses, which escape from food
previously carried in the reusable bag, or which are being spread from
the exposure to customer's own home environment, can be easily spread
from exposure to the reusable bag.

To bring such source of contaminates or disease back into the store is
both ill advised and dangerous. Accordingly, unless the reusable bag
has been completely cleaned and disinfected, which is a practice few
consumers with such reusable bags follow, this practice is one that
could well cause serious harm and disease to all the people exposed to
the bag. There is a reason why health care facilities, restaurants,
hotels and other entities that provide food and exposure to the public
use disposable and sterilized items. There is a reason why grocery and
retail stores have been using disposable bags for generations. To do
otherwise is simply irresponsible, and non disposable bags illustrate
this avoidable and ill advised risk.  As a result, it can be seen that
this misguided tax or fee desperately needs to be prohibited from
being imposed by any city.

 LEGISLATIVE HISTORY :

This is a new bill.

 BUDGET IMPLICATIONS :

None noted.

 EFFECTIVE DATE :
This act would take effect immediately.

S7336 (ACTIVE) - Bill Text download pdf

                    S T A T E   O F   N E W   Y O R K
________________________________________________________________________

                                  7336

                            I N  S E N A T E

                             April 15, 2016
                               ___________

Introduced  by  Sens.  FELDER,  LANZA,  GOLDEN -- read twice and ordered
  printed, and when printed to be committed to the Committee on Cities

AN ACT to amend the general city law, in  relation  to  prohibiting  the
  imposition  of  any  tax, fee or local charge on carry out merchandise
  bags

  THE PEOPLE OF THE STATE OF NEW YORK, REPRESENTED IN SENATE AND  ASSEM-
BLY, DO ENACT AS FOLLOWS:

  Section  1.  The  general  city law is amended by adding a new section
13-d to read as follows:
  S 13-D. PROHIBITION ON THE IMPOSITION OF ANY TAX, FEE OR LOCAL  CHARGE
ON  CARRY  OUT  MERCHANDISE BAGS.   1. DEFINITIONS. FOR PURPOSES OF THIS
SECTION THE FOLLOWING TERMS SHALL HAVE THE FOLLOWING MEANINGS:
  A. "CARRY OUT MERCHANDISE BAG" SHALL MEAN ANY PLASTIC, PAPER OR  OTHER
BAG  OR CARRYING CONTAINER, PROVIDED BY A RETAIL STORE, TO A CUSTOMER OF
THAT STORE, FOR THE PURPOSE OF CARRYING AND/OR TRANSPORTING  MERCHANDISE
LAWFULLY  OBTAINED  AT  SUCH  STORE.  A  CARRYOUT  MERCHANDISE BAG SHALL
INCLUDE ANY PLASTIC CARRYOUT BAG  AS  DEFINED  BY  SUBDIVISION  FOUR  OF
SECTION 27-2701 OF THE ENVIRONMENTAL CONSERVATION LAW, AS ADDED BY CHAP-
TER SIX HUNDRED FORTY-ONE OF THE LAWS OF TWO THOUSAND EIGHT.
  B.  "RETAIL  STORE"  SHALL MEAN ANY BUSINESS ESTABLISHMENT, INCLUDING,
BUT NOT LIMITED TO, A GROCERY STORE, CONVENIENCE STORE,  DAIRY  PRODUCTS
STORE,  PRODUCE  MARKET,  DEPARTMENT  STORE,  GENERAL MERCHANDISE STORE,
CLOTHING STORE, HARDWARE STORE, PHARMACY, DRUG STORE, HOTEL, RESTAURANT,
SODA FOUNTAIN, GASOLINE STATION, OR ANY OTHER SIMILAR MERCANTILE  ESTAB-
LISHMENT  OFFERING GOODS AND/OR SERVICES AT RETAIL TO INDIVIDUAL CONSUM-
ERS, AND/OR ANY OTHER ESTABLISHMENT WHICH IN THE REGULAR COURSE OF BUSI-
NESS SELLS OR RENTS GOODS OR SERVICES DIRECTLY TO THE PUBLIC.
  2. PROHIBITION ON THE IMPOSITION OF A TAX, FEE OR LOCAL CHARGE ON  ANY
CARRY OUT MERCHANDISE BAG. NO CITY, INCLUDING ANY CITY WITH A POPULATION
OF  ONE  MILLION  OR  MORE, SHALL IMPOSE ANY TAX, FEE OR ANY OTHER LOCAL
CHARGE ON ANY CARRY OUT MERCHANDISE BAG AS DEFINED  IN  PARAGRAPH  A  OF
SUBDIVISION  ONE  OF  THIS  SECTION. THIS PROHIBITION SHALL APPLY TO ALL
CITIES, INCLUDING ANY CITY WITH A POPULATION OF  ONE  MILLION  OR  MORE,
REGARDLESS  OF  WHETHER SUCH TAX, FEE OR OTHER LOCAL CHARGE IS ATTEMPTED

 EXPLANATION--Matter in ITALICS (underscored) is new; matter in brackets
                      [ ] is old law to be omitted.

                                                           LBD15036-02-6

S. 7336                             2

TO BE ASSESSED OR CHARGED BY THE CITY INDIRECTLY AGAINST THE  WHOLESALER
PROVIDING  ANY  CARRY  OUT MERCHANDISE BAG TO THE RETAIL STORE, OR INDI-
RECTLY AGAINST THE RETAIL STORE PROVIDING ANY CARRY OUT MERCHANDISE  BAG
TO  THE  CUSTOMER,  OR DIRECTLY AGAINST THE CUSTOMER RECEIVING THE CARRY
OUT MERCHANDISE BAG FROM THE RETAIL STORE.
  3. PROHIBITION ON THE COLLECTION OF A TAX, FEE OR LOCAL CHARGE ON  ANY
CARRY  OUT  MERCHANDISE  BAG.  NO  WHOLESALER MAY COLLECT ANY ADDITIONAL
CHARGE, TAX OR ANY OTHER FEE UPON A RETAIL STORE FOR  THE  PROVISION  OF
ANY  CARRY OUT MERCHANDISE BAG, OTHER THAN THE ORIGINAL COST OF SUCH BAG
AS AGREED BETWEEN THE WHOLESALER AND THE RETAIL STORE FOR  THE  PURCHASE
OF  SUCH BAG.  ADDITIONALLY, NO RETAIL STORE MAY COLLECT ANY CHARGE, TAX
OR ANY OTHER FEE UPON A CUSTOMER IN RETURN  FOR  THE  PROVISION  OF  ANY
CARRY OUT MERCHANDISE BAG.
  S 2. The act shall take effect immediately.

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The New York State Senate

senate Bill S7336

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Archive: Last Bill Status - Passed Senate

Your Voice

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Votes

Jun 7, 2016 - floor Vote

Floor Vote: Jun 7, 2016

May 4, 2016 - Cities 1 committee Vote

Cities 1 Committee Vote: May 4, 2016

Co-Sponsors

S7336 (ACTIVE) - Details

S7336 (ACTIVE) - Summary

S7336 (ACTIVE) - Sponsor Memo

S7336 (ACTIVE) - Bill Text download pdf

Comments

senate Bill S7336

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Archive: Last Bill Status - Passed Senate

Your Voice

Actions

Votes

Jun 7, 2016 - floor Vote

Floor Vote: Jun 7, 2016

May 4, 2016 - Cities 1 committee Vote

Cities 1 Committee Vote: May 4, 2016

Co-Sponsors

S7336 (ACTIVE) - Details

S7336 (ACTIVE) - Summary

S7336 (ACTIVE) - Sponsor Memo

S7336 (ACTIVE) - Bill Text download pdf

Comments